Shoes! I know its been posted before......

Slightly Bunkers

.......but I am completely new to cycling. I just bought a GT ZUM S1 and have started regular 20-30 mile cycles. I wear ordinary trainers while cycling but have noticed my feet numbing up! I know nothing about pedals and clipless cycling etc! Budgets not great either! Any recommendations? I would prefer not to have to by pedals but will if I have to! I am training to do a cycle from Dublin to Belmullet.

Raam

These and these.

Slightly Bunkers

Pink is not my colour and I can't see myself spending more on pedals than I did on the bike! But thanks anyway for your input!!!:cool:

alfalad

Try the search function, you'll get some good input there, Raam is just messing with you! Example here.

The shoes and pedals need to be set up correctly and may not sort out your problem, probably will help though. Again google will help on getting the right set up.
If you get shoes you need the proper pedals, loads of different choices out there and depends on what cycling you do and what you are after as well as budget of course. Plenty of online shops in the wiki and some i'm sure are doing beginner sets for a reduced price. Alternatively try a good bike shop that has a nice collection and they will be able to sort you out.

You are prob looking at around 100 to get you started.

Slightly Bunkers

Are there no shoes that don't need special pedals?

Lumen

Slightly Bunkers wrote: »

Are there no shoes that don't need special pedals?

There are, but most people buying cycle-specific shoes would buy ones which work with clipless pedals.

alfalad

Slightly Bunkers wrote: »

Are there no shoes that don't need special pedals?

They would be very similar to normal shoes just a thinner sole I would think and wouldn't of much benefit.

petethedrummer

Your pain may not be caused by your trainers.

Some Mountain bikers use flat skater type runners such as these: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Categories.aspx?CategoryID=1551

They are sometimes refered to as DH (downhill) shoes or freeride shoes and are probably exactly the same as skateboard trainers.

€25 will get you a set of special cycling pedals if you want to go that route: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=3759

WithCheesePlease

Would anyone mind explaining the different between cleats, SPDs, SPD-SLs, clipless, clips, and whatever else please? Or point me to a good place that could (apart from google, thanks! ).

I'm going to make the leap to proper shoes / pedals myself soon enough but have no real clue where to start...

DirkVoodoo

SPD-SL, Look and Time use a 3 bolt cleat pattern. The cleats have quite a large area and are designed to lock into the pedal more securely for road use.

SPD cleats are a smaller 2 bolt system with a multi release platform. They are aimed more at mountain biking as they don't have as much trouble with the road systems when it comes to dirt and the easier engagement is handier for courses where you might be clipping in and out often. A lot of the pedals have double sided platforms which makes clipping in and out less problematic around town as you don't have to worry about flipping the pedal the right way around at every set of lights.

SPDs are a good beginners platform I think, I've done 130km in mine and they were probably about as good as my road pedals but a lot of this will depend on the shoe you use and what your cleat release tension is (most systems allow you to adjust the tension with a 2 or 3mm hex wrench).

SPDs also have the bonus of being cheaper, so you can buy a shoe that supports SPD and SPD-SL and decide to upgrade the pedals later if you want. Make sure to check the shoe description thoroughly before buying them.

DirkVoodoo

Something like this, a lot of shimano shoes are both SPD and SPD-SL compatible.

manwithaplan

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clipless_pedals

Cleats are the yokes that screw into the bottom of the shoes and enable you to 'clip in' to the pedals. Generally they come with the pedals. There are a few different systems. You mention SPDs - these are Shimano's system where the cleats are recessed into the sole of the shoes and you can walk on them relatively easily. 'Look' pedals use a cleat which screws into your cycling shoes and protrudes some distance, making walking difficult (but are probably a more straight-ahead 'road' system).

I am new enough to cycling and I got a cheap pair of Northwave shoes (good for wider feet and well ventilated) and bottom-of-the-range Look Keo Easy pedals. They work perfectly for me and I had some problems with numbness when cycling in my trainers. No guarantee they would do likewise for you but...

Whole lot cost about €100, although the shoes were in a bargain bin and I got a good discount because I bought everything at the same time as the bike.

Edit: Hadn't seen Dirk's post when I posted.

Slightly Bunkers

Thanks for the info folks! SPD's for me I think!:D