Road Cycling

hornetstinger said:
No it isn't, for me. But if he's a noob, then it's best to be cautious then have a clipless moment due to inexperience, damaging your bike, injuring yourself.

merlin said:
I went from never riding clipless straight to spd-sl - doddle.

I'd recommend just getting stuck in.
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Ditto
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It's a fact that it's harder to pedal with SL's as a regular pedal (to gain speed so you don't fall over, to clip in then start pedalling)
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You can still turn the cranks on SPD-SL's without being fully clipped in :o just treat it like a regular flat pedal until you gain momentum.

Equally you will be fully clipped in on one side before setting off and can continue to push/pull with one leg if need be to continue momentum temporarily.

If you are worried about falling over or damaging your bike then you should stay inside on the turbo :p
 
You can still turn the cranks on SPD-SL's without being fully clipped in
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Soles on SL shoes are smooth and slippy, so they can slip on the wrong side of the SL pedal.

just treat it like a regular flat pedal until you gain momentum.
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But it's not. If it's wet the shoe will be like walking on ice. There is no heel, no grip.

But on a MTB SPD you can safetly pedal without being clipped in, without the fear of it slipping off.

Equally you will be fully clipped in on one side before setting off and can continue to push/pull with one leg if need be to continue momentum temporarily.
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Yes but a noob will be wobbling about trying to clip in the other side.

It's best to start off with the MTB pedals, best to do that, than risking damage to yourself and your bike (falling over with a carbon bike is not a good idea)
 
Sorry, n00b question about bottom brackets.

I'm just doing some much needed maintenance on my Spesh Allez, I've just whipped off the BB and am after a replacement. The one removed was a Shimano 4500, which I think was Tiagra spec from some years back.

I was just about to order a 4700 Tiagra from CRC for 13 quid, but then spotted Wiggle & Halfords doing the Ultegra 6800 for just over a 10er. Am I right in thinking that they're compatible and I can grab the cheaper and better version?
 
Numerous times I have pedalled SPD-SL's upside down in the wet for brief periods and not fallen over and burst into flames.

Carbon is not made of glass and if it shows significant structural damage from a non-impact low speed fall then it probably shouldn't be being ridden anyway.

You seem to enjoy exaggerating small risks & difficulties so I will leave you to it.
 
Was a great road ride this morning, but very cold and slippy, soon warmed up though.
The cold only put a few off and we had 10 newbies turn up, 35 miles with a coffee stop.

Ah the pedal conversation again.

I started MTB SPD, but only because I came from a MTB background anyway and had pedals and shoes already.

Best advice is, If you are only going to ride road, then get road pedal and shoes, If you have a MTB as well, go MTB as you can use them on the road bike, you can't realistically use road shoes on a MTB.

In fact the fastest guy in our club still uses SPD..! Personal choice.
 
BaJ said:
Sorry, n00b question about bottom brackets.

I'm just doing some much needed maintenance on my Spesh Allez, I've just whipped off the BB and am after a replacement. The one removed was a Shimano 4500, which I think was Tiagra spec from some years back.

I was just about to order a 4700 Tiagra from CRC for 13 quid, but then spotted Wiggle & Halfords doing the Ultegra 6800 for just over a 10er. Am I right in thinking that they're compatible and I can grab the cheaper and better version?
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Just make sure it's the right type, road or MTB, shell width, mega exo, square taper, or press fit.

But it sounds like mega exo, so the ultera 6800 should be fine.
 
Tiagra 4500 uses a hollowtech II bottom bracket, so the ultegra one will be fine.

I think the ultegra bottom bracket has smaller cups than some hollowtech II bottom brackets, so depending on the tool you have, you may need an adapter. When I took the 4600 groupset off my summer bike and replaced it with 5800 (with a 6800 bottom bracket) I had to borrow my neighbour's tool as mine was only good for the bigger 4600 one.
 
Cheers guys, have ordered one so will know for sure soon. Many of the reviews mentioned the different size cups, apparently an adapter for the standard tool comes with the BB.
 
Tried to go out for a ride yesterday, below freezing, got a mile down the road and change my mind, absolutely not. Then this morning it was supposed to be warmer and sunny, and it's bloody snowing!

Brilliant. To the gym, it is then :( :( :(
 
Determined to get outdoors today as 4 sessions a week on the turbo for the last 6 weeks has taken its toll :o Usually on at 8-9AM and hopping off at midday but far too cold & icy this weekend at that time despite my best intentions. -2 in town yesterday and could feel the moisture on my face freezing :eek:

Deep sections re-fitted because safer tyres on those and too lazy to pop them on & off and over to a winter rim. Did also mean refitting carbon pads and a small adjustment for the wider rim mind :p

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Currently waiting for the sun to work its magic... come midday yesterday it was actually quite pleasant and looked relatively safe by comparison to 8AM. Staying on a local 10-11mile loop x 4 or 5 laps, for some sweetspot/tempo work. For some reason I don't want to venture too far from home given the weather.
 
I started on MTB SPDs as I already had shoes from my hybrid and the odd spot of mountain biking. Managed to pick up some road shoes last year and a couple of sets of 105 pedals and they were fine for 500 miles or so but then I got knee issues. I've been back on the MTB SPDs since.. hopefully give the road shoes another go in a few months. I tried every cleat position possible without any luck.

I did notice that MTB SPDs allow me to accelerate off the lights quicker than most as they're all still clipping in :D
 
2 years of Garmin Vector before I broke that.
Bought Vector 2 upgrade kit 4 weeks ago and that's the world claimed one of the pods already. I don't even know how.... 40 miles in and 810 said "left power meter missing"... Makes sense when you look down and the connector from the pod to the rear of the crank arms is gone completely. Snapped clean off! This was on the non drive side as well by the way, I am lost for words really it makes so little sense.

Anyway, a replacement Vector 2 pod, bought on its own. Will that simply be fitted and pair up with my other pod since I have dual sided? Or do I need to buy a pair of pods again? *lots of swear words*
 
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