Shoe and pedal combo...what's working for ye?

I seem to flip flop back and forth between clipless and flats but I think I have finally found the shoe and flat pedal combo that really works for me. And the good news is the pedal is cheap as all fuck.

Five Ten Freerider VX whatever with the bald patch.

Deity Compound pedals. Doesn't have a ton of pins but the pins it does have are sharp and stick very nicely to the Five Tens. But not too much. Each are fairly light in weight.

I'm climbing technical stuff I could only previously climb with clipless (partly because I'm just getting better at climbing anyway.)

After some painful fails on the clipless this summer I think I have decided, for ye olde mountain biking, I really prefer flats.

Specialized Cliplite shoes with the BOA fasteners and XTR trail pedals. Amazing.

5.10 Impact Clips w/XTR Trail. Totes amaze-balls!

Just got me new Shimano AM-9 clippers. Excellent shoe, only because the cleat is 100% flush with the rubber sole. Not a sound when walking on pavement.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5047-040/SH-AM9-Cycling-Shoes

Pair them with XT trails and I'm good to go, road commute, seymour all mountain or cypress DH.

Yeah, I like my XT Trails when running clipless. My shoes are Pearl Izumi with the boa thingy. Forget the model but they've got a carbon sole and decent traction off the bike too. I'm happy with it when I'm clipless.

This is the first time I haven't had shoe or pedal lust for a while. I like what I've got.

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After some painful fails on the clipless this summer I think I have decided, for ye olde mountain biking, I really prefer flats.

I remember when my clipless felt like certain death. Now after a few years of them I'm switching back to flats and I just can't.

After a lifetime on flats I'm totally confident on them and that's the problem- It's always a surprise mid air or at the end of a rock garden when I discover my feet are free floating.

My favorite combo for clipless is a big platform pedal, paired with a more traditional open tread type shoe- Something with the cleat well clear of the tread. I like the Crank Bros DH pedal, with a soft soled Sidi or Giro trail/ XC shoe.

My other fave is flats with center pins pulled out, paired with 5 10's. Of the pedals I've tried I really like Kona Wah Wah's and DMR Vaults.

got some Giro Empire VR90s and xtr race pedals on my cross/commuter. sick combo.

I use SWorks XC Race shoes paired to crank brother ti egg beaters on my Epic and to Mallet 3s on my Enduro. Works well.

I've looked at the 5.10 clipless mentioned above because my shoes are nearing the end of their usable life.

Just got me new Shimano AM-9 clippers. Excellent shoe, only because the cleat is 100% flush with the rubber sole. Not a sound when walking on pavement.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5047-040/SH-AM9-Cycling-Shoes

Pair them with XT trails and I'm good to go, road commute, seymour all mountain or cypress DH.

How are those Shimano AM-9 shows for summer (aka. hot weather) riding? The lace cover looks like it would be useful in cooler/wetter weather but does it breath well?

Honourable mention should go to the Shimano MW7. It's a Shimano Enduro-style winter boot I had to be persuaded by Ken @ Lynn Valley. Kind of expensive but definitely worth it. I used to use old AM45s in the winter but these are so much better. The don't get waterlogged and heavy. The sole is nice and grippy and every wet ride I come home in comfort.

Shimano AM7 with WahWah,S might try the AM9,s with my clips come race season again

Right now I am riding Shimano AM-7 shoes with Race Face Atlas pedals. The shoes are not as sticky as I would like…they feel harder than my AM 41 and they do not seem as tough either.

I rode clipless for many years (since they first came out for MTB) and in the freeride days went to flats for safety reasons (falling off higher features clipped in suuuucks). I put clips back on a few years back and liked the extra control I feel I got…but had a few foot injuries (some riding, some not) and so I went back to flats and now with the new thin pedals and sticky comfy shoes…I don't see myself going back to clips.

Right now I am riding Shimano AM-7 shoes with Race Face Atlas pedals. The shoes are not as sticky as I would like…they feel harder than my AM 41 and they do not seem as tough either.

I rode clipless for many years (since they first came out for MTB) and in the freeride days went to flats for safety reasons (falling off higher features clipped in suuuucks). I put clips back on a few years back and liked the extra control I feel I got…but had a few foot injuries (some riding, some not) and so I went back to flats and now with the new thin pedals and sticky comfy shoes…I don't see myself going back to clips.

no they are not as sticky as a 5/10 but I find them just as light and way more comfortable and durable than any of the 5/10,s I have , also way better in the wet , don,t soak up the water as bad