Speedplays and falling
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Speedplays and falling
Hi folks - question regarding Speedplay light actions and disengagement. Bought a pair a few years back but never got around to setting them up till now. And as I'm looking over the installation instructions I see Speedplay makes it clear the pedals are NOT designed to disengage in the event of a fall. I'm not a pro, don't race and don't need to be locked in super tightly. Having had my ankles saved once by a pair of traditional Looks, this disclaimer about disengagement furrows my brow - one of the main reasons I like clipless is the idea of automatic disengagement in such instances. Thoughts on the issue? Is the warning just there for legal reasons? Would they disengage in a fall as easily as Looks or is the ankle breaking risk higher? If the answer is that they truly do not disengage, then I'll be looking for recommendations for lightweight Looks, I think ... Any comments are very much appreciated!
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I don't understand the issue. You expect your cleats to disengage in the event of a fall if your feet don't move as if you were clicking out?
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They're not ski's. You'll disengage based on your reflexes and angle of the fall. It's got nothing to do with a crash or not.
Getting stuck then broken is a very minor chance. I think sometimes the bike stuck to you shields you from something else.
Getting stuck then broken is a very minor chance. I think sometimes the bike stuck to you shields you from something else.
#4
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Take it from someone who fell for those pedals, stick them on EBAY. Your life will be miserable with those things. From greasing to cleaning, to getting in and out and the way the housing deforms on some shoe bottoms, they are ridiculous.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
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I swear by Speedplays, they have really helped with my knee issues thanks to their adjustable float. I have them on 2 bikes, Speedplay Zero's. I had an unfortunate accident on a roundabout 3 months ago, sprained my wrist. The bike slipped beneath me on what I assume was some sand that I had not noticed. Both my feet disengaged and I made no attempt to consciously do this, just happened. Bike survived with only a scratched brake lever and the edge of one of the pedals, no problems with it though.
Speedplays need maintenance, more so in wet, muddy environments but so long as you don't neglect this, they are brilliant. Lot's of idiots who've never used them passing around reliability issues from those who neglected them - bollocks, they are very good and ideal for those of us who need to stop knees from twisting in the pedal stroke.
Speedplays need maintenance, more so in wet, muddy environments but so long as you don't neglect this, they are brilliant. Lot's of idiots who've never used them passing around reliability issues from those who neglected them - bollocks, they are very good and ideal for those of us who need to stop knees from twisting in the pedal stroke.
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Take it from someone who fell for those pedals, stick them on EBAY. Your life will be miserable with those things. From greasing to cleaning, to getting in and out and the way the housing deforms on some shoe bottoms, they are ridiculous.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
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I keep tension rather loose on Looks (original, never tried Keo) With the tension loose, I'd think it pretty much impossible to stay clipped into Looks with any violent movement. But when I see a manufacturer specifically making a point about pedals not disengaging in a crash, I wonder why they're emphasizing this. That's all that drew my attention to it. Maybe it's the phrasing "not designed to disengage" that I'm taking as "designed not to disengage"
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Take it from someone who fell for those pedals, stick them on EBAY. Your life will be miserable with those things. From greasing to cleaning, to getting in and out and the way the housing deforms on some shoe bottoms, they are ridiculous.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
Looks are better but they will squeak, creak and groan after long. The Look Keo cleat stinks.
Get Shimano 105 or Ultegra pedals and rest easy. The 105's can be bought for around $100 usually.
#9
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Utter rubbish With respect, you may not have got on with them because they require maintenance you didn't like to do but they are excellent pedals. There is a GCN video on Youtube that shows how to clean them in a minute or two, easy. I've had Looks and I have XTR on my MTB currently. Speedplays are great.
I have no doubt they have benefits for racers or pros but they don't make sense for even super enthusiasts. I am a Campy guy but Shimano pedals are without peer.
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I swear by Speedplays, they have really helped with my knee issues thanks to their adjustable float. I have them on 2 bikes, Speedplay Zero's. I had an unfortunate accident on a roundabout 3 months ago, sprained my wrist. The bike slipped beneath me on what I assume was some sand that I had not noticed. Both my feet disengaged and I made no attempt to consciously do this, just happened. Bike survived with only a scratched brake lever and the edge of one of the pedals, no problems with it though.
Speedplays need maintenance, more so in wet, muddy environments but so long as you don't neglect this, they are brilliant. Lot's of idiots who've never used them passing around reliability issues from those who neglected them - bollocks, they are very good and ideal for those of us who need to stop knees from twisting in the pedal stroke.
Speedplays need maintenance, more so in wet, muddy environments but so long as you don't neglect this, they are brilliant. Lot's of idiots who've never used them passing around reliability issues from those who neglected them - bollocks, they are very good and ideal for those of us who need to stop knees from twisting in the pedal stroke.
#12
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I had the first Shimano Look type and never had issues with them, except weight, which is why I moved toward Speedplay. Didn't want to put boat anchors on a Serotta Legend Ti. I realize the new Shimanos are much lighter - will keep them in mind. Wondering what you don't like about the Keo cleats - I had no issues with the original Look cleats *except walking in them, of course) and they were pretty low maintenance.
Go Shimano, you will seriously fall in love with those pedals. They look like hell on my Chorus groupsets but they work seamlessly.
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I keep tension rather loose on Looks (original, never tried Keo) With the tension loose, I'd think it pretty much impossible to stay clipped into Looks with any violent movement. But when I see a manufacturer specifically making a point about pedals not disengaging in a crash, I wonder why they're emphasizing this. That's all that drew my attention to it. Maybe it's the phrasing "not designed to disengage" that I'm taking as "designed not to disengage"
Last edited by bruce19; 07-10-20 at 04:38 AM.
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Now I'm curious too. Especially since I've ridden Speedplay for about 20 years. I've had two crashes. One was a minor slide out in a corner when I hit sand. The other was much more serious. A front brake lock up (not of my doing) that send me face first into the roadway and resulted in a broken neck. On both occasions I involuntarily clipped out. So, I have no idea why they would make that assertion. Do you happen to have a cite?
Last edited by msl109; 07-09-20 at 02:23 PM.
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You're going to come out of them if your ankle twists relative to the pedal - it's not like they're going to clamp down on you like a badger.
Speedplays are great - easy in, easy out, adjustable float. Setting them up the first time can take a little work, but you just have to RTFM, take your time and not be a dummy.
Speedplays are great - easy in, easy out, adjustable float. Setting them up the first time can take a little work, but you just have to RTFM, take your time and not be a dummy.
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Hi folks - question regarding Speedplay light actions and disengagement. Bought a pair a few years back but never got around to setting them up till now. And as I'm looking over the installation instructions I see Speedplay makes it clear the pedals are NOT designed to disengage in the event of a fall. I'm not a pro, don't race and don't need to be locked in super tightly. Having had my ankles saved once by a pair of traditional Looks, this disclaimer about disengagement furrows my brow - one of the main reasons I like clipless is the idea of automatic disengagement in such instances. Thoughts on the issue? Is the warning just there for legal reasons? Would they disengage in a fall as easily as Looks or is the ankle breaking risk higher? If the answer is that they truly do not disengage, then I'll be looking for recommendations for lightweight Looks, I think ... Any comments are very much appreciated!
Pretty much any pedal system (except maybe toestraps) will disengage in a crash, but there's no way to guarantee that they will or won't, given the unpredictability of crashes, so manufacturers steer clear of making definitive statements one way or another.
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I've crashed many times with my feet strapped in with quality leather toestraps and aluminum cleats. Never injured my ankles except the bony outside from road rash. My concious rule in my racing days was "don't let go of the bars until I hit the road". Served me well. Lots of road rash but I could get up and get back on the bike. Now to get up, I usually had to reach down and loosen the straps. When I crashed in the Stowe race (over Smuggler's Notch), I had to release 4 buckles.
#18
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you rotate your foot heel out to un attach your foot from the pedal.
make sure you do this before you come to a stop.
make sure you do this before you come to a stop.
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I've crashed with clipless, toe clips strapped in and open flat pedals. No differences in injuries -- too many other variables determine the likelihood and severity of injury, not foot retention or lack of it.
Get the pedals or foot retention type that suits you best while riding and ordinary stopping -- traffic lights, etc. I wouldn't buy based on a hypothetical crash.
I'm accustomed to old school Look Delta but those are terrible for walking, and aren't great for setting a foot down at a traffic light or whenever necessary to stop and go. SPD-SL are very similar but add grippy rubber pads that hold a bit better on sandy pavement and are a little less awful for walking.
Most of my friends use mountain bike type SPD pedals and walkable shoes, or comparable stuff by other makers. They're more sensible than I am.
One friend prefers Speedplay, but whenever we ride and need to stop or walk around, it seems like he's always fighting to clip in again because pebbles jam the works -- especially in damp weather when sandy pebbles stick to everything. Heck, I get that problem occasionally with Look Delta and SPD-SL, but not nearly as often as he does.
Get the pedals or foot retention type that suits you best while riding and ordinary stopping -- traffic lights, etc. I wouldn't buy based on a hypothetical crash.
I'm accustomed to old school Look Delta but those are terrible for walking, and aren't great for setting a foot down at a traffic light or whenever necessary to stop and go. SPD-SL are very similar but add grippy rubber pads that hold a bit better on sandy pavement and are a little less awful for walking.
Most of my friends use mountain bike type SPD pedals and walkable shoes, or comparable stuff by other makers. They're more sensible than I am.
One friend prefers Speedplay, but whenever we ride and need to stop or walk around, it seems like he's always fighting to clip in again because pebbles jam the works -- especially in damp weather when sandy pebbles stick to everything. Heck, I get that problem occasionally with Look Delta and SPD-SL, but not nearly as often as he does.
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I have the old Look delta cleat on my spin shoes but the Keo cleat is not as robust as the Shimano cleat or the old Delta, not even close.
Go Shimano, you will seriously fall in love with those pedals. They look like hell on my Chorus groupsets but they work seamlessly.
Go Shimano, you will seriously fall in love with those pedals. They look like hell on my Chorus groupsets but they work seamlessly.
I've never tried Shimano pedals, AFAIK they didn't exist when I got my first pair of Looks in the early '90s. Never had a reason to try another pedal, though since my wife and I got a tandem (and we do some stopping to walk around and look at stuff), my next pair will be Shimano with recessed cleats when I wear out either a pair of pedals or shoes.
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I know I have crashed with Speedplays and never had any issues getting out of them. You might not pop out automatically. At what point would you want that to happen exactly? If this was a major worry, maybe you should have gotten zeros.
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Feels like no one mentioned the primary reason for riding Speedplay: frictionless float. The rotational friction is so low, it almost feels like standing on ice. For some people this is disconcerting and weird. For others nothing else is comfortable (I'm one of these). Look and Shimano equivalents have some float yes, but high friction - you set the angle you want, and friction holds it there until you clip out.
This is apart from quantity of float - original X-series Speedplays have huge amounts, later ones can be limited with grub screws, and Look-style cleats have various amounts depending on shape. No, this is about the quality of the float.
If the OP has no idea which they prefer, it's too soon to decide which system is best for them. Gotta put some miles in to find out.
as for the original question about crash release, I have no concerns about any common clipless systems. I've popped out of Speedplays, Looks, and SPDs in crashes, and all were adjusted for the right amount of tension that I never popped in sprints. They all work.
This is apart from quantity of float - original X-series Speedplays have huge amounts, later ones can be limited with grub screws, and Look-style cleats have various amounts depending on shape. No, this is about the quality of the float.
If the OP has no idea which they prefer, it's too soon to decide which system is best for them. Gotta put some miles in to find out.
as for the original question about crash release, I have no concerns about any common clipless systems. I've popped out of Speedplays, Looks, and SPDs in crashes, and all were adjusted for the right amount of tension that I never popped in sprints. They all work.
#25
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I been using speedplay pedals for 15 years and it's the same pair maintenance is easy .Never had a problem getting in or out .have replace the cleats