My First Road Bike: and I need help

1.) Thanks for the advice last night. I took it out for a quick ride this morning and had considerably less stress on my wrists. Now all I have to do is get used to that seat so my butt quitshurting so much.

2.) I have SPD on one side and platforms on the other side of my pedals so I decided not to wear my clipless shoes (mostly because I forgot them in the car) this morning. It ended up being a pretty good thing because while rounding a corner I nearly plowed right into a group of kids riding thier bikes to school and taking up the entire path. I managed to slam on the brakes and fishtail through the group without hitting any of them. But if I had my feet snapped in I would have bit it hard.

If you are going to be riding a long distance, invest in shorts. They really help. Get the Mountain bike ones and they look like regular shorts.



We used to call those Campus pedals, very nice.

But; once you get used to the clips, you will find that they provide you more control in every situation, and you come out of them instantly. They are actually probably safer than regular pedals, even though they seem more dangerous.

Awesome, wish I had a flash new road bike. I chose the Rock Climbing gym membership this year instead.

Cycloptichorn

Just for what it's worth, I use the Answer BMX shoe. Like most mountain bike shoes, they have a recessed cleat (SPD). Maybe if I were doing serious long distance, or competive cycling, I would go with a road bike shoe, but these were my choice years ago, and I haven't regretted it.

My hybrid uses the same pedal, platform x SPD. I would somewhat prefer SPD on both sides, but not enough to spring for a new set of pedals. I did fabricate a weight from angle iron for the front of the right pedal. It doesn't position the pedal for perfect blind entry, but it does set it up in the same position each time. Your foot quickly learns how to hit the pedal so the SPD side is up.

By the way, if you are using SPDs (the Shimano brand), did you know that there are at least two styles of cleat? The one ending in the number 51 releases when you twist to the outside. The one ending in in number 56 releases in all directions. I had the 56 when I collided with the car, and released just like I wanted to.

I use the Eggbeaters -



I also use a MTB show with a recessed cleat. Not a problem with the eggbeaters, gives me great traction offroad, don't need separate shoes for my different bikes.

Cycloptichorn

I considered Crank brothers. Still, SPDs are adjustable, if that makes a difference.

You can flip the cleat over to change the release distance on the eggbeaters, but that's about it.

I love 'em b/c they shed mud so easily and are easy to maintain, clip in/out however the hell you want, and... the ladies love the stylish looks.

Cycloptichorn