clipless for freeriding?

[crapding]

Are there any advantages to flats while freeriding?
I've found that when ever i ride flats a shin myself

[NEMBA_bkr-dude]

Ya same here- I ride with m545's which are great and take a beating. Ya it sux doesn't it- all ur friends ride plats and they make fun of you and say you gotta suck when you can't bunny hop and stuff like that. I am a proud believer in clipless freeriding and a little trials even. I think as long as you got good enough reflexes, clipless are great.

[AGENTGRAPE]

i really think its a matter of personal preference. i am a confused pedaler. on my bullitt i use primo platforms,they are wide with a slight dished surface and good spikes. it sits so high i dont know if i want to go clipless. on my gtxcr and hardtail i use 646's. i love these pedals they function as platforms briefly if you need to be out of one pedal for stability, resting your shoe slightly back works well. i actually tried to ride 4 miles with reg sneakers on the 646's it dont wurk. i have a set of 545's as well i may try them on the bullitt sometime. im not into racing and dont see that huge of a difference with clipless. i guess they mentally make you go further than you would before bailing out on platforms.any way its up to what you and you alone are happy with. i have also used sun ringle zuzu"s these are great pedals too

[NEMBA_bkr-dude]

with clipless you get really really good control of your bike

Are there any advantages to flats while freeriding?


Yes, you're able to get away from the bike a lot faster, which helps in a crash or when riding sketchy terrain. You can also dab a lot faster, which can help avoid a crash.

It will also make you a better rider, a lot of guys who ride clipless can't jump, bunny hop or even get up onto an obstacle without them. Flat's make you do the work and in the end you gain better handing skills...


I've found that when ever i ride flats a shin myself


Buy a nice set of shin guards and you'll be all set, Hammer makes a great set ;D

[MMcG]

Are there any advantages to flats while freeriding?


Yes, you're able to get away from the bike a lot faster, which helps in a crash or when riding sketchy terrain. You can also dab a lot faster, which can help avoid a crash.

It will also make you a better rider, a lot of guys who ride clipless can't jump, bunny hop or even get up onto an obstacle without them. Flat's make you do the work and in the end you gain better handing skills...


I've found that when ever i ride flats a shin myself


Buy a nice set of shin guards and you'll be all set, Hammer makes a great set ;D


Hammer? Never heard of them........do they have a web site?

I'm in the market for some knee/shinpads.

Your comments about platforms making you a better rider are interesting as well. Never thought of it that way. I just decided to go from toe clips which came stock on my bike to clipless. Maybe I should have taken it one step at at time. hmmm.

Back to pads......I noticed while looking through a recent issue of MBA that one of the downhill riders was actually wearing some Franklin street hockey pads on his legs for protection! I'm a hockey player so it brought a little chuckle and smile to my face to see that.

Hammer? Never heard of them........do they have a web site?


I don't think they have a site, but you can get them at www.danscomp.com .

[MMcG]

Thanks Sinister Guy!

[NEMBA_bkr-dude]

Danscomp is cool but it is almost all BMX stuff. My friends never shut up about it. If I could afford it I'd order those AtomLab Ballistic pedals.

If I could afford it I'd order those AtomLab Ballistic pedals.


Don't bother with the Ballistics, mine only lasted 2 weeks. I hit a gap jump and split one in half right down the spindle when I landed. The landing wasn't even hard, a friend video taped it and we check it out afterwards, it was super smooth. This happeded in October and I'm still waiting on my warrantee set, Atomic has the worst customer serive on the planet...

[NEMBA_bkr-dude]

hahaha I had a feeling those things were gimicky. Thanks for telling me.

[CouchingTiger]

I still use clipless for both freeriding and have up until now used them (on the same bike) for DH. I now have flats on my new DH bike though and am going to give them a try.

If you go clipless I suggest the larger platform pedals like the Shimano 646 or the 545. They afford you much better surface area which helps on landing bigger drops. I found normal SPDs hurt the bottom of my foot.

-Couch

[Record]

I prefer riding clipless for FreeRiding.
Another good freeride clipless pedal is the new Time Z. I've found Time ATAC pedals to be much better with snow,mud and ice also longer lasting than Shimanos. The new Z's have a nice big platform allowing for control out of clip.
http://www.bikeman.com/images/catalog/pedals/mtnclipless/timezblack.jpg

[AGENTGRAPE]

the franklin street hockey pads...... i have a pair that i use for playing paintball. i tried them on the bike once, they tended to move all over the place. they have 2 velcro straps around the calf- too loose and they twisted - too tite and they cut off circulation and balloon out and hit seat post tube. if they are a better fit on anyone else go for it, they are very durable i played paintball in them for 8 years. i thought i was getting a free pair of bike pads . do they make a newer style that wraps around the leg better?

[NEMBA_bkr-dude]

I like shimano's better than time's cause they are adjustable. You can set it loose for extreme stuff and tight for XC

[MMcG]

the franklin street hockey pads...... i have a pair that i use for playing paintball. i tried them on the bike once, they tended to move all over the place. they have 2 velcro straps around the calf- too loose and they twisted - too tite and they cut off circulation and balloon out and hit seat post tube. if they are a better fit on anyone else go for it, they are very durable i played paintball in them for 8 years. i thought i was getting a free pair of bike pads . do they make a newer style that wraps around the leg better?


I just thought it was funny to see someone sporting street hockey pads on the trails like that. I think it was a Mt. Snow downhill photo.

I have ice hockey pads and they would be way too big and bulky and hot to wear on the bike. I do have one of those cooperall hockey pad girdle-like thingies (the pads fit snug to your hips, thighs, tailbone, kidney areas) that looks quite similar to some body armor type under-shorts that I've seen in bike catalogs though. Kinda funny how similar some of the stuff looks.

If those Franklin pads slip, you could always buy some velcro straps at a hockey shop to keep em in place a little better. Some hockey players use these types of straps to help keep their pads in place. I prefer to use this stretchy clear tape on my hockey socks to hold everything in place, but that would be painful to use with pads on a bike in the summer with bare legs! YEeeeeouch!

Cheers,

Mark

[narlus]

i am a firm believer in everything sinister_bikes said.

if you think you can bunnyhop or jhop w/ the correct technique using clipless, try it w/ flats and see how it goes.
not saying it can't be done, but i think that most people are fooling themselves if they think otherwise.

there are definite advantages to using clipless for freeriding/DH, but i think that most of them pertain to racing (pedaling efficiency, being able to stay w/ teh pedals on really fast, choppy terrain).

i went from exclusive clipless use to pretty much 100% flat pedal usage some time around '01. i think it's good to be comfortable w/ each pedal system. they both offer advantages.

[CouchingTiger]

Wait a minute, wasn't that when your 1st son was born and your riding was limited almost exclusively to noodling around in the driveway ;)

-Couch


... i went from exclusive clipless use to pretty much 100% flat pedal usage some time around '01 ...

[narlus]

Wait a minute, wasn't that when your 1st son was born and your riding was limited almost exclusively to noodling around in the driveway ;)

-Couch



about that time, now that you mention it ;)

btw, i highly recommend using flat pedals when you are learning to manual...