Fizik terra atlas, very comfy but stiff in the right place for pedaling. Just enough give at the toe for reasonable hike-a-biking. Shimano trail pedal spd
Time Atacs and some Specialized stiff XC race type shoes. Same with all my bikes, MTB, road, gravel, pub tbh
Exactly the same ones I use for mtb. Nano pedals, whatever shoes fit the weather - lightweight (stinky) decathlon walking boots, 5-10 freer riders, worn out Specialized 2FOs.
These pedals, cause they’re lighter than XTR but much cheaper, and I can use my mtb shoes
Yep, I use ES-600s for a few reasons. Pretty light for SPD pedals, one side so lower underneath so very slight less likely to pedal strike on road and I wear XC shoes (pair for summer, pair for winter) as I need to get over styles and I also never take tools or tubes with me so once every few years have a long walk home so can't wear road shoes.
Yep, I use ES-600s for a few reasons.
I have them on my road bike. They sit at a bit of a weird angle so engagement is harder than it should be, and the paint flakes off really easily. I expected better feom an Ultegra level component.
Wow! Those ES-600 pedals look like they'd not be the best pedals for commuting.
Not as big and supportive as a road pedal (and doubt they'd be as stiff), not as easy to clip into as a standard double sided SPD pedal and doesn't have a platform like an enduro type pedal for when you haven't got quite clipped in.
Better with a cheap pair like these IME
Not as big and supportive as a road pedal (and doubt they’d be as stiff
On that, I can't tell any difference and I used road pedals for years.
Like dc1988, XT8100 pedals and a pair of Mavic shoes, in my case their Allroad gravel shoes - now sadly discontinued but still available on discount at some places...may get another pair for when these wear out (though still going strong after a couple of years). More svelte than mtb shoes but still walkable and decent grip for hike a bike bits
Depends on the gravel. The looser chips with a bit of slippery limestone and the occasionally puddle, Time ATAC and shimano black shoes (can't remember the number sorry). Dry red crushed gravel roads, shimano pedals and suede shimano touring shoes.
I use the same combination of Northwave boot / cheap DHB shoe with XT SPD mid cage or standard M520/530 SPD across all my MTB's or gravel bike. XT's usually stay on the full suss then I have a box of cheaper SPD's I've collected over the years that get swapped about.
I use CB eggbeaters and giro terraduro. Have done for yrs, bought the terraduro for do it all shoes that could also hike a bike - can’t help thinking that the terraduros are a bit overkill on the gravel bike though and might try a lighter shoe as I don’t tend to hike a bike much. Also thinking I might switch to cb candy and get a bit more support. Have also got a pair of the cb one sided pedals which I used to use on my old Cotic do it all escapade which were pretty useful pedals but not really good at either thing if that makes sense.
Also thinking I might switch to cb candy and get a bit more support.
I changed from Eggbeaters to Candy's many years ago for this very reason. Mostly, I wanted to wear a shoe suitable for a bit of hiking, therefore needing a bit of flex. The Candy's are just enough support to allow this.
I don't do gravel but if I was to I would just use my MTB shoes and pedals like I do on my road bike. It's what I am used to and comfy with. TIME ATAC MX pedals of various types. I use XC shoes on the road bike and "enduro" ones on the MTB.
Although I use flats in my mtb I use XT spds on my gravel bike with Specialized Recon shoes. I’ve put an higher insole footbed in the shoes to stop me pronating as I have really high arches. The red specialized ones are perfect. They have made a massive difference to knee pain. Weirdly don’t get any knee pain with flats.
I’ve got DMR Verso pedals on which allow me to pick and choose between 5:10 flats for more adventurous off road bits or ones that end in the pub or commuting or clip in for longer easier rides. Also<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;"> slightly depends on a sore knee.
</span>
It’s nice to have options
Same as the mtb, Sidi Wire 2 Carbon shoes with Look X-Track carbon pedals. While the Sidi are comfy I do find the wire system a pain as you have to regularly tighten it up.
5.10 trail with nukeproof plastic flatties. My brain is too slow for SPDs plus when Bikepacking I get to wonder about without cleat clop
Road - Dura Ace SPD SL (4mm extended axle) with Sidi Shot.
Gravel - XTR SPD with Sidi Tiger.
MTB - XTR Trail SPD with Sidi Tiger.
I don’t do walking so I enjoy the stiffness and snugness of the Sidi carbon soles and ratchety uppers. If I want a walk, I take the dog out and go for a walk. I pick my riding where I can just ride. The Sidis aren’t great at walking and the SPDs aren’t as good as some pedals at shedding dirt and seem very prone to getting stuck with small pebbles (which are common in the geology where I ride).
Next time around I would avoid the Trail variant of the pedals. The extra cage seems a bit superfluous as your contact point is the cleat rather than the sole.
I would also probably avoid SPD. The interface can squeak badly and Shimano don’t seem capable of fixing the rubber seal in place without it migrating up the axle. Time seem like a better bet.
I would however definitely stick with Sidi. They fit my feet well and are really well made.
Watching this thread with interest as I am definitely flats curious.
What vlad said x2 - so much easier to have one pedal platform
Wow! Those ES-600 pedals look like they’d not be the best pedals for commuting.
Not as big and supportive as a road pedal (and doubt they’d be as stiff), not as easy to clip into as a standard double sided SPD pedal and doesn’t have a platform like an enduro type pedal for when you haven’t got quite clipped in.
Not sure what riding gravel has to do with commuting but how can a metal pedal and axle not be stiff exactly?
And I find them easy to clip into and I ride fixed gear making it that bit harder.
Agree that the paint comes off easily but not really a problem to me as when riding on gravel the pedals get a few stone hits anyway and can live with that for the weight which I have to keep an eye on to maintain an under 6kg bike.
Shimano m540 pedals that refuse to die and Giro Empire VR90 for the summer and Northwave Celsius boots in the winter.
Didn't expect so many crank brothers users. I've been using them for users but thought they were the pedal everyone hated!
Anyway those and the DHB MTB velcro shoes (which I think look slick enough for road use as well), both have been spot on for gravel bike.
Whatever the XTR spd model was 9 years ago when I built the bike. Awesome they've been. I think the Spesh F2Os are even older but don't look it.
Not sure what riding gravel has to do with commuting
Cos people commute on gravel bikes and don't want to swap pedals over? (I do, and don't.)
Time ATACs and Sidi something's in the summer and Lake boots in the winter, the same as my MTB
<p style="text-align: left;">Shimano RX8 shoes in black with Shimano M530 trail SPD pedals. I have a pair of the bronze colour RX8R shoes but haven't worn those yet as I could never ride as fast as they look.</p>
Cos people commute on gravel bikes and don’t want to swap pedals over? (I do, and don’t.)
Fair enough, not how I read the question "What pedals and shoes do you use for gravel?"
Anyway, the pedals would be fine for commuting as they naturally fall rear side down so foot goes straight in.
Time MX5's (to pamper my knees) and some Northwave carbon soled boa copy shoes on commutes. Out for a local bimble there's some 5.10 Kestrels to allow for some comfy walking
XT trail SPDs and XC7 shoes
Shimano M530 pedals and some old Northwave Scorpius MTB shoes (from about 2015!) in summer, Shimano MW5 boots in winter.
Some 15 year old Time Atac Freeride pedals from the spares drawer and some old entry level Shimano XC/trail shoes from the dusty shoe bin.
Gonna need a solution to stop my feet getting wet though.
@chakaping:
Gonna need a solution to stop my feet getting wet though.
Shimano MW5 (or MW7 (goretex) if you have more money than me) boots and grip grab gaiters.
MW5 looks spot-on cheers, might be able to work a pair into the budget in a while.
The Grip Grab gaiters make a huge difference too.
To revisit this thread, I made the decision this weekend that I need to sort my 'adventure gravel' footwear.
Day 1 - Sidi XC disco slips (old dominators from my XC racing days) - fine on the bike, just not great off the bike. They are also getting old and tired.
Day 2 - dug out some Northwave laced up cleated numbers I normally used a bit 'urban'. Horrible - I could feel my whole foot bending around the SPD and once they got wet, they weighed the same as a small planet. Each.
I've come to the conclusion that gravel (to me) means cleats and cleats means a stiffer sole XC styled thing rather than a five ten style lace up 'shoe' with a cleat.
I'm leaning towards a something like the Specialized Recon 3.0 - so kind of an 'aggressive disco slipper' and apparently some built in walking flex whilst being stiff on the bike. Just not cheap.....
And to make choice a touch harder - I want them to be animal free....not sure the recons are, need to research.
Yeah - I have two types of gravel riding. Type A is when I head out knowing I'll be on decent tracks (and roads) and want to be as "efiicient" as possible. Type B is when it involves a bit more exploring and might mean significant hike-a-bike. Those Recons actually look pretty good as a compromise. I especially like the green version. £230 though - eeek!