(no subject)

[owlectomy]

Riding short distances in reasonable traffic does not make me feel bad-ass.

Doing moderate bike mechanic stuff DOES make me feel incredibly bad-ass. Especially when I have to spend twenty minutes yanking on the wrench to get it to turn!

OH YEAH.

(I may possibly be the only cyclist in history to upgrade from toe-clip pedals to platform pedals -- when I got Nice Bike I fell down because I couldn't get the hang of getting my toes in the clips, and I'm sure I would've gotten the hang of it eventually, but in Brooklyn where you run into ten traffic lights every mile, what's the point? I do not plan on riding Nice Bike frequently -- I bought it something like four months before I moved to New York, and it's much better suited to the suburbs -- but it's useful if I want to lend my sister a bike so we can ride together.)

Also I adjusted my basket so hopefully I will no longer have a problem with heel strike. And tied the loose bit down with kitchen twine and a knot I learned on YouTube.

Comments

[pinesandmaples]

I'm not a toe-clip fan, either. I suspect I'll come to love them when I start training for my century, though.

[daedala]

Yay biking and wrenching!

Don't feel bad about toe clips! They...don't really do what a lot of the bike nuts say they do. Per Grant Petersen, who oughta know.

I have three bikes I ride regularly. One has platform pedals, one has toe clips, and one has dual platform/clipless pedals. I like them all. The toe clip bike is the one I ride most, but that's because I ride in all weathers (and I do mean all weathers, including winter) and I don't want my feet to slip off the pedal. This can happen in rain and snow and bouncing over the ice at intersections. This may not be an issue for you...

I do kind of like the clipless pedals for really long rides, but I think it's partly psychological. They make me feel like a Real Cyclist or something. Hey, if my brain is that easy to make happy, I'm good with it, and I can still wear whatever shoes I want on that bike. I don't think I'd ever go full clipless.

[owlectomy]

That Grant Petersen article made me feel better!

Right now I'm intending to bike commute only in moderately good weather (we don't often get snow that sticks, and the authorities are good at plowing and salting, so I think I may even be okay for most of winter), and I'm more afraid of getting my foot stuck and falling into traffic than having a foot slip off a pedal. (I haven't had a problem with that, maybe because I wear very grippy shoes.) Especially when traffic is so stop-and-go here. But I am hella impressed with people who can ride with clipless pedals!