Mountain Bike

[pmacFTO]

I am trying out http://www.mapmyride.com/ Anyone use it? I found it thru a guy on Flickr who commented on one of my pics...weird eh? He sent me this route http://www.mapmyrun.com/ride/united-kingdo...artmore/1112522 and I like the site so may as well give it a try

The reason for this is a big community and the fact they do challenges. I also love the Google Earth 3d view of the routes lol - it's a nice wee gimmick. There were also some Scottish groups and people on it so it's a bit less Americanised. Great forums too.

[pmacFTO]

Just did my first non-commute ride

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingd...127221672473994

Killer hill in the middle (20% at one point!) but awesome fun on the way down and since it was in torrential rain on country/farm roads I think I may have got a taste for the thrill! Looking to get to Glentress soon and do some proper DH or at least single lane tracks!

[pmacFTO]

Anyone got SPD pedals/shoes I could buy or ideally try I heard you need to get a shoes size bigger as they make them small. I want to try clipless pedals.

[bmwhere?]

Anyone got SPD pedals/shoes I could buy or ideally try I heard you need to get a shoes size bigger as they make them small. I want to try clipless pedals.

For shoes, the size is like any other shoe, ever one is a different size, so trying on in a shop is always a good idea!

SPD pedals can be lethal when you're just starting out. Very easy to forget you're clipped in when you get to a junction and you end up falling over sideways Once you get used to them though, they really are great, being able to pull as well as push on the pedals really lets you get more power down and particularly helps going up hills!

You can get single sided SPD pedals with SPD on one side and a normal pedal on the other, or alternatively you can also get pedal inserts that clip into the SPD pedal to work like a normal pedal. Really helps when you're starting out as you can always go back to a normal pedal when things get tricky!

[pmacFTO]

Thanks for that I am an avid "read up on everything b4 you buy" kind of guy so I now have a pair of shoes with cleats coming and a set of Shimano pedals with the flat/spd sides so I can use both as suggested. The guy I got the shoes from said the double sided ones can be annoying to get into - better to just get SPD on both sides but I'll see how it goes I have watched many vids of people on youtube with their clipless pedals and their various mishaps so I am well prepared - I got ones with a screw adjuster for the spring so you can make unclipping easy to learn

Next I need a feck-off bright headlight for night riding! Anyone use a good one? Mine is ok but it can be pitch black where I go - never see people and nowhere near cars so I can get a pretty intense light

I came back on here to post this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...ME:B:EF:GB:1120

It's cheap but I saw a few good reviews of it and decided to give it a go - and it works brilliantly! I use the iphone to track my rides to work and my evening 10mile ride with my dog in tow and was finding it annoying not being able to see the phone to track speed/pace etc. I got this wee holder for much cheapness and it's great! Not done any DH with it but it was pretty secure going down steps and thru woods etc.

[bmwhere?]

The guy I got the shoes from said the double sided ones can be annoying to get into

It depends on the weighting. I originally also had the Shimano double sided pedals (although its about 13 years ago now, so they may have changed them now!) and they tended to end up vertical if you took your foot off for more than a second or so. They were a bit of a pain as you never knew which way they had spun (SPD to front or back), so sometimes you would get back on the right side, others on the wrong side. I now have full SPD's with clip in normal pedals, they are much better as the normal pedal always ends up on the bottom, so you know if you want the flat pedal you have to rotate it first!

To be honest though, when you're getting used to SPD's, the double sided pedals are a godsend and well worth the little bit of fiddling they require. Once you're sorted though, you may well want to go full SPD!

[pmacFTO]

It depends on the weighting. I originally also had the Shimano double sided pedals (although its about 13 years ago now, so they may have changed them now!) and they tended to end up vertical if you took your foot off for more than a second or so. They were a bit of a pain as you never knew which way they had spun (SPD to front or back), so sometimes you would get back on the right side, others on the wrong side. I now have full SPD's with clip in normal pedals, they are much better as the normal pedal always ends up on the bottom, so you know if you want the flat pedal you have to rotate it first!

To be honest though, when you're getting used to SPD's, the double sided pedals are a godsend and well worth the little bit of fiddling they require. Once you're sorted though, you may well want to go full SPD!

Already watching Ebay for the Shimano M520 full SPDs Loads about and decent price too.