Bike Fitting at a mansion!

On the steps of Burn Brae Manor the home of Mike Fraysse’s Sports. This was our first of what I am sure will be many more BikeFit Pro classes.

 Vladi Khlopine, Beth Mason, Barry Miller, Dave Will

Paul Swift, Gene Geeza, Oye Carr, Joyce Pellegrini, Kit Vogel

5 cycling magazine editors were all recently fit with Speedplay pedals at Sea Otter

Here are some of the initial numbers from the cleat/pedal fits. This is a direct reflection of the variance between the 5 fits and the ability of Speedplay and the use of cleat wedges to meet the individual needs.

5 bike fits performed = 10 pedals used
6 pedals needed different length spindles (60 percent)
9 cleats received cleat wedges (90 percent) – No ITS Wedges.
Shorter spindles – 5 (50 percent)
Longer spindles – 1 (10 percent)
3 Received Superfeet insoles.

Without Speedplay Pedals only 40 percent would have been fitted properly. In other words any other pedal system in the world would have netted only a 40 success rate.

Without Cleat Wedges only 10 percent would have been fitted properly. This combination is the best way to fit more cyclists properly.

Four needed shorter right spindles. It is more common we see the left longer than the right so this was not surprising.

This group was fairly typical regarding how many needed different length spindles and wedges. We see the same ratio in our fittings and education classes.......not a good sign for any other pedal.

Atypical of this group was that more often we find longer spindles are needed. This group as whole needed shorter spindles but again the left to right ratio is common.

We share this information not to impress you but the impress upon you the importance of cleat wedges and proper spindle widths. We hope you are able to experience the same success.

ITS vs Cleat Wedge

First of all this is not one wedge against another – as long as you are talking about BikeFit branded wedges. Both of the Wedges offered from BikeFit.com work very well. Each wedge however has its place.

In most cases it is my preference to use the Cleat Wedge. In fact this is what most bike fitters should also find when they approach this issue at the foot. Bike fitters more and more should be able to assess this area and find the preferred product to be the Cleat Wedge.

So when should the ITS be used?

The ITS often is a “fill in” product for types of cleats that are not compatible with cleat wedges like Crank Brothers – however Cleat Wedges under the Crank Brothers shoe shield is often a good cleat wedge solution.

Perhaps more of a hyper mobile foot would be a good place to use an ITS in combination with the Cleat Wedge. This type of foot needs more support. A stiff or rather a more rigid foot tends to be more responsive with less wedging and the Cleat Wedge is really a better solution for most rigid feet (this is important to know so please keep this information in mind when you are doing bike fits)

ITS wedges are also great for diagnostics. Throw it in and see how it affects the cycling mechanics.

When you are short on time you can quickly get some needed wedging in place (probably only a temporary solution) for the foot.

ITS wedges are also good to have in your arsenal for situations when a cyclist is “in-between” or it is tough to tell if 2 cleat wedges or 3 cleat wedges is the better solution. In other words the cyclist looks good with 2 or 3 cleat wedges. Let the cyclist go with 2 cleat wedges installed and give them an ITS as the 3rd wedge. Instruct them to spend some time with the ITS in the shoe and some time with it in their back pocket. Over a period of time you will usually find the preferred amount of Cleat Wedging to settle on for the cyclist.

Bike Fits recent growth in the industry is a good thing. However with growth we must also be careful to grow properly. There is a huge amount of misinformation that is floating within the bike fitting world. Be aware of this and learn the difference. Many people have been mislead on this issue.

Just like pedal platforms got wider with world leading companies does not mean their approach was the correct one. Perhaps it was needed but it was done so with complete disregard to the reason “why” outer pedal wear was occurring. Think about this when you look at other leading companies with other products….are they really steering us in the right direction?

Happy Cleat Wedge Pedaling

Swifty

Can you think of some well known names in the bike fitting world that are a big fans of the Cleat Wedges?? An example of one is John Cobb

Physical Therapy and Clinician's Education dates for Spring/Summer

- April 10-11, 2010, Kirkland, WA - USA (Green Level Education)

- April 24-25, 2010, Portland, OR - USA (Green Level Education)

- May 15-16, 2010, Kirkland, WA - USA (Green Level Education)

- June 19-20, 2010, Kirkland, WA - USA (Red Level Education)

http://bikefit.com/schedule10.php