I’ve heard some people talk about how they set up their shoes on their pedals using some kind of rubber band trick. I’ve searched the forum, but couldn’t find anything on how to do it. Can someone please explain, or better yet, post a picture of how it’s done? Not sure if it’s worth it for me, but I’m curious to try it out. Thanks!
There are two ways to do it. One way is to put the crank level and put a rubber band around the back part of the show and around the chain stay. The other way is to loop/tie a rubber band around the loop in your shoe and then pull the rubber band over your cranks.
In both instances the rubberband breaks after a revolution or two. I have yet to see some penalized for “littering” or “equipment abandonment” at a race with rubber bands.
I’ve heard some people talk about how they set up their shoes on their pedals using some kind of rubber band trick. I’ve searched the forum, but couldn’t find anything on how to do it. Can someone please explain, or better yet, post a picture of how it’s done? Not sure if it’s worth it for me, but I’m curious to try it out. Thanks!
You will hear arguments each way - some feel that fumbling around with trying to get in your shoes is faster, some dont.
Most people I have seen do it loop the rubber band through the backs of the shoes, and around the skewers - they snap quickly.
Most people I have seen do it loop the rubber band through the backs of the shoes, and around the skewers - they snap quickly.
With the cranks vertical so that the end of each shoe is equally distant from the rear? Or, with the cranks horizontal and multiple rubberbands on the shoe furthest away from the rear?
I am looking to do this next race, and I am going to try and practice some tomorrow. Reviewing the setup tonight, these questions became apparent to me.
horizontal - one rubber band slightly longer (or stretched further)
Thats the easiest way for me - although I do not do it.
My sidi’s are narrow, and apparently im clumsy, im better off running with my cleats
Can someone post a pic of this? I can read it all day and I will screw it up, but I will get it in an instant from a pic.
Thanks
A few points first.
- Use the smallest rubber bands you can get away with. You don’t want them to to break too easy, but you do want them to break within a revolution.
- Tighten down the release tension on your pedals. If your have premature breakage, you don’t want to lose a shoe before you get on or when you come off the bike. Remember to loosen the tension back after the race.
- Practice the shit out of this. Find an empty parking lot and practice until you can do flying mounts/dismounts without thinking. People may look at you funny doing flying mounts in a parking lot, but they’ll laugh their ass off if you screw one up in a race.
-Don’t do it in a race until you are 100% sure you’re not going to screw up and take somebody else out.
-Carry many extra bands in your transition pack. You’ll break one or five accidentally on race mornings.
-Crank arms are horizontal, left shoe back, right shoe front.
-You need shoes with loops on the back. I’m sure this can be done without the loops, but right now my neurons aren’t firing all that well and I can’t figure out how it would be done.
Left Shoe - Loop the rubber band to the loop on the back of your shoe and then stretch it around the quick release lever. It helps if you point your QR lever back.
Right shoe (drive side) - Loop to the shoe and then over your bottle cage before you put the bottle in.
It’s just that easy. Buy a big assortment pack at a grocery store, drug store, office depot. Practice, practice, practice.
just as an alternative, i find that dental floss works better because it’s not elastic and if you make small nicks in it to weaken it, it is guaranteed to snap when you pedal. Get the non-waxy type.
That second image shows the rubber band RIGHT NEXT to the RD. I would make sure if you are rubber banding the shoe to the chainstay to do it so the rubber band is perpendicular and stays clear of the RD, cogset and jockey wheels.
The key is practice and lots of it - esp with getting INTO your shoes. Getting OUT OF the shoes is cake when coming into T2. I’ve been doing the rubber band thing for a couple of years now and I’m still not as smooth as I need to be. Practice it over and over until you get it right.
+1 for dental floss. You can tie it loosely so that it breaks easily, comes undone easily, etc. Plus, nothing easier than one of those tins of floss in your pack- easy to find, easy to store, forget about it!
OK, here’s the deal.
First, get the rubber bands that come on the Wall Street Journal, they’re the perfect size.
Next, hook the rubber band on the left shoe to your front derailleur and the right shoe to your rear derailleur or skewer. This puts the cranks parallel with the ground and the left shoe also parallel to the ground. As you run out of transition, you hop onto your left pedal and swing your leg over the saddle. The right shoe is now at 12:00 high with the heel significantly raised so that you should be able to slip your foot into the shoe and get going. Leave your left foot on top of the left shoe until you hit level or semi level pavement (most transitions have you starting significantly uphill…
Once you’re crusing, you can reach down and grab the heel loop on your left shoe and stick your foot in.
DO NOT try this for the first time on race day. Practice it at least 100 times in some parking lot somewhere. Notice how much you weave around and think about what it will be like on race day when you’re running over the mount line with seventeen morons around you, some of whom just might be really good swimmers doing their first triathlon EVER!!!
Be prepared for shit to happen.
Except that in the second photo the rubber band is on the NON driveside…