Best clipless pedals for a gimpy ankle?

Hey all,

My apologies if this thread is a massive repeat. I've been sorting
through stuff for a while and hadn't really seen this addressed.

I've got a commuter bike that I ride around town and up a mediumish
hill to work. I started off with just street shoes and "platform and
basket" pedals, but when I broke through those I upgraded to a set of
Look pedals. As it turns out, I've got an old injury to my left ankle
where I can't keep my heel down while twisting to the outside.
Consequently, when I tried to get out of my pedals, I ended up
"rolling" the ankle forward instead of twisting it outward, which
brought the pedal forward, which prevents me from clipping out. I'm
trying to figure out how to best set the float on the pedal to let me
get out of the thing without having to rotate through a large angle
first. Is this a consequence of "zero float" cleats?

Has anyone tried SPDs instead? Are they a bit easier on the ankles
during the clip out?

Cheers,

Brian

On May 25, 5:23 pm, BG wrote:

Has anyone tried SPDs instead? Are they a bit easier on the ankles
during the clip out?

Basic Shimano mtb pedals + multirelease cleats and you'll have happy
ankles. Pick up some walkable shoes while you're at it, since spd
cleats are murder on floors. Do practice a good amount and fiddle with
retention tension. The downside to multirelease is occasional
unintended release, which can be minimized or eliminated if you train
your muscle memory to not wiggle the wrong way when en route--wild
thrashing while climbing usually ensures a release with those cleats.
Regular spd cleats allow for pretty easy clip out, so start with
those. You can even release with heel-in.

I've got a commuter bike that I ride around town and up a mediumish
hill to work. I started off with just street shoes and "platform and
basket" pedals, but when I broke through those I upgraded to a set of
Look pedals. As it turns out, I've got an old injury to my left ankle
where I can't keep my heel down while twisting to the outside.
Consequently, when I tried to get out of my pedals, I ended up
"rolling" the ankle forward instead of twisting it outward, which
brought the pedal forward, which prevents me from clipping out. I'm
trying to figure out how to best set the float on the pedal to let me
get out of the thing without having to rotate through a large angle
first. Is this a consequence of "zero float" cleats?

Has anyone tried SPDs instead? Are they a bit easier on the ankles
during the clip out?

If the issue is that you have trouble pushing past the resistance required
to release the shoe from the pedal, your best bet would be the Speedplay X
series. These have absolutely zero release tension; they release as soon as
you angle out past a certain point. The flat-spring models (the Light Action
and Zero series) have longer-wearing cleats but are significantly more
difficult to get into and out of.

Standard SPDs can be set to a pretty low release tension and probably
wouldn't give much grief, but they won't have the same positive feel that
the "road"-style pedals have (they're a bit sloppier in their cleat/pedal
interface).

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA


"BG" wrote in message
...
Hey all,

My apologies if this thread is a massive repeat. I've been sorting
through stuff for a while and hadn't really seen this addressed.

I've got a commuter bike that I ride around town and up a mediumish
hill to work. I started off with just street shoes and "platform and
basket" pedals, but when I broke through those I upgraded to a set of
Look pedals. As it turns out, I've got an old injury to my left ankle
where I can't keep my heel down while twisting to the outside.
Consequently, when I tried to get out of my pedals, I ended up
"rolling" the ankle forward instead of twisting it outward, which
brought the pedal forward, which prevents me from clipping out. I'm
trying to figure out how to best set the float on the pedal to let me
get out of the thing without having to rotate through a large angle
first. Is this a consequence of "zero float" cleats?

Has anyone tried SPDs instead? Are they a bit easier on the ankles
during the clip out?

Cheers,

Brian