Best Bike Shoes, Cleats and Pedals

3 Top Cycling Pedals, Cleats, and Pedals

 

I guess neither shoes, particularly pedals and definitely cleats aren’t the most exciting bit of cycling kit. However, they are really important because they are the means by which the power you produce is transferred to the bike.

I can remember the day I first went out with a proper pair of cycling shoes on and clipless pedals and the difference they make is amazing. Being clipped to the bike (once you get used to it) feels so much more secure and you get a real sense of your energy being transferred so much more efficiently!

Best Cycling Shoes

I’m currently on the lookout for a new pair of cycling shoes as my current pair is, well frankly filthy, worn out and disgusting. They are the original pair I bought about three years ago and they were then about the cheapest you could get. So, they have easily lasted nearly four years, I have found them comfortable enough to cycle a century in as well as several shorter sportives.

I suppose you get what you pay for, but I have to say I have been very happy with my current shoes even though they are very basic. So, with a basic shoe you get a stiff plastic sole, velcro fastenings and a reasonable level of padding. If you are happy to pay more than the sole will be stiffer, possibly made from carbon and so lighter and the fastenings will be a little more robust.

Fizik R4 shoes cycling club in san antonio

Does all of that matter? To be honest, for the type of cycling I do…….I don’t really think so. I did consider splashing the cash and upgrading to a pair of Fizik R4 shoes. They look cool, but, to a certain extent I can’t really get all that excited about them. They are only shoes after all and I’m not a speed freak competitive cyclist.

So, I have pretty much decided to go for a similar pair to my old ones. They don’t still make the exact type so I think I will go for these Giro Treble II shoes instead. I would have included a picture of my old pair for reference but they are currently completely and utterly filthy!

Ahhhh……pro tip. Unless you never cycle in the rain don’t (like I did) get a white pair of cycling shoes!!! – (mine are now grey!)

Best road cycling pedals

Yes, I too was astounded to find out that, the more you spend on a bike the less likely it is to come with pedals! It’s like buying a car without a gearbox, a tv without a remote control or a toaster without a plug on it……….Well, there was some sense in that, in “ye olden days” in that you could put whatever plug fitted your type of socket

onto the toaster. It’s similar with bikes – pedals are personal and, if you buy a new bike you don’t necessarily want to buy a new set of cycling shoes as well to fit.

Anyway. If you are a relatively inexperienced road cyclist you won’t care about pedals and, to be honest life is fairly much too short to research such a dull topic so just buy a pair of Shimano R540 road pedals.

Simples!

I bought a pair of the Shimano R540’s at the start and I haven’t given them a second thought since. They just do what they say on the tin – don’t research pedals – just buy them!

Best road cycling cleats

The same can be said of cleats really. If you are a new road cyclist or a struggling not to get dropped off the back type on a club run – ie me! Or if you are not a performance cyclist (me) or a mad keen light weight kit fanatic the just buy these yellow Shimano cleats.

Shimano SPD cleats

They fit the Shimano R540 pedals above and you will just need to check that you road shoes fit Shimano SPD cleats with three fixing screws.

That really is pretty much it on cleats. The yellow ones give a bit more “float angle” or room for error than the red ones…………I don’t actually know much more about them and I probably never will need too!