just bought some flat pedals in the week and some five ten shoes to see if I can ride without spd’s .First ride up and down the road and they feel very grippy the v12 pedals seem pretty good 🙂 the main reason for going back to flats is I find that the trail centres are getting that much more extreme and I seem to be seeing people riding with flats alot more these days , so my first ride tomorrow around the local woods with flats , hope it goes well …wish me luck guys ! 🙂

Good luck, you wont go back to spds

cheers 🙂

Just done the same (although mostly to keep my feet warmer).

If you haven’t already got them, get shinguards. Cheapo football ones work.

i’m hoping the five ten shoes won’t slip off the pedal :):)

Was on flats, but on the really tech stuff, when going quick, I need to be connected to my bike. I kept trying to stay on flats then went to the English DH champs 3/4 years ago and all the tops came through clipped so back to clipped i went, especially on the tech stuff when going fast, and found it so much better. I ride both now but and a big BUT. I have broken my collar bone three times in two years all whilst clipped in and don’t seem to come to the same level of grief on flats. Currently back on flats as still repairing shoulder and lots of ice and snow – going to try some Jedi help next…..

Good luck with yours.

yes maybe flats are better for winter riding when its wet a slippery roots etc think I will keep my spds to ride both 🙂

Can only ride flats off road – hate being clipped in !

Just use what you like. I was Using flats today in the snow as My feet were on and off the pedals. I like using them for learning how to jump and manual as well. I use 5.10s but they are not as comfy as clipless and in think i have knacked the ligament on My foot with flats. I have à high instep. The other thing is that as long as you have your clips set up correctly your feet are always in the right place and i find it hard to move my feet around and get them in the right place with flats.

richieokeefe1 – Member

“i’m hoping the five ten shoes won’t slip off the pedal :)”

Nothing’ll keep your feet attached to the pedal if you screw up. Which in fairness, you probably will It’s just like going from flats to SPDs, there’s tricks that no longer work and skills you won’t yet have. Just don’t get pissed off at the first hurdle like most eejits do, it takes time to adapt and there’s a wee bit of relearning basics involved. DROP THOSE HEELS

Even if it doesn’t stick, being able to ride with both sorts of pedals is useful I reckon. Was for me anyway. I think I probably would still use SPDs if I had the choice but before I learned flats, I would have told the internet they were awful.

I’m the opposite then. I like moving my feet a lot and find it very odd now to be clipped in on the MTB. I use clips on the road bike as I don’t want to move as much on there.

Have never got round to buying bike specific shoes either – I use a knackered old pair of off road running shoes which have quite a sticky compound on the sole and I am happy walking i when I need to. So far I haven’t found a problem with foot stiffness on long rides but then currently rides aren’t that long due to the weather. As I make rides longer as the spring comes it’ll be interesting to see what I think then.

But as GEDA wrote, use what you like is a good rule of thumb

Have gone from 13 years of SPDs to flats. Took a while to get into them but now wouldn’t go back. Feet feel very connected and always in the most comfortable place. Took some time to get the foot position which is more forwards when descending than on SPUDS.

Will need some better winter shoes than my 5-10s but they coped well in the snow and ice today!

Struggling to see why anyone would want to go back to flats from SPD’s. Interested in opinions.

2nd what Northwind said. Drop those heels. Have only ever ridden flats and keeping the pedals level over rough ground seems to be the most common error when people are trying flats.

Im going back to flats on all bikes soon…
Always rode flats for DH and beach riding, while clipped in for XC.
And while Times are great clipless pedals, i like wearing ankle boots and so use 5;10s and walking boots on DMR V12s, and for clipless my shimano MT90s which are giving up after nearly 5 years use 😮
Its all cash…dual purpose shoes are more sense for me now…as can be used for walking too,
as with most clothing for cycling,im a bit dismayed at the speed stitching gives up on cycling kit compared to walking/multi purpose kit.

I’ve always ridden clipped in – be that on or off road. However, I relented and bought a set of Sanderson Promag SLs for winter commuting in the snow and ice. I’m just using my MT90s with them, but I have to say that I’ve been very impressed with how “sticky” they are.

I reckon I’ll try them on the mmmbop once the weather permits and might even invest in a pair of Shimano AM41 shoes to go with them.

another flats converts (after 15+ years of spds)

without analysing things, i just feel more relaxed on flats. There is no right or wrong – just whatever your happiests with

I use flats at trail centers and in snow and spds for all the rest of the time

I’ve always used flats, both on and off road. To those who ride spds: do you put on your clippy shoes when you’re just popping over to the post office or getting milk or whatever?

One of the best things about flat pedals, for me, is the casualness they add to cycling. I can wear sandals on the road in the summer, I can wear wellies in the winter, or vans on my Mtb.

But when I tried SPDs I could definitely understand the appeal, for sheer ‘My bike and I are one – zen’ feeling.

Spd’s most of the time – flats if it’s very slippery or smooth and dusty

firestarter – Member
I use flats at trail centers and in snow and spds for all the rest of the time

I use spds all the time but have wondered if it might be better to use flats for trail centers, I seem to have so many low speed ‘offs’ where I wasn’t able to clip out when I felt the need for a dab. I never have a problem with XC, I like to ride the lanes around the Dales and always feel comfortable being clipped in but never feels right around trail centers, or maybe it’s cos I’m useless 😳

I think ‘the man’ has something to do with this

All the mtb mags seem to be running features on flats at the moment, how they can improve your riding etc

Up until 6 months ago I was definitely under the impression that I was a total amateur for never having the confidence (or stupidity depending on your point of view) to use spd

Now it seems everyone is changing back

It’s all a conspiracy to get you to part with your hard earned 😉

Well I changed to flats (mainly) after a no speed tumble off to the LHS landing on a tree stump on my quad and bashing the toptube of my coke can cove. Confounded by the not really being able to unclip fast enough when going over tech and it going wrong and not wanting to trash another leg/frame…

Been on flats for a couple of years now.

Obviously I’m a victim of subliminal advertising…

That’s my problem smarty, the being useless bit 😉

yep i sort of agree with jools above,

BUT,

I think i’m going to give flats a stab, i was offered some cranford crampons by progressive-si a while back and im going to take him up on the offer, been riding SPD since 97 and have only really had one massive bone crunching off due to being clipped in so I’m happy with SPD’s but all this hype in the mags has got me interested,

I will keep my beloved soul on SPD’s but i have a Evil sov that is just crying out for a set of flats, i think it will make the ride on it a lot more interesting as i found myself unclipping on some corners so i could get a foot down and the back out sliding round which doesn’t seem right in SPD’s,

what shoes would you flatties recommend ?

And we’re off! 😀

After hearing all the hype, I got some flat pedals and shoes to try. I’ve been clipped in since before spds were invented. I used road bike shoes and pedals off road. I think Barry Clarke or someone was spotted doing it. Anyway, I just never find myself being inclined to fit them. Maybe I should make an effort this year. I want to do a skills day with jedi and I know they’re recommend for that.

Flats are a retrograde step.I remember using old school road shoes with cleats and toeclips in the national mtb hillclimb and downhill in 1991 and cant see myself using flats as I like to be connected to the bike

onzadog, i recommend using the pedal system, you want to use 🙂 🙂

Do you have some sort of alarm system that let’s you know when you get mentioned in a post? 🙂

I wouldn’t say they are retrograde , that’s s bit Like saying riding bikes is a step backward since the motorbike was invented, it’s horses for courses , I did always think that spd on a mtb was a bit of snobbery when I first started using them more a case of look at me I’m so confidant that I won’t fail that I have nailed myself to the bike 🙂 ,

I just can’t help thinking that when I had a bmx I could do all kinds if things whilst still being glued to the dx’s that I would consider unsafe to attempt while clipped to an mtb,

thread titled going back to flat pedals is an alarm enough 🙂

I don’t like the idea of being attached to the bike like spds do. Even on my road bike I don’t really like it.

btw since learning the proper foot technique my feet haven’t come off yet, and thats over frozen rutted fields which may as well be rock gardens at the minute 🙂

I always used clips and straps from the outset of mtbing in the early 80s so going spd with the ability to get out of the pedal quickly was a godsend

since learning the proper foot technique my feet haven’t come off yet

How do you pull on the upstroke?

Since they’re flats I don’t (knowingly) pull, just push with the other foot..

Not very efficient then!!

After 18yrs of spud I converted to flats as 2 serious injuries in 3 yrs from failing to unclip in a crash. Took me a year to get comfortable and still perversely feel less confident jumping but clipped in now feels alien. Didn’t get on with five ten the soles too stiff for me I like to feel the pedals under my feet. Santa brought me some am40s which have inserts to tune sole stiffness.

Are some people really only “able to” ride a bike after getting all clobbered up like a nobber in disco slippers and bike specific clothing? for 18 years? really? 😯

I find that rather sad (as in a shame) 🙁

I deviated onto flats a bit recently and SPDs are faster and more comfortable for me. While I’ve got shoes that grip like mad, I can never seem to accurately replicate the position I get on SPDs, and when I put my foot down there’s a lot of shuffling around finding somewhere that’s comfy. Obviously SPDs eliminate that.

SPDs are faster for me too- I find I have more control over the bike, but I can put more power down when I need to. By way of evidence, I did a DH race about 3 years ago with flats for one run and SPDs for the 2nd and the SPD run (the only variable was the pedals) was around 8-10 seconds faster.

I do use flats still for rides when there’s going to be a lot of walking but for me, SPDs trump flats hands down and it’s purely a fashion thing that people are changing them for. While some people will genuinely benefit, your average overweight middle age punter won’t. Even for DH.