S
Smokey
Guest
i got into mountain biking with a gary fisher marlin hardtail in 2000 because i was tired of being
overweight and out of shape. back and knee problems ruled out running, so a bicycle seemed like an
ideal solution. boy, was i right, hadn't ridden for 35 years and loved it! then i made the mistake
of buying all the MTB magazines. started putting trick parts on my bike and made the big jump to
clipless pedals. times seemed to be the pedal of choice, so i ended up with a pair of them. had a
few rookie falls, but no major damage. then one day, they trapped me when i cross-rutted at speed
and ended up with a broken ankle and a long push out of the woods. not the pedal's fault, i
shouldn''t have gotten in over my head before i was really used to them. got back to riding and
found my "fear factor" for clipless riding was really limiting the technical things i would try. let
me state here that i'm still a novice and spend a lot of time watching people blow by me in the
woods. then one day, i notice those cheap plastic flats that came on my bike. out came the pedal
wrench and the times replaced them in the spares bin. took off for the woods and immediately found
riding was more fun and i was attempting things i used to walk. they've been on my bike ever since.
no, they are not as efficient on easy sections and i can't pull back for more power. i'm not a racer
anyway, so it doesn't bother me. times are great pedals, don't get me wrong. for my way of riding,
flats seem to be a better answer.
overweight and out of shape. back and knee problems ruled out running, so a bicycle seemed like an
ideal solution. boy, was i right, hadn't ridden for 35 years and loved it! then i made the mistake
of buying all the MTB magazines. started putting trick parts on my bike and made the big jump to
clipless pedals. times seemed to be the pedal of choice, so i ended up with a pair of them. had a
few rookie falls, but no major damage. then one day, they trapped me when i cross-rutted at speed
and ended up with a broken ankle and a long push out of the woods. not the pedal's fault, i
shouldn''t have gotten in over my head before i was really used to them. got back to riding and
found my "fear factor" for clipless riding was really limiting the technical things i would try. let
me state here that i'm still a novice and spend a lot of time watching people blow by me in the
woods. then one day, i notice those cheap plastic flats that came on my bike. out came the pedal
wrench and the times replaced them in the spares bin. took off for the woods and immediately found
riding was more fun and i was attempting things i used to walk. they've been on my bike ever since.
no, they are not as efficient on easy sections and i can't pull back for more power. i'm not a racer
anyway, so it doesn't bother me. times are great pedals, don't get me wrong. for my way of riding,
flats seem to be a better answer.