Cobb Job

There has been a eureka moment in my quest for the ideal pedal. After trying SPD style pedals, which i was happy with in every way but weight, i decided to give the beaters another go, somewhat by chance, as Andrew had just received some egg beater candy pedals back from warranty and was up for a trade. In years past, i had passed off the candy line as a 'rookie' pedal, for people who couldn't clip in easily. But after seeing Fuglsang win on them at worlds, and wanting a more stable pedal, i decided to give them a try.

I am very pleased so far. I modified my Lake race shoes with old grips to provide more stability against the Candy's platform and rode them indoors. Superb. Not only do the new pedals rival the SPD in tightness, but the pedal's stability is outstanding. The real test will be when the snow melts in 3-4 days (fingers crossed) and i can try them whilst mountain biking. They are tight to get into, but not super hard, and i can always trim them down a bit to loosen things a bit, but looking good so far. With my new found skills as a shoe modder, i may be riding the Look pedals, as they have a small platform that could be taken advantage of, but their weights have gone up a bit, i doubt the durability of a plastic pedal, and the egg beaters are lighter, have a bigger platform and outstanding customer service. These guys will most likely be the race day pedal of choice.


As for my shoes, some pictures of the MODZ

Talking a little about shoes last night made me think of how these Lake shoes are compared to my now gone SIDIs. Well, no shoe, bike or otherwise, fit like those Sidis. They breathed well, fit like a glove, and were pretty comfortable. The downsides were the soles were not stiff, the buckle broke (after 3 years) the lugs were hard and didn't offer much traction, and managed to rip off of the bottom frequently. The customer service was good when i could get ahold of them, and they sent me a used mismatch buckle when i called them, but it was free even though the shoes were old, and they sent me lugs for free!

The Lakes i bought because they were cheap for a carbon shoe, were custom put in your oven fut, and made of kangaroos. I always wanted a kangaroo. I had good luck with Lakes in the past, my first shoes were Lakes, and i simply outgrew them, and my winter shoes are Lake, and quite gnarly.

My first impression of the Lakes was how stiff they were. Way stiffer than any shoe i had ever tried, and i have tried some nice road shoes. They fit well, if not as well as the SIDIs, but not bad. They hug your heel if you mold them to do so (i did) and they are very light. The downside to the Lakes became apparent after the first few races on them. A few hike a bikes through rock gardens, and some bashing had ripped part of the tread loose, and scuffed up the fragile and oh so supple kangaroo uppers. Feeling bad that a kangaroo had died so that i could thrash it's skin on rocks over two weeks made me feel a bit guilty i must admit.

Taking the shoes to the local shoe guy, he glued the tread back on with super glue, and made everything right again for $12. Since then, the shoes have been good. The stock glue must have been of poor hold, and the scuffs on the leather are just cosmetic. No tears, and the Boa adjustment is so convenient.

If you can afford these or these, by all means get them. But spending a bit less on the Lakes is not a bad move. Just be prepared to go to the cobbler when the tread comes loose.