Читать книгу Tour Climbs: The complete guide to every mountain stage on the Tour de France - Chris Sidwells - Страница 24

Bikes have three sorts of pedals. Flat pedals on which you just place your feet and push down. Pedals with toe clips and straps, where your feet can pull up on the clips as well as push down on the pedals. And by far the best system for climbing mountains, clipless pedals.

These work by inserting a cleat, which is fixed to the sole of a specialist cycling shoe, into a spring-loaded retaining mechanism on the pedal. Once engaged your foot is always in contact with the pedal, and the muscles of your legs can input power throughout the whole 360 degrees of every pedal revolution. All you do to disengage your foot from the pedal is twist it sideways. They take a bit of practice to get used to but are very efficient and totally safe.