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Orthotics, clipless pedals, etc.
Just a thanks to all those who offered an opinion on switching to clipless
pedals to help with foot/ankle/knee pain while biking. After reading all the opinions and doing lots of research, I made an appointment for custom orthotics and ordered some Speedplay Frogs (stainless with 1/2" longer spindle to fit my shoe). The Frogs finally came in, and I got to do a 25 mile ride with them yesterday. Wow! I'm in love! Not only did my ankles and knees not have pain, they actually felt really *good* after my ride. I had the appointment for fitting the orthotics this morning, and the doctor, who rides a diamond frame, is a big fan of the Frogs and recommends them a lot. He thinks between the Frogs and the orthotics, I'll have no more pain problems. I'm in heaven. So, thanks again to all who offered an opinion. -- Kathy A. (Woodland, CA) |
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"Kathy Applebaum" wrote in message
om... Just a thanks to all those who offered an opinion on switching to clipless pedals to help with foot/ankle/knee pain while biking. After reading all the opinions and doing lots of research, I made an appointment for custom orthotics and ordered some Speedplay Frogs (stainless with 1/2" longer spindle to fit my shoe). The Frogs finally came in, and I got to do a 25 mile ride with them yesterday. Wow! I'm in love! Not only did my ankles and knees not have pain, they actually felt really *good* after my ride. I had the appointment for fitting the orthotics this morning, and the doctor, who rides a diamond frame, is a big fan of the Frogs and recommends them a lot. He thinks between the Frogs and the orthotics, I'll have no more pain problems. I'm in heaven. So, thanks again to all who offered an opinion. -- Kathy A. (Woodland, CA) Great! Glad it worked out, and that we could help. Speedplay Frogs have tons of float, and are easy to clip in and out. They are one of only a handful of truly knee-friendly clipless pedals out there. However, I might caution you to notice how the Frog cleats attach to the pedal. Notice that there is just a tiny metal clip that your feet are basically hanging from. That clip is tensioned by a thin piece of polymer material - a tiny plastic spring. I personally had problems with one cleat on my Frogs where the polymer "spring" became damaged, and the cleat wanted to unclip sometimes. After some scary incidents, I ditched the Frogs, bought BeBops, and haven't had a single problem since. Same huge float, much better cleat retention, more solid all-metal design, and even easier clip-in. Like Speedplay, BeBops a little pricey; but worth it. (FWIW: The two companies actually share patent agreements on the pedal and cleat designs.) You do not want to have an unscheduled clip-out and drop your foot to the ground while riding. It's very painful, and will most likely result in a nasty crash. My wife required over a year to finally heal from her foot-drop-related crash. The bike launched her about 10 ft. Ouch! Sorry for the FUD. Just check your cleats often, and be aware of the weak points in the Frog design. Many people swear by them, so they must be OK. Miles of smiles, SDB |
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"Shrubs Don't Bounce" wrote in message news:Bwy2d.105416$3l3.102427@attbi_s03... Sorry for the FUD. Just check your cleats often, and be aware of the weak points in the Frog design. Many people swear by them, so they must be OK. Actually, it's probably a good reminder to check ALL my equipment regularly. I like crashes almost as much as I like walking home. -- Kathy A. (Woodland, CA) |
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"Kathy Applebaum" wrote in message . com...
Just a thanks to all those who offered an opinion on switching to clipless pedals to help with foot/ankle/knee pain while biking. After reading all the opinions and doing lots of research, I made an appointment for custom orthotics and ordered some Speedplay Frogs (stainless with 1/2" longer spindle to fit my shoe). The Frogs finally came in, and I got to do a 25 mile ride with them yesterday. Wow! I'm in love! Not only did my ankles and knees not have pain, they actually felt really *good* after my ride. I had the appointment for fitting the orthotics this morning, and the doctor, who rides a diamond frame, is a big fan of the Frogs and recommends them a lot. He thinks between the Frogs and the orthotics, I'll have no more pain problems. I'm in heaven. So, thanks again to all who offered an opinion. I also wear orthotics in my street shoes and had been using Frogs on my Stratus, loved the float but was having problems with hotfoot on longer rides (over 30 miles) caused by the Frogs too small contact area on the ball of my foot. This year, at the advice of my podiatrist, I switched to a wider based pedal, the Shimano DuraAce spd pedal (forget which model #), and my hotfoot problems completely disappeared. This pedal , while not having quite the amount of float of the Frogs, still has approx. 20 deg. of float, enough to keep my knees happy. Since then, I have been on a few centuries without any problems with either knees or feet. Denis Rivest RANS Stratus. |
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