I road bike to work 10km there and 10km back almost daily. Lately after I'm done w/ my ride I realize I have a lot of chain grease on my calf. This was not the case the first 6 months I was riding this bike. I do crash some 20cm curbs at times, which feels a bit bone jarring and am wondering if the chain is just jumping around then? Or maybe it's when I stand up and rock to go up a steep hill? My calves aren't huge considering I'm 6'4", 185lbs. so it's not like it rubs during normal pedaling.
I will pay attention on my ride today to see if I can tell when it happens. Makes me think something should be tighter.
I'm kinda a newbie to the roadbike thing and am not an expert when it comes to equipment, but definitely want to learn more.
I put down either foot as I'm still practicing perfecting clipping in. I checked today w/ either foot down at several intersections and couldnt' find a normal position I would stand where I'd rub. I'll check again on my ride home today.
pedals are shimano pd-r540 shoes are shimano tr31 maybe I should tighten them so I don't have as much freeplay to twist back and forth?
I was real careful on my ride today and kept looking to see if the chain goo showed up on my calf. Didn't today. Maybe it does when I get sloppy pedaling and my legs are all over the place.
I was curious if you were using clip ins. They probably have a 6 degree float which should not account for chain marks, however I imagine you could have the lateral angle of the cleats adjusted to an extreme that would allow chain marks. Alienator has good point about unclip habits and you might pay attention to your stance after you disengage from the pedal. Most chain marks come after you are unclipped.
This has happend to me before, when i had normal flat pedals, when i got SPD clipless pedals it has stopped, ill get the odd bit of oil a tiny bit sometimes but no very often.
