Bike Pedals

Most new cyclists and some experienced riders overlook the importance of the pedals on their bicycle.

They assume that pedals are pedals — just something that you push down on to make the bicycle

That’s not quite the case — in fact, there are multiple types of bike pedals and the type you use can significantly impact your cycling.

The earliest bicycles did not have pedals. Frenchman Baron von Drais built what is believed to be the first bicycle (called a Draisienne) around 1817. Riders propelled these early two-wheel machines by simply pushing with their feet while sitting on the bike’s seat.

In 1839, a Scottish blacksmith named Kirkpatrick MacMillan came up with the idea of mounting pedals directly to the front wheel of those early push bikes. His pedal bike had a 30 inch diameter wood-framed and iron-rimed wheel with pedals attached to arms that were connected to the wheel’s axle.

Over the years, many different types of pedals have been designed ranging from simple flat ‘push down’ platform pedals to the sophisticated ‘clip in’ pedals that are now common on higher-end bicycles.

Platform pedals are still used today — they’re what you’ll see on most entry-level bicycles and on some bikes used for downhill mountain bike racing.

The advantages of flat pedals is that any type of footwear can be used and new cyclists don’t have to worry about ‘clipping in or out’ of a retention system.

The disadvantages, however, are that the rider’s foot isn’t securely fastened to the pedal and the rider can only produce power when pushing down on the pedal.

If you want to test this yourself, sit on a spin bike or a bicycle mounted on a stationary trainer and try to pedal with only one leg. You’ll quickly see that having your foot simply resting on the flat pedal doesn’t work very well since your foot isn’t secured to the pedal. Flat pedals can be significantly improved by adding toe clips and straps (example: tinyurl.com/toeclip).

Toe clips will mount to most flat pedals, can be used with any type of footwear, and will secure your shoe to make your pedaling more efficient.

There will be a short learning curve as you figure out how to flip the pedal over and insert your foot into the clip.

Although flat pedals with toe clips were the norm for everyone years ago, most serious cyclists today have switched to clip-in pedals (sometimes called ‘clipless’ because they don’t have the toe cages). A good discussion of this type of pedal along with pictures is posted at tinyurl.com/bwo77mx.

Several different types of clip-in pedals are available, ranging from the double-sided mountain bike and touring pedals (tinyurl.com/lw76xox) to single-sided road bike ‘race’ pedals (http://tinyurl.com/pb7vlj8).

Although many new cyclists are worried about not being able to clip out of clip-in pedals, this isn’t a significant problem. The pedals’ retention tension can be adjusted to be very loose and the ‘twist-the-foot-out’ technique used to unclip from the pedal is easy to learn.

All types of clip-in pedals require a dedicated cycling shoe since the ‘cleat’ which clips into the pedal must attach to mounting holes on the shoe’s sole.

You’ll also have to match up the shoe type with the type of pedal since most cleats for single-sided road pedals use a three-bolt mounting system while the majority of mountain bike pedals require a two-bolt mount.

Most recreational cyclists (on both mountain and road bikes) will probably be happiest using a clip-in mountain bike pedal such as the Shimano SPD. These pedals are double-sided so the rider can clip in on either side of the pedal and the compatible shoes have a recessed cleat pocket that makes the shoe much easier to walk in.

If you currently ride using simple platform pedals and want to improve your cycling, upgrading to a better type of pedal may just be the ticket.

Remember - pedals are pedals, but some work much better than others.



Upcoming Events
Oct. 18: Heart Walk 5K, roadlizards.org
Oct. 19: West Texas Half Marathon and 5K, westtexashalf.com/
Oct. 25: Armydillo 10K, roadlizards.org/events/armydillow-10k-run/
Nov. 1: 30K of the Dinosaur trail race, roadlizards.org
Nov. 1: Six Hours of the Dinosaur mountain bike race, angelobike.org/6hour-dinosaur
Nov. 15: West Texas Masochist Run II, roadlizards.org/events/masochists-relay-run/


 

Bike Safety for Kids

With public schools back in session, it's time to remind kids, parents and teachers about some important safety practices for kids who ride their bicycles to school.

 Riding bikes to school is a healthy fitness activity that should be encouraged if kids ride safely and do not put themselves in harm's way due to the risk of collisions with a motor vehicle or falls on their bicycle.

 According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, approximately 400 children and adolescents die each year in the United States due to bicycle-related accidents with another 400,000 ending up in emergency rooms because of bike injuries.

 Almost all of those accidents are avoidable if children are taught to ride in a safe manner.

The Safe Routes to School National Partnership (http://saferoutespartnership.org) has compiled a listing of basic bike safety concepts that should be taught to children by parents, teachers or community groups.

 Those safety concepts include how to cross the street safely, bike and helmet fitting, positioning yourself properly on a road, letting drivers know your intentions, how to safely negotiate turns and intersections (hand signals, signs, traffic awareness), the basics of traffic law to include right of way and rules of the road, and practicing those bike skills with an informed adult supervising.

 Bike safety skills for kids are included in training programs such as the Supercyclist curriculum from the Texas Bicycle Coalition (biketexas.org) and the Kids I or Kids II programs developed by the League of American Bicyclists (bikeleague.org).

 If an organized bike safety program isn't available, there are some key safety practices that parents, teachers and friends can make sure that kids understand and comply with.

 Visibility - make sure that motorists can easily see a kid on a bike.  This is especially critical during low light periods such as early morning or evening.  Light colored clothing, reflective jackets, reflectors on bikes and blinking safety lights will all help motorists see a cyclist.

Helmets - all children (and adults) riding a bicycle should wear an approved helmet at all times when riding.  Even a minor fall from a bike onto hard dirt or pavement can result in a serious head injury.

Ride with traffic - although many children are (improperly) taught to ride facing traffic, Texas traffic law require all cyclists riding on public streets to move with the flow of traffic. Numerous research studies show significantly fewer cyclist-motor vehicle accidents when riding in the same direction as motor vehicle traffic.

 As an example, a study of bicycle-motor vehicle collisions in the city of Palo Alto, Cali­fornia showed that cyclists traveling against the direction of traffic flow were at greatly increased risk for accidents - as high as 6.6 times greater risk for cyclists 17 and under.

 This finding implies that vigorous enforcement of the laws against wrong-way bicycling on the roadway for both adults and children can substantially reduce the number of bicycle-motor vehicle collisions and should receive high priority in any bicycle program.

Safe routes - parents, schools and community groups should work together to identify safe routes for children cycling to and from school.  Safe routes could include those with marked bike lanes, sidewalks or paths, protected intersection crossings and low motor vehicle traffic

Alleys that open onto a street - these are among the most dangerous locations for cyclists. If these areas cannot be avoided (for example, along the Southland Blvd bike lanes near Bonham Elementary) then kids must be taught to proceed very carefully as they ride past an alley opening.

 Backpacks and other items - when items such as books or bags need to be carried while riding they should be placed in a backpack or basket to allow both hands to be on the bicycle's handlebars at all times. Avoid heavy backpacks that affect balance and do not drape bags or clothing such as coats over the bars.

 Although the bike safety suggestions listed above cover the most important issues, there are other dangers that school kids could face while riding (or walking) to school. The best way to mitigate these risks is for parents, schools, community organizations such as cycling clubs and law enforcement officers to collaborate in teaching safety and correcting unsafe practices.

Remember - riding to school is good for kids, but it needs to be done in a safe manner.




Upcoming Events

Oct 18: Heart Walk 5K, roadlizards.org

Oct 19: West Texas Half Marathon and 5K, westtexashalf.com/

Oct 25: Armydillo 10K, roadlizards.org/events/armydillow-10k-run/

Nov 1: 30K of the Dinosaur trail race, roadlizards.org

Nov 1: Six Hours of the Dinosaur mountain bike race, angelobike.org/6hour-dinosaur

Nov 15: West Texas Masochist Run II, roadlizards.org/events/masochists-relay-run/