Hey Patrick, The thing I appreciate about the Grip Kings and (even more so) the VP Thin Gripsters is the surface area that allows one to move the feet fore/aft and side to side on the pedal. This, for me at least, prevents any of the pressure point problems that you mention and I experienced with various clipless system I've used over the year. That said, the spikes on the VP's and the aftermarket spikes on my Grip Kings are pretty rough on my bare feet, and I don't ride more than around the neighborhood barefoot. I have found that the VP's work great with Vibram FiveFingers though (considerably less so with the GripKings with their interstitial and uneven space between the grippy pedal sections). I don't know if you've tried those or if they would give you the feedback you need, but several models have very thin soles.
-Jay B. On Friday, April 19, 2013 9:27:37 AM UTC-4, Deacon Patrick wrote: > > Question upfront: how barefoot friendly are the pedals you ride? I'd love > input on all pedals, but am specifically wondering about both the VP thin > Gripster and MKS Grip King Rivendell offers. > > Relavant détails: > -- I ride barefoot or in thin leather moccasins (when cold requires) > because of the increased proprioception (feedback from the feet that lets > the body know where it is in space) I require due to brain stem damage and > resultant vertigo. > -- I am possibly acquiring a second bike (fixie) and thus in need of a > second pair of barefoot friendly pedals. > -- I have and love my oak woodie Bullseye Pedals on my Hunga. These are > perhaps the ideal barefoot pedal. > -- I'm doubtful about the clip less platform pedal set up from Bike Tinker > because of the inherent, albeit slight, rotational play inherent to > clipless. > -- I live and run mountain trails barefoot or moccasined, so my feet are > well acclimated to rough/uneven surfaces; however, my experience with > pedals tells me that on rides longer than 2-3 hours, the foot gets tender > from the same pressure points. > -- The pedal to beat (aside from the oak woodies) is the MKS Touring pedal > with rubber blocks. I have a pair with the outer "rings" filed down a bit. > -- I ride mostly midfoot on the pedal. > > -- One thought on "possibly worth trying" is the Gripster pedals with a > thin Vibram soling (which I have) somehow screwed into the cleat treads > with broad flathead screws. Any suggestions here greatly appreciated. > > Thanks for your input! > > With abandon, > Patrick > > *www.MindYourHeadCoop.org* > *www.OurHolyConception.org* > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en-US. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
