I think I am ready to graduate to clip in shoes/pedals/ whatever they are called.
How do you know which kind to get and do you purchase at the same time as shoes or separately?
Where is a good starting point?
I would be willing to purchase used as long as they are fungus free lol. I wear a size 7-7.5
Suggestions and criticism (constructive) are appreciated!
Lori
First off make sure you get road or triathlon shoes or pedals. Don't get mountain bike shoes or pedals.
There are essentially 3 types of pedal to decide from and two types of shoes 2-hole or 3-hole. If you get a 3-hole shoe, you will not be able to mount a 2 hole cleat without buying a hard to find adapter and vice versa with a 2-hole shoe and 3-hole cleat.
The pedal options are:
Keo/Look- Most common pedal and the one I would recommend. It is a 3-hole cleat. It is pretty easy to get in and out. Reasonably priced. Can only use one side of the pedal
Speedplay- 3-hole cleat. Pretty expensive. Was really popular for a while and probably still the most popular among Pro triathletes. It is actually what I have on my tri-bike. A little harder to get in and out but you can use both sides of the pedal. I know at least one girl who complained about hers and ended up selling them after a week or two. Once mine wear out, I am going back to Keo/Look.
SPD- 2-hole cleat. One of the original designs and now mostly used on commuters and mountain bike. Some people still use them on road bikes. They can be found fairly inexpensively. Can use both sides of some pedals. Really easy to get in and out.
My advice would be to get a 3-hole Tri shoe and Keo/look pedals. The cleats should come with the pedals. You can get the shoes and pedals from different vendors at different but just make sure the # of holes are the same.
I went to Carolina Tri and got mine. Keo/look pedals and the least expensive Specialized bike shoe.
- itri -
ok thanks- was it you that told me a while ago that when you first got the clip-ins that you kept coming un- clipped because you built leg strength and had to get different pedals/shoes? maybe not but someone told me that and I didn't know if that has anything to do with which kind to get.
Not sure if you are asking me or Traci but I have used SPDs, Keo/Look, Speedplay and EggBeaters(Strictly Mountain Bike pedals) an none of them would have to be upgrade due to increased leg strength. They all hold fine. Sounds like bad info to me. FWIW, most of the clips are adjustable so you can make them easier or harder to release.
when buying the shoes, should the cleats come with them or do the cleats come w/pedals?
Are these good? wondering if I should tri shoes or road shoes.
http://www.6pm.com/pearl-izumi-w-tri-fly-iv-carbon-hot-pink-black?zhlfid=139&kpid=31250927&kpid=31250927
when buying the shoes, should the cleats come with them or do the cleats come w/pedals? Are these good? wondering if I should tri shoes or road shoes. http://www.6pm.com/pearl-izumi-w-tri-fly-iv-carbon-hot-pink-black?zhlfid=139&kpid=31250927&kpid=31250927
The cleats come with the shoes normally. Those look great. But they don't match your bike or your tri outfit.
I like to hold things, look at things in person. Try them on. Know how they feel. If you had been buying biking shoes for several years now and knew a lot about them, I would go ahead and order on line. To me, it is like ordering running shoes online because they are the right color when you have no idea what shoe is best for you.
You would love Carolina Tri if you would go there and talk to them. They are nice and will answer all your questions. They will not talk you into more than what you need. They take care of you. And that is very nice.
Go see them and let them help you. You won't regret it. The shoes I got there cost the same as the ones you are looking at. They had cleats and the guys there put them on my shoes for me and it was great.
Those shoes look fine. I think Traci meant to say cleats never come with the shoes. Cleats will come with the pedals. That shoe has a 3 hole design so you could go with either Keo/Look or Speedplay pedals. You would not be able to use SPDs without an adapter. I wouldn't suggest SPDs anyway. I would suggest Keo/Look unless you really wanted Speedplay. Speedplay is fine but some people complain that it is hard to get in and out. I have Speedplay on my Tri-bike and Keo/Look on my other bikes. I prefer the Keo/look and when the Speedplays wear out I will switch to all Keo/Look
I really like Carolina tri and I looked online at the shoes they have but all they have is white in some of the styles I like - unless I spend $300 + but that's not to say that they couldn't order something for me. I probably should go just to see what size I'd wear. I really don't care about matching lol red and black aren't really my first choice colors...
Maybe that's what they offer online but in the store they have all prices and "levels", I guess, of shoes. They carry basic to as much as you want to pay. They have black/grey I'm sure. I got the Specialized shoes. Basic ones $99. Basic model pedals. LIke $80. They are perfect.
What did you decide?
Going to go this week and try some on- worked all last week but I'll keep u updated! Hopefully they will have some pretty ones but I also have my dividend check from rei so I may check there too
Shoe status update:
I ordered pearl izumi carbon tri fly in pink and black, they didn't have any pretty shoes at Carolina Tri that were within my price range. However, I did buy my pedals from them though, I got the Shimano ones (I really don't know the difference lol) They were very helpful. Next is learning how to ride with them!
Congratulations! you did it. you'll do great.