Help wanted!!!!

[Javaire]

Hey guys, thanks for reading my post.

Given the experiance to be found on this forum i thought that it would be the perfect place to ask my question.

I have recently purchased a second hand 2001 GT ZR 4.0. The bike was totally stock so i changed the pedals to shimano spd's, purchased the matching cleats and finally bought a pair of shimano cycling shoes. Away i went.

After launching with all intent to ride 20ks+ I have had to hold back on numerous occasions as i get the most knarly case of pins and needles in my feet at approximately the 10k mark. I have taken this problem to my local bike shop, and on their recommendation purchased a larger pair of cycling shoes, this sadly did not resolve the issue. I have moved the seat forward so I am pushing directly down on the pedals, this has not helped. I am about to raise the height of the handle bars, more for a comfort perspective but does this give the potential to help?

I personally suspect the cause of my problems maybe the pedals and matching cleats, ie. the pins and needles are only noticeable towards my toes and balls of my feet.

Is there any advice that anyone can PLEASE give to me???? Anything that you can recommend or any light that you can shed onto this problem for me would be greatly appreciated.

Shane

 

[sideshow_bob]

Is there any advice that anyone can PLEASE give to me???? Anything that you can recommend or any light that you can shed onto this problem for me would be greatly appreciated.

i suffer from this a little bit for a few reasons. mostly after a few hours in the saddle though.

items that work for me are:

a) even though i've got narrow feet i tend to prefer shoes with a wider toe box. specialized shoes for example seem to do this well. narrow shoes are basically out for me.

b) spend time making sure you get the cleat position right (fore/aft).

c) pedling technique can make a difference. if you are simply doing a push stroke on each revolution it will probably make it worse.

d) saddle height and fore/aft position make a difference an you might need to spend time on that.

Personally i'd be very surprised if it was the pedal/cleat system specifically that are causing the problem. The good doctors on cyclingnews.com have discussed it a few times, it'd be worth searching through their archives. They talk about shims a lot, which I've never tried and may help you.

ymmv

--brett