Straps on TIME pedals
May 23rd, 2007 |This is kind of “inside baseball” but a couple of people have asked me about it and I can’t keep a secret.
I am using toe straps on my TIME pedals for standing start events. Why? Not because of any release issue with the pedals. It is only to prevent any vertical movement between the sole of the shoe and the upper of the shoe.
In standing start events such as match sprint, keirin, 1K, 4K, etc., the start is critical. You need to be able to get as much power into getting the crank arms turning as quickly as possible. Any energy lost between the interface of your foot, your shoe and your pedals could mean the difference between the gold medal and being first loser.
I experimented with using toe straps and found that it makes a huge difference in power transfer so I played around a bit over the winter and figured out the optimal set up with my pedals.
It’s pretty simple. I just use a heavy duty zip tie and loop it around the toe strap and the retention spring of the pedal.
The zip tie holds the toe strap in the perfect place and does not affect the mechanics of the pedal at all.
Presto!
You can see more photos of this set up here.
