stran11

Good morning,
I'm new to gravel riding and would appreciate your feedback. I am wondering if I should buy bigger platform pedals (such as Shimano XTR M9120, HT Components T1, Time Speciale 8, or equivalent) rather than the smaller ones (eg. Look X-Track, Time Atac) for 5-7 hour rides combining 25% asphalt and 75% hard pack gravel and rolling terrain that is softer/looser but does not have big rocks or mud. I guess I'm asking if your feet feel uncomfortable on smaller pedals after long rides (obviously also depends on the shoes you choose).
I usually can ride that amount of time on asphalt with my Time Xpro pedals without foot issues.
Thanks!

Russ Roth

With really good, properly fitting shoes the size doesn't matter, you should be able to go hours. Although for mtbing I prefer wider so if a rock strike knocks the cleat out there's more to catch my foot. I ride a trail with lots of little knarled roots that stick up and this does happen when they're buried under the leaves.
if cheaper shoes hot spots can be an issue though it is rider dependant, in which case a wider pedal can offer more support when used with a mtb pedal or a road shoe with a road pedal that uses 3 bolt cleats.

tdilf

I use stiff sole shoes (i think carbon) and this becomes the platform for any pedal - makes no difference what size the pedal is.

Steve B.

IME, a wider cleat on the platform, such as Look or SPD-L, provides greater support to the foot, OR a shoe with a stiff mid-sole such as a carbon shoe or one with a carbon mid-sole. I get bad "hot foot" which is an inflammation of the nerve under the pinky toe, mostly from poor sole support in the middle of the foot. Thus I use Shimano shoes with a carbon mid-sole and SPD pedals. I prefer SPD for the dual sided entry.

unterhausen

I use mountain bike SPD on all of my bikes and have never had an issue with pedals. If you are having problems with nerve compression, it's likely it's an issue with your shoes. One thing I learned in trying to track down foot numbness issues on long rides (think 350 miles in 2 days) was that the shoe interface at the ankle can cause problems. But usually it's the insole and foot box size. My feet swell just before 100 miles. This seems to always happen to me. Your feet may swell earlier.

Koyote

This.

Platform size only matters if you are riding platform pedals.

xseal

+1. I ride Time ATAC XC pedals on 6-7 hour gravel/road rides, no issues.

Squeeze

I thought that's what this thread was about, until I googled some of the pedals in the original post.