pedals/clips/clipless 101?

[hipmama]

Yup, it has clipless pedals now- I just forgot to find out what kind they were! I'll be picking it up at the end of the week so I'll know soon. I figured there had to be a match but there's so many shoes out there and so many gadgets!

[OakLeaf]

Some cleats attach to the shoes with three bolts (Look is the most common), some only have two (Shimano SPD is the most common). Some shoes will accept either type, some shoes have only two holes or only three. So yes, if you're contemplating a pair of shoes that only accepts one type, you need to know what kind of pedals you have before you buy your shoes.

[hipmama]

Thanks ladies!
Alright, any suggestions on clips or clipless for kids? Just for on the tandem- not on her own bike.

[pinkbikes]

Thanks ladies!
Alright, any suggestions on clips or clipless for kids? Just for on the tandem- not on her own bike.

Hi hipmama

I also tandem with my daughter who turned 11 last week. It really is the most wonderful investment in your relationship with your daughter isn't it?

I can't count the great conversations we've had, although she has the vexing habit of asking "life, the universe and everything" kind of questions when we are slugging up some huge hill and I have to remind her that if she has the brainpower to think up that sort of question she is obviously not pedalling hard enough!

I have clipless pedals for me on the tandem (SPD ones because we are often touring and I want to be able to walk comfortably when we get to where we're going, and mountain bike shoes are good for that). At first I had flats on the back for her, but found that sometimes if I wasn't careful to be smooth I could fling her feet off the pedals!

She would dearly like some clipless pedals and shoes (especially since she is hoping to grow into my roadie soon) but frankly while her feet are still growing at a mile a minute it is hard to justify the expense. As a compromise I have put the original pedals back onto the stoker position on the tandem. They are normal roadie pedals with toeclips/straps. She seems pretty happy with that for now. And it certainly helps her to spin and use more of the stroke when she is pedalling, which gets us up the hills better!

Happy riding, both on the tandem and your "new to you" roadie. I can assure you that you will feel like you have wings on your roadie after lugging even the most helpful daughter on the back of a tandem!

[hipmama]

Thank you! The experience you have is really helpful. I was thinking of straps for her for now- between the rate of growth and the amount of our shoes that the dog manages to find when she leaves them around- that's more investing than I care to even think about!
I put in place a rule about no serious questions while going up hill last year when she started asking me about planetary alignment and gravitational pull while climbing a steep hill heading into a major intersection- she was most definitely not working hard enough!
And yes, it is the best investment ever for us as a mother daughter team. When she was younger we always did adventure weekends, a weekend in NYC, a weekend camping alone, etc. Last year I told her we were going to bike in tandem across NYS and we did and she now wants do to it every year. She has been studying field guides all year to make sure she can identify every bird, wild flower, and tree. So much better than spongebob!

[mayanorange]

Can I ask a follow up to this? I'm considering so half-toeclips for my impending commuter- anyone used them and have comments? I don't like the idea of being 'strapped' in during a commute and want to wear my sneakers, etc.

[wackyjacky1]

Can I ask a follow up to this? I'm considering so half-toeclips for my impending commuter- anyone used them and have comments? I don't like the idea of being 'strapped' in during a commute and want to wear my sneakers, etc.

That's what I use. I'm pretty happy with them; they're great for commuting. They are MKS brand, found 'em on eBay.

[pinkbikes]

I put in place a rule about no serious questions while going up hill last year when she started asking me about planetary alignment and gravitational pull while climbing a steep hill heading into a major intersection- she was most definitely not working hard enough!
And yes, it is the best investment ever for us as a mother daughter team. When she was younger we always did adventure weekends, a weekend in NYC, a weekend camping alone, etc. Last year I told her we were going to bike in tandem across NYS and we did and she now wants do to it every year. She has been studying field guides all year to make sure she can identify every bird, wild flower, and tree. So much better than spongebob!

Oh - that is wonderful! We have a bike tour each year run by our state cycling association (Cycle Queensland) which runs for 9days and travels from one obscure place to another! It is catered and they carry your bags and tents for you. We did it last year with DH (but he rode a lot faster and so we spent a lot of quality time with just the two of us).

It was such fun but the questions while climbing a particular mountain range were amusing (if she wasn't asking you of course). I think I got "So Mum... what's cerebral palsy and how does it happen and what does it do?" and "So Mum...why were those people petitioning for that dam not to get built and why does the dam have to be there and what will the petition do?"

I'm learning to shy away from anything that starts with "So Mum..."

And always when I'm just about scraping my lungs up off the ground straining up some monster hill!

[hipmama]

Off topic, but pinkbikes, do you ever have a hard transition from riding solo to getting on your tandem? I find that the more I'm riding alone now the harder it feels on the tandem with all of that extra weight. It makes me feel like we're doing something wrong, but in reality I assume it's the difference from one on a lightweight to two on a 45 lb bike... might help if I know I'm not alone!