| Author | Message | ||
     Nick Bellistri (Nickbell) Member Username: Nickbell Post Number: 105 Registered: 11-2002 |
I stopped cycling a few years ago because of some chronic knee pain. I was using look/campy pedals at the time and i am confident they were adjusted correctly. Anyways, I came across Speedplay pedals and they seem like they may help to alleviate some of the pain. i am specifically looking at the X series. Conceptually I like the idea of unlimited float. Any one try them or the Zeros | ||
| Melissa N (Roverchic) Member Username: Roverchic Post Number: 98 Registered: 02-2004 |
What type of bike? Trek? Cannondale? | ||
| Jamil Abbasy (Jamooche) Senior Member Username: Jamooche Post Number: 408 Registered: 05-2003 |
I have had the round Speedplay pedals on my Trek 2200 for about 2 years now. They have an amazing range of pivot, and you can still get out easily. I'm not sure if they would help with the knee pain though. But my SPDs on my MTN bike hardly pivot at all in comparison. | ||
| Nick Bellistri (Nickbell) Member Username: Nickbell Post Number: 106 Registered: 11-2002 |
Sorry I neglected to mention its a road bike. An Eddy Merckx in molteni orange.... | ||
| Paul D. Morgan (V22guy) Dweb Lounge Member Username: V22guy Post Number: 2553 Registered: 02-2002 |
I realize that this is not Rover related, but.... I personally can't stand speedplay pedals. IMHO, they have way to much float and do not provide a stabile platform. Through the years I have tried Onza, Ritchie, crap from Trek, and I always end up with the standard from Shimano. Right now on the Scapel I am running the shimano 858 (number might be off). Your knee problem might get worse with pedals that have more float. If you are worried about coming out of the pedal; then pick a pedal with the least amount of float and dial back the tension a bit. This is DWEB and I drove my Rover to work today. | ||
| Patrick Oberg (Obie) Member Username: Obie Post Number: 43 Registered: 02-2003 |
Nick- I have to agree with Paul on this subject... to much float can be a bad thing. I'm certified through the ‘United Bicycle Institute’ to do bike fittings, and I can tell you, a majority of pain felt on the bike is felt because their ride is not fitted for them properly! Depending on how much you’ll be ridding, I would recommend hitting your local shop and getting fitted… My .02c- | ||
| eric w siepmann (Cdn001) Member Username: Cdn001 Post Number: 83 Registered: 12-2003 |
Nick, I have been riding them for years. Love them. I agree with the posts above about reviewing your fit. Especially this early in the season, prior to racing or riding. The one thing to remeber is that your body itself will monitor and in sever cases limit float. Your joints won't like a specific angle and pain will result. As far as the speedplays are concerned, I think that their float is their greatest asset. Why? because they allow you body to naturally adjust to fit you riding style. Most people shy away from them because they feel like their on ice. But they allow your body to find its most comfortable pedal stroke. This is important because most average riders have an uneven stroke and a dominant leg. The float allows the weak leg to comfortable adjust. A second major advantage is that are light. And being at the end of the crank (rotational weight) the pedals are an intelligent way to save some grams. Hope this helps. Talk to your local LBS and see if they have a pair you could use for awile. Our shop did (and still does). Roadbikereview.com has reviews of them as well. Good luck, EwS | ||
| Joe B (Denverrover) Member Username: Denverrover Post Number: 179 Registered: 02-2003 |
Nick - I'm not a big fan of the speedplay's. I think that they have just too much float. I don't know any serious racers who ride them. Majority will ride Look/Time - I've heard good things about the new Dura Ace. BTW a pedal with new float is not going to fix knee pain - that is most likely you riding with your saddle too high. Try taking some Glucosamine - it has helped me. | ||
| Musky Rover (Gumarcel) Senior Member Username: Gumarcel Post Number: 1228 Registered: 11-2002 |
Times are the best IMHO. | ||
| Nick Bellistri (Nickbell) Member Username: Nickbell Post Number: 107 Registered: 11-2002 |
Thanks for the info... I will see if any local shops have a pair of Speedplays or Time pedals I can try. I am pretty confident my saddle is adjusted but I will look into to having a bike shop fit me. If any one knows of a decent shop in and around boston email me. My favorite shop just closed.... | ||
| Andy Thoma (Andythoma) Senior Member Username: Andythoma Post Number: 553 Registered: 01-2003 |
For knee pain nothing is finer than speedplay road pedals. I have been riding them for 10 years now. They have a learning curve though, they feel like standing on ice cubes for that first out of saddle sprint. The mtn pedals, the frogs, are nice and I rode those forever, but I would go through a set or two a year while racing; not very strong. Since moving from PA to Utah I switched to those monster shimano spd platform downhill pedals. Heavy as boat anchors but wonderfully stable for the bomber hills and big drops that are out here, trust me Moab is more than a place to wheel at. As for fit, I too was trained by serrota for the fit cycle. You never realize how little changes can make a bike fit properly. It is an expensive service, but well worth it if you ride a lot. | ||
| Kent S. Wilcox (Kswilcox) New Member Username: Kswilcox Post Number: 20 Registered: 06-2003 |
This thread caught my eye because I had the knee pain issue as well. The pedal I ended up with, that you my not have considered, is the Bebop. They are very light (as light as Speedplays), have 20 degrees of float with no tension, and don't feel as "slippery" as the Speedplays. Your foot finds the right spot and stays there. The pedal is made to use for mtb or road, and I have used them for both happily. They make models with cromoly, stainless, or titanium spindels, and no I am not a rep, just a happy customer. | ||
| Tim '92 RR (Snowman) Senior Member Username: Snowman Post Number: 700 Registered: 12-2002 |
Major float and they are not for everyone. Some describe them as skating on ice. Try them before you buy unless you collect pedals. Merckx eh? Nice. Where in the Boston area? This is Dweb and I jump started my Rover today. Tim | ||
| Joe B (Denverrover) Member Username: Denverrover Post Number: 182 Registered: 02-2003 |
I didn't know that Speedplay has been around for 10 years? I don't know anyone who has actually fixed knee problems with pedals. Knee issues = bike fit. | ||
| Matt Moore (Mmoore) Member Username: Mmoore Post Number: 46 Registered: 01-2004 |
Speedplays have been around since about '89. They have just gained in popularity lately. Your Knee issues = bike fit formula is too simplistic. | ||
| Tim '92 RR (Snowman) Senior Member Username: Snowman Post Number: 701 Registered: 12-2002 |
I contacted a friend in South Boston and he has had good luck with the following LBS's: Belmont Wheelworks and Landry Cycles. | ||
| David Caton (Catonincarolina) Member Username: Catonincarolina Post Number: 76 Registered: 05-2002 |
Look | ||
| Paul D. Morgan (V22guy) Dweb Lounge Member Username: V22guy Post Number: 2563 Registered: 02-2002 |
Dave, Back in the day, I rode look on my Specialized S-works road bike. One day, I was sprinting towards an intermediate points line and WHAMMO! My right cleat came apart. Within seconds I was flying through the air and when I hit the ground; I shattered my helmet, sprained my shoulder, and left a lot of flesh on the road. I never road look again. Besides, aren't they French?  Sorry had to get some right-wing action in here. | ||
| David Caton (Catonincarolina) Member Username: Catonincarolina Post Number: 77 Registered: 05-2002 |
The cleat broke? or were the bolts lose? | ||
| Stacey R Abend (Srafj40) Member Username: Srafj40 Post Number: 158 Registered: 03-2003 |
Pedals break period, road or mtb. If they do not break the bolts loosen, pedals require the same attention as the rest of the bike. I have broken Time, Shimano, Coda, Campy, Treks generic SPD etc....We used to say pain in front = saddle to low, pain in back = saddle to high From http://www.cptips.com/knee.htm One way to classify knee pain (and identify possible solutions) is to look at the location of the pain. Anterior (see chondromalacia below) Reasons patellar tendonitis patellofemoral syndrome Causes pushing BIG gears - cadence too low saddle too low or too far forward foot too far forward on the pedal crank arms too long leg length discrepancy with seat set for shorter leg Possible solutions ride at 75 rpm or higher raise seat (in small increments of less than 5mm) or move seat back move cleat forward 1 to 2 mm shorten crank arms by 2.5 cm set seat for longer, not shorter, leg with correction for the shorter leg Posterior Reasons hamstring/gastrocnemius neurovacular bundle Causes saddle too high or too far back too much pedal float leg length discrepancy with no correction for shorter leg Possible solutions lower seat (in small increments) or move seat forward limit float to 6 - 8 degrees set seat for longer, not shorter, leg with correction for the shorter leg Medial (inner side) Reasons medial collateral ligament pes anserenus Causes cleat position too wide - foot held externally rotated (toes point out) excessive knee frontal plane motion too little pedal float Possible solutions narrow foot position by moving cleat inwards orthotic or wedge to correct foot alignment pedal float should be 6 - 8 degrees Lateral Reasons iliotibial band degenerative lateral meniscus Causes cleat position too narrow - foot held internally rotated (toes pointed in) too little pedal float excessive knee frontal plane motion Possible solutions widen foot position by moving cleat away from the bike pedal float should be 6 - 8 degrees orthotic or wedge to correct foot alignment Stacey | ||
| Joe B (Denverrover) Member Username: Denverrover Post Number: 185 Registered: 02-2003 |
I agree that bike fit equalling knee issues is too simplistic. I however didn't have the resource that Stacey presented. I think that what we are all trying to say is that knee problems are not going to be solved by adding 10 degrees of float. | ||
| Nick Bellistri (Nickbell) Member Username: Nickbell Post Number: 108 Registered: 11-2002 |
Stacey and everyone else that contributed- thanks for the info. I agree the knee pain= bike fit equation is too simple. My knee pain is simply do to long femurs and hamstrings that are too short, resulting in iliotibial band tendonitis. This was worsened (i think) by several years NESCA and junior UCF racing. The pain isnt bad or debilitating but more of an aggrivation. Snowman- thanks for info... The Merckx is nice. Its old school. It sat at my LBS for about 3 years before i came and swooped it up. Nuthin like riding Columbus tubing. I have my eye on an Independent Fabrication (IF) or an old school Fat Chance road bike if I can ever find one. | ||
| Chris Vestal (Conceptvision) New Member Username: Conceptvision Post Number: 11 Registered: 07-2003 |
http://www.crankbrothers.com/ Egg beaters all the way!! light and just the right amount of float for me. I have been racing Sport CC for 9 years. I like these so much I put them on my road bike. A few of my road racing buddies have followed suit. Everyone is happy. | ||
| Devin Walton (Devin_walton) Member Username: Devin_walton Post Number: 41 Registered: 03-2003 |
I think that Stacey's post has a ton of relevance in identifying specific remedies because a pedal with a lot of float may relieve chronic pain, but this is through allowing "slop". However, the actual cause of the pain is likely caused by other issues. Nick, it seems that you've already diagnosed the bio-mechanical issue, but working with someone that does a lot of fitting and has worked with a lot of athletes may be able to offer some other suggestions. IMO, this issue should be somewhat seperate from the performance aspects of the pedal that you choose. Though it likely opens a can of worms, I feel obligated to mention that while I'm trying to keep my opinion unrelated to product, the fact is, I'm biased as a person that works for Shimano (I'm sure that kills my credibility!). good luck, Devin |
