Pedals can tell a story.

In all bike fits you should check for wear, particularly wear on pedals. On Keo pedals one place to check is  the bottom. Rotate the pedal and look under the front area of the pedal. You will usually notice wear toward the inside. See the gray area on this left black Keo pedal.

Why? Most people have a varus fore foot and the inside of the foot is higher than the outside of the foot. When you clip in this natural tilt is forced flat but the foot likes to fight back a bit to try and be more in its natural position – result on the pedal is usually a wear mark of some sort that shows the foot is not in its desired position.

This particular pedal and many others like it show the need to add a wedge. A more even wear is desirable at this area when you do a bike fit.

Speedplay Information Pad.....what is this?

So how do I send my customer or patient to the local Speedplay dealer and make sure they get the correct length pedal spindles?

Get your Speedplay information pad ......available soon

more on 20mm pedal spacers

What is the issue with using them with pedals that are put on with an allen wrench as opposed to pedal wrenches?  Is it that you cannot get a tight enough contact between the pedal and the spacer?

I hope these pictures help in understanding why you need a pedal wrench. There is one other spacer I have seen with a thru hole that allowed room for a 6mm allen key to pass but the problem is all the pedals we work with require an 8mm allen key so the hole is not really useful.

SPECIAL - Good for October 18-20, 2010 - mention this blog and recieve $5.00 off an order on a set of 20mm spacers. Limit one set per person

No 20mm pedal spacers on carbon cranks...well most carbon cranks

Why do you not recommend 20mm pedal spacers with carbon cranks?
Thanks for the question. To be honest it is not so much that BikeFit recommends this but rather some manufactures do not support this.

This is a tough one for us to hold back with our actual thoughts but we will….for now.

This is what a few companies have told us. I may not have this word for word so do not hold us accountable to exact wording but here is a synopsis of a few conversations.

Use of 20 mm pedal spacers – what we think

Zipp –    Voids warranty
FSA-     Voids warranty on ALL their cranks … and they said they will void warranty even if you use a longer pedal spindle – now I did not get a range or what they actually consider a longer spindle as not all pedal widths are the same – most are close but again not all are the same
Truvativ – waiting for an update
Specialized – says they are OK if you use a 20mm pedal spacer on their carbon cranks.

So guess what I ride? I love my Specialized Tarmac S works with carbon cranks.
Right side - I go back and forth between a ½ inch longer spindle (Speedplay Zeros - which I actually pay for) or I use a regular length spindle and a 20 mm pedal spacer.
Left Side -I use a ¼ inch long spindle..

Hope I get to ride a Specialized for a long time!

Speedplay - Bike Fit Systems - Andy Pruitt - Cleat Wedges

Nice article on one of our favorite products, the Pro Fit Case by Speedplay which includes our Cleat Wedges, the only product not branded Speedplay in this case. Speedplay has advanced the world of bike fitting far beyond any other pedal company. You will also see mention in the article of our largest individual purchaser of Cleat Wedges over the past 10 years, Andy Pruitt. Congratulations to Andy for using our product and being mentioned as one of the world’s best known bike fitters.
http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/07/bikes-tech/speedplay-the-little-pedal-with-the-big-presence-in-the-tour_128526

Here is a photo of Paul and Richard the owner/founder of Speedplay talking about his award in 2009.

As we have said for years, proper bike fit begins at the pedal. Thank you Speedplay for also listing several of our top customers in this ad - click here www.labici.com.cn/cn/ad/ProFitAd_BicycleRetailer3.pdf 

Happy Pedals

Local Dates for Green Level BikeFit Pro Education courses are now on line

Here is the most recent schedule for local the BikeFit Tour offering BikeFit Pro Education and Training. The following are all Green Level Education courses. For more information click on this link.
http://bikefit.com/schedule10.php

October 31 & November 1
November 14 & 15, 2010
December 12 & 13, 2010
January 16 & 17, 2010
February 13 & 14, 2011
April 17 & 18, 2011
May 22 & 23, 2011
June 5 & 6, 2011

After hour bike fits – don’t forget about early am hours

Ever consider after hours for bike fits? There are several reasons for this:

1. Most people work all day. After hours is when they can fit this appointment into their schedule.
2. During regular hours, the shop is busy and space is at a premium.
3. Less disruption- I can’t count the number of times I am pulled into a separate customer’s issue during one of my bike fits.
Whatever the reason, consideration for after hour bike fits will arise sooner or later.

Coming from someone that does not own a shop but works with one, setting up appointments before the shop opens has been working even better for us. Typically, we try to start before the shop opens and look to finish just after the shop opens. Sometimes the bike needs to be left for work – for installing a part or possibly (probably) a tune-up. Another issue for us is the purchasing of parts. Our arrangement with the shop is parts are purchased directly thru the shop. It is so much easier dealing with transactions directly rather than trying to cover the part with the client and then with the shop later- less work and hassle for everyone.

Another big reason is responsibility. I do not need to be concerned with locking up after hours. I like to be able to leave when the shop is open and employees are present. It is a much better feeling.

Mostly, I wanted to share with you that there may be other options in addition to late night fits which we may not have even considered. This can also lead to more opportunities. We do this a few times a month and it has worked nicely.

BikeFit in the news - Japanese style

I can’t read Japanese but apparently things are going Bonsai in Japan

Articles:
July 13th http://www.cyclowired.jp/?q=node/35830
April 6th http://www.cyclowired.jp/?q=node/28755

Longer lefts?

During bike fits, we note the cyclist’s need for longer/shorter pedal spindles or need for extenders. At first we did not think it was that big of a deal. However, the need for longer/shorter spindles has become beyond note worthy.

Literally, we are finding AT LEAST 3 of every 5 cyclist’s stance width requires a spindle width longer or shorter than a standard width pedal.

To track this data even more closely we are noting the need per foot being fitted. In other words 5 bike fits would = 10 feet.

We have recorded as high as 9 of 10 feet needing longer or shorter spindles in a weekend of bike fitting (5 bike fits). That means not one cyclist fit on a standard pair of pedals.

While tracking this information, we noticed the left foot needs to be placed more laterally than the right foot to be accurately placed under the knee. At times, we move the right foot in and the left foot out by changing cleat position. Sometimes, we use a shorter right spindle only. In most cases the left spindle needs to be longer. We are starting to gather a LOT of right pedal spacers and we are now asked at least once a week if we sell “left” pedal spacers only.

What does that mean? One day you will not just buy a pair of pedals but be sized for the correct width pedals (per foot). What is the only pedal manufacturer to address this issue? What pedal companies do you wish would figure this out?

To read more  - http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/06/news/coaches-panel-why-do-knees-often-track-asymetrically_120495

Bike Fit - SPD cleats and pedals.

I think I echo the sentiment of others by saying that I prefer to work with almost any other cleat and pedal when it comes to bike fit. But I think when it comes to really trying to improve what we do - we must learn to embrace our weakness or area we like the least.

I personally took this challenge and one of the results was the new V V 1 cleat, perhaps the most advance cycling cleat in the world. Here are some of the considerations for taking this challenge.

Market size and share - The SPD market is the largest market of pedals in the world. I will restate that as there are more people (A LOT MORE) riding some sort of SPD or SPD knock off than any other cleat and pedal. This is a huge and relatively untapped market. It really is ours for the taking.

Mtn bike fits and control - When it comes to so called mtn bike fits I often hear people say bike fit is not as important as a road bike. This could not be further from the truth. What controls a mtn bike more, than lets say seat height or position, is the foot/pedal interface. Your feet control the bike and are far more important for control of the bike than they are on a road bike.

The kicker – in spite of the fact that the connection is more important the platform size is small and not as stable. – The relative contact surface of an SPD cleat to the bottom of the shoe is so minimal. Often efforts we put into working with this cleat have been tough. Even when we get a desired adjustment it can be difficult to make sure everything maintains its setting. One less variable (incorporating a wedge into the cleat) eliminates one of the adjustments we need to control when working with SPD cleats. In other words it should be easier to address by eliminating one of the reasons we may tend to shy away from SPD type fits.

Here is a link to some early success with the V V 1 cleats. I hope you too will enjoy this type of success soon. http://hypercatcycling.wordpress.com/