Reverence: Speedplay Pedals
I’m old as dirt. My first two race bikes employed toe clips and toe straps and that set-up was bad. For many reasons it was bad and any retro-hipster who thinks otherwise is wrong. When Lemond and Hinault started racing on the white Look clipless pedals, everyone but Sean Kelly quickly switched. Talk about a quantum improvement, it was long overdue change. Look made improvements to their models, like the notion of float, and other manufactures jumped in. The new paradigm was a cleat on the pedal, like the original quill pedal system but with a spring loaded snap-in, twist-out pedal. Everyone was happy.
Everyone is happy until you have to replace a worn out plastic cleat. Did I walk a lot in my cycling shoes? Did all liquor stores have rough cement floors with giant moving sanding belts in front of the cash registers? I don’t remember that but I do remember replacing cleats too often and the duplication of cleat position was tedious. I could live with that, practice makes perfect but it was the creaking that drove me to madness. No amount of wax could stop the occasional creaking the cleat and pedals would make while climbing. Rule #65 was being violated before it was a Rule.
Wiser friends had already switched to Speedplay pedals. I was a little wary; they looked weird. One day into using them I understood: total frictionless float, two-sided entry, mindless pedal release. There is no cleat alignment issue as the pedal has no fixed position in the cleat. I was overcome with regret. Why had I waited so long? Why did I stick with creaking Look French pedals? Life is too short for such rubbish and I wasted too much of my cycling life with them. I’ve been using the X-series stainless steel pedals and the original pair was happily going on eighteen-plus years until I replaced the pedal needle bearings and bodies…I don’t want to talk about it. If you employ the good aftermarket cleat covers, and use a little white lightning teflon on the cleat spring bales, the cleats can last a few years. The pedal bodies have grease injector ports. Inject, wipe clean and that is the maintenance routine, easy and fun.
I’ve never used another model of Speedplay so I can’t speak to the advantage of limited float. When riding my right foot does a weird swing out toward the bottom of each stroke. To my mind that is a good thing, the float allows my leg to do that, without that maybe some extra knee wear would occur.
Frank and I have discussed the great pedal switch and his major obstacle to switching pedals is having to switch the whole n+1 stable over and that is not cheap. For Frank and VHM that stable may be five bikes. That’s a lot of pedals. Inertia. Commitment. It’s a big problem. Or one takes Marko’s approach: different shoes for each bike.
I have brand loyalties but if another cycling product is superior in form and function I hope I will see that and move on. Campagnolo gruppos and Chris King headsets are two brands on my bikes that I don’t see moving away from but I would ditch either of those before I would stop using Speedplay pedals. I’m that convinced.
This film is from Peloton’s website. It’s an interesting look at some American cycling manufacturing including Speedplay.
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/43771401[/vimeo]
@minion
Each to his own, I guess. At least he’s Rule #33 compliant.
@frank
jeeesus! The Joey clip, Inglorious Bastards clip, Team America clip and the hula girl links all posted on the same day. I think that this site as just climaxed!
@Flying Crowbar
Absolutely. I regularly ride up north in the Conroe/Montgomery/Anderson area. Have routes from 65 to 160km. Look into Bike Around The Bay. I do it every year. Great event.
Feel free to email me at jlennard(AT)comcast(DOT)net. I have JiPM’s contact info already.
@wiscot I defy you to go back to using toe clips and straps again on a regular basis, they’re horrible with a capital NO THANKS. Sure, the Campagnolo pedals may be pretty to look at but I wouldn’t ride them if I had the choice.
Oh, that’s right, I do.
@frank I have ridden some, but only on the track.
@Marcus
So do I. Much like the Meares/Pendleton rivalry defined their intense rivalry, the Minion/Marcus flame wars have really defined an era.
Yes, yes I did just compare myself to Anna Meares and Victoria Pendleton. Any problems can be addressed to;
Minion c/o
Cave 1
Canberra
Australia.
@Oli
I’m trying to turn SWHMBIAV in to a proper VMH – my plan is to acquire a Trek 1.0 for £500 or so in earth money. They ship with toe straps so that she can do what we did in our youth and ride with straps yarked down on her trainers until I can persuade her that Speedplays and “special” shoes are the way to go come the spring.
SWHMBIAV is the same dimensions as my daughter (Diesel) and I should get double the use as Diesel needs to meditate on Rule #5 – a reasonably talented water-polo player she is suffering from being a teenager and is difficult to motivate in to fitness work but I suspect she’ll ride a better bike if her mum does.
Am I insane Oli or does this sound like a plan?
@Gianni The country in question is Israel – because of the political situation, there’s pressure by Arab customers to avoid business with the country. For a company like Speedplay, they do the basic maths: 7 million inhabitants, only a minority of which are cyclists are not enough potential customers to offset a boycott. As for the dates – well, pretty much every rest-stop or natural oasis along the desert roads has a few palm trees, and they get so sticky when they rot on the road. Same with the Ficus tree fruits that grow in the cities and northern tropical zones.
Maybe I’m just young and careless (20 years old and pretty fresh), or maybe I’m putting too much faith in technology (3D Retul motion tracking is pretty impressive), but the fits I’ve done both on the road bike and on the tri bike have resulted in perfect comfort from the first day and zero injuries. If the knee tracks straight, and the foot doesn’t use the float available to it – why keep it available? In fact, my road bike’s fit was done just two days before a three-day, 600km ride – and at the finish, I was more comfortable than I would’ve been after two hours before the fit.
@Oli
Only on the track? Are you moonlighting as Ole Ritter?
@minion
Any city whose name, I’m guessing, is derived from “Canning Berries” goes on the suspect list as far as I’m concerned.
@frank LOLOLI RITTER
It’s just that my first track bike was an old used RIH with those pedals and shoes chucked in.
@the Engine I’m sure the pedals and toe clips supplied will be lots more comfortable than the ones we’re talking about, and in the case of riders using trainers on pedals they’re probably the best idea – it’s not as if she’ll have to tighten the straps to the point of poor blood circulation like we used to.
@frank Ah well that’s your first problem right there, assuming Canberra’s a city. If it helps, any address that begins, “Cave 1 …” isn’t likely to be a city.
@Oli
Did you see that thing I put up about the dropouts?
@the Engine Yes, I did thanks. It’s not just a Ridley problem either – if I’m checking for unusual noises on any bike the derailleur hanger is one of the first things I check.
@Oli
Derailleur hanger was secure – it was the three “Jesus Nuts” that hold the dropout to the frame that were giving up…
@tessar
A boycott, damn, we can sneak some into the country.
I agree with you about your Reteul, if you don’t need float, you don’t need it. Maybe in 37 years you will, like me! Shocking.
@Oli
You understand. Toe clips and straps. Crap.
If anyone hasn’t seen it, the owner (I think) of Speedplay has a huge collection of pedals from way back. It’s on the Speedplay site.
I’ve given the pedals a fair shake, but they always felt like trying to pedal on ice cubes. Maybe I’ll try some of the limited float styles.
@Oli
This is some of the best advice available. I say that without knowing what you’re talking about specifically, but I’ll extrapolate and confirm that removable derailleur hangers collect dirt and all kinds of other shit. If you have an unexplained sound, clean that little bastard. More than a few times, this has been the source of an ‘orible creaking noise.
@the Engine Urk! I have seen that before too, but it’s pretty rare! Bad luck…
Off topic, but…not really!
Who is in the French National Champion kit in the 1986 TdF? Was watching a video of LeMan + Hinault chasing Zimmermann, not sure who that dude is, but then again, it’s also in French, so maybe I’m hearing his name but not picking it out of the rest.
Lay it on me! I know one of ya knows.
@minion
Petra. Just sayin’. Although I don’t think it’s something the Aussies built. Or even could have.
@minion
Exactly. Cave 1 is where the PM/Head Shepherd lives. Extreme security – they make you check your shears at the door.
@Ron It was Yvon Madiot, although I confess I had to resort to Wikipedia to find that one out…
@Buck Rogers
Show me yours and I’ll show you mine! Everyone else look away!
@minion Rivalry and rivalry. apologies.
BTW, if folks are getting a bit short with each other round here, the idea of a Velominati Code of Conduct could be discussed. I know Fhroonk has shied away from this in the past since it requires moderation in the traditional interdweeb forum sense, but on a website with 90-something rules…
Rule one should probably be no passing judgement on other poster’s occupations since that always gets on people’ s nerves.
Rule two should be no repetition of the word ‘rivalry’ in posts.
@tessar
That’s weird though, because I’m in an Arab country and I promise you the locals prefer Nissan Patrols to anything that might have Speedplays – there are a few Arab cyclists in clubs but the vast majority are expats. It’s certainly the case across the Gulf and nobody cares about Egypt or Iraq commercially.
I looked on the Speedplay website and they have no distributors in MENA so it could be a general thing. At any rate it’s all Look here, or Shimano (so obviously they manage to work across both markets).
@Oli
is he Marc’s older brother?
@Buck Rogers
Actually, he’s is younger brother. By a few years, if I’m not mistaken.
@minion
We already have a code of conduct already. For the most part, The Keepers and I have enough work around here and find no enjoyment or reward in enforcing it. That said, when things get out of hand…
But that is a good suggestion and I’ll amend it to include knowingly insulting someone’s occupation and also that if you are engaged in an argument with someone the following constitute poor form and will, as time goes on, be tolerated less and less by the Keepers:
First, contain your pissing to one tree; don’t cross-post your grievances. Second, once the last word on your argument has dropped off the current page of posts, leave it alone. If its not on the current page of posts, you’re the only one still thinking about it, so bringing it up again is just about you and your ego, neither of which is appreciated.
But all of this really goes under Rule #43, no more should need to be said.
@frank
Ahh, learn something here everyday!
@frank
Although I challenge you and Oli (or anyone) to name all four Simon brothers who road pro and their age order WITHOUT looking it up (by the way, I cannot do this myself).
@Buck Rogers
All I’ve got is Pascal, Jerome, and Fancois.There is one more, and his name escapes me.
@frank
I had forgotten Francois. Isn’t the other one Simon? I have not looked them up yet. As for ages, I have no idea of the order.
@ChrisO In this case, I’m speaking from knowledge – both of the two “high-end” importers (the guys dealing with Parlee, Time and the guys that got a Cervelo S5 shipped on the announcement week) tried to negotiate with Speedplay and set up a distribution channel and were refused. I know cycling doesn’t seem to popular in Arab states, percentage-wise (my mother told me how few they were at the Abu Dhabi Triathlon) – but there’s a fuckload more Arabs with fuckloads of money to spend than there are Israelis. There’s 5-6 million Israelis here, of which around 40k cycle – how many would get Speedplays? A thousand? Of which three-four would get a pair of Nanograms as a vanity item. That’s the sort of money a sheikh might spend on his commuter’s pedals, or rather, the commuter-esque bike that’ll never actually touch the pavement.
It’s political pressure not just from the Arab countries by themselves, but other organizations too. No idea exactly who, but there are powerful lobbies that pressure anyone from pedal-manufacturers to rock-bands (and quite a few big names cancelled their shows). In many ways, I agree with them, too – my country deserves a boycott just like South Africa did in it’s day – but even if I understand the reasoning, it bugs me when I can’t get the pedals I want. I don’t see myself staying here after the bachelor’s degree.
@Buck Rogers
Ahhh, actually really wish we had an edit function as I was cleaning and thinking about this I realized that I proposed that Simon was the first name of the missing Simon brothers. What the Fuck? Man, I guess all this house cleaning chemicals must be getting to my brain.
@Buck Rogers Regis?
@Oli
That’s a BINGO!!! I had to look it up but should have just trusted you, Oli. Well done guys!
Dear Frank,
I was reminded today why speedplays are not used much in Belgium..while on the local groupride, had to pull off for a much needed pee in the cornfield. Yep, I forgot the speedplays hate the dirt and yes I could not clip in for the next 20km of little power climbs..Not until the beer/coffee stop where I took my shoe and washed it in the cafe’s WC sink….OTHERWISE love my speedplays…
@farzani
I am a bit cautious around dirt and gravel (but have had very little trouble””sometime a stick or thin stone is enough to scrape gunk clear). The one that does get me, though, is ice and slush in the winter, which can happen just by putting a foot down for a couple of seconds at a stop or light.
@Steampunk and that happens to frequently here in Belgie! :)
Im watching Team America right now.
@RedRanger
NICE! Durka, durka, jihad.
@farzani
Newbie to the site here, although I’ve been riding since ’87 and reading posts here feverishly since finding it a few months ago.
If you like the idea of speedplay pedals but are held back by the thought of mud, grit, etc., take a look at bebop pedals. They’re a very similar idea, but originally designed for mountain biking, so they have a more open design. The important design of lots of free float is still there. I have three pairs: road, mountain, and cyclocross (although I’ll admit that I might take them off of my mountain bike and switch that to something with a bigger platform). I don’t know if they’re distributed outside the US, though, and they’ve certainly never gained any traction with the pro’s.
@the curious
there is a UK site that is throwing speedplays out the door. As much as I am 50/50 on them, at the sale price it was too hard to not pick up another set for #1 build that is coming up. Colours a bit limited
@roger I just bought a pair of zero cromolys from ribble for £87….please tell me Ribble is the site you are referring to or did I just lose out?
@Deakus
Nope, that is the site. Titanium’s for the lighter guys are selling at the stainless price point. The stainless at the cro-moly price point. Good end of season deals popping up already.
Wonderful! That is the only way I can describe my first ride on my new speedplay zeros. After 20 years on Looks the simple joy of not spending 3 revolutions trying to fine a positive connection on my off foot after each junction was pure joy. They are a little stiff out of the box but I can tell a wonderful relationship has begun…Thanks for this article!
@Deakus My work is done here, I have a happy rider off Looks and and on Speedplays.