September rides, bringing in the fall.

[north woods gal]

I've never had good performance with 50/50 style pedals. Really a pain in the butt. You always end up wasting time trying to get the correct side up when you want it and the clip in side tends to be awkward to use when you use cleats. They're also heavier than need be. I use flats, exclusively, now, and have been for three years. I wouldn't go back to SPD if you held a gun to my head. Do yourself a favor with flats and get a good set with replaceable metal pins. They can be had for a reasonable price and are the only fair test to see if flats are right for you. A good set of flats can be used with any type of shoe - don'get conned into thinking you need special shoes. This time of year, I use Wal-mart sneakers and have never had a foot slip on a good flat with pins and I'm talking aggressive trail riding, here, not just road biking.

Lastly, keep an open mind when testing flat pedals and give them a fair test, using a good set. Yes, they may feel different at first, but you may actually find, the way I did, after a summer of careful testing, that there was NO difference, NADA, as far as your average speed. As far as SPD being more "efficient"' that has been repeated so often as to be a gospel with many, but the fact is that it has NOT been strongly supported with scientific testing. Not trying to convert anyone, here. Just saying that your choice of pedal type should be based on what you, yourself, have tested and not what someone else tells you is best for you, same as with any other part of your bike and biking.