Touch points - what's your favorite grip, saddle, pedal?

Well this nugget really likes the freerider.  Rode them back to back against my specialized roost with slipknot tread compound today.  I like the lower stack height and better pedal feel of the freerider. The roost is stickier and harder to move my foot around but for whatever reason I am more confident and comfortable on the freerider.

I was a Freerider fan, then Adidas took over and took care of the ripping rubber. At the same time the material which holds the thread wears faster and tends to become soft after a couple of months of riding. To the point I feel barefoot on the pedals and can feel the pins or rotate the shoe, even though it doesn‘ move on the pedals.

I then tried the Freerider Pros and they tend to last longer for me. After a couple of rides, the ride feel is similar enough, the first rides can feel a bit stiff and clunky. They are narrower, maybe go up a size.

The Pros are stiffer and the toe cover is sturdier, which I find beneficial for long, gnarly days. My ankles don‘t hurt afterwards. 

Ventilation is worse. Still, they are the best riding shoes for me. (I only ride on flat pedals.) They are worlds different to flimsy skateboard shoes and chunky fat 90s cnc-pedals of old. 

I have a little hack: I have some wavy thin sheet steel insoles that go below the insoles. They don‘t change riding feel a lot, but I can ride a Freerider Pro which otherwise would be too soft from wear. I get 10-14 months of riding out of a pair instead of 6-8…

The sheet metal is out if some „magic“ insoles which were advertised to transform regualr shoes in cycling shoes. The soft part of the insole was crap and dissolved after five rides. But the sheet metal lived in all of my fivetens for the last 8 years. Shimano had a similar kevlar insole which could be fitted or removed from some BMX shoes a decade or two ago. 

My favorite bars are Syntace Super Light high flex carbon risers and Esi Fit Xc - they make arm pump and numbness totally disappear for me.

I appreciate all the shoe input thanks homies :)

These Impacts are too hot, too heavy, too bulky, too high stack height, and too sticky for me I think. I have a hard time micro adjusting foot position in them. I miss a bit of float from spds, but do appreciate how locked in you can feel most of the time. I think some slightly less sticky soles and I'll be good to go.

I have a super worn out pair of Trailcross I've been wearing as street shoes I'll try next ride but the soles are basically worn flat soooooo... that probably won't go well :D

Thanks for the details!

Your sheet metal move is intriguing, ima keep that one in my pocket.

Edit: I think that there may be a way to combine this stuff insole and some epoxy to repair the ccracked footbed of my Spesh mountain bike shoes - has anyone attempted something like this on carbon soled shoes?

That sheet metal hack is sneaky, I like it.

I've just started running the SQLab 711 tech and trail grip. Honestly, I expected it to be a bit of a gimmick, the only shaped grip that's worked for me long term is the Ergon GE. I have been very surprised. Heaps of control, they don't feel bulky (despite objectively being bulky), and the rubber is both stick and doing a good job damping. 

I don't know if they're for every bike, but seem to work great on hardtail where your whole life is spent doing push ups and hanging on. I believe I spotted them in one of Andrew's articles, so thank you again Andrew and NSMB.

For me it’s

Rental ultra tacky Traction grips for gloveless riding in wet weather. The only grips that stay grippy for me when it’s wet. Raceface Full Nelson are excellent gloveless too and a bit more comfy as they only have inner clamps but not as grippy to bare hands when wet with rain or sweat.

Pedals- very very hard to beat the Kona Wahwah composite. Large, thin, tapered front edge, super grippy well placed thin pins excellent pedals and I’ve tried a lot of premium ones over time

510 Sam Hill Impacts on the feet (old bulky style). With Sealskinz if it’s bad and an amazingly effective anti dorsiflection / anti case ankle brace from Aus. https://m.pinkbike.com/news/introducing-a-new-style-of-ankle-brace.html

Specialized Power Pro comp saddle. Just unnoticeable on the rare occasions when I sit.

Posted by: thaaad

Currently paying close attention to saddle choices.  My butt seems to have stopped liking my go-to saddles lately :(

Trailmaster For MTB and Flite for road / gravel are my usuals.

Dude. Give the cheaper (comp?) Specialized Power Pro seat a test. Doesn’t do a ride and return service, well here in uk anyway.

Posted by: heathen

Grip - ODI Longneck (slip on)

Saddle - Specialized Power Expert 143

Pedal - Kona Wah Wah composite

Love those pedals and the seat.