Sorry in advance to all foodies that may have gotten here looking for the latest in oviparous food processing, but this review is for the Egg Beater pedals from Crank Brothers.

My introduction to clipless pedals began with Shimanos. They were set to a medium tension, and I fell down a lot learning how to use them. One time I crashed at a busy intersection and came out of my left shoe, my shoe still dangling in the pedal! It wasn’t till I put them on the loosest setting that I stopped hitting the dirt. The only problem with the loosest setting is that I came unclipped at times. Usually when trying to catch a little air.

I always thought the egg beaters were a cool design, but was wary of purchasing a pair. Most of my buddies had Shimanos, and it made it easy to swap bikes if we wanted. I had also seen a broken egg beater, and felt that my Shimanos were indestructible. Additionally, a friend of mine said that egg beaters, with their roundish shape, could roll on you when trying to clip in. I put my fears aside and purchased a pair of Egg Beater SL’s back in May, lured by the light weight.

It’s always fun to buy a new bicycle part, and Crank Brothers packaging really makes you feel like you just bought something special. I weighed the pedals before installing them, making sure they matched the advertised weight. They were right on. The SL’s weigh in at 266 grams per pair, compared to the Shimanos I was using at 380-430 grams per pair. That’s a 1/4 lb or more of weight (rotating mass) savings! Upon installation there was no adjusting them. There is only one spring tension, unlike the Shimanos that have several clicks of adjustment. This gave me a little concern before I tried them…what if I didn’t like the way they were set?

The final thing to do before riding was to install the cleats on my shoes. You can swap the cleats on the shoes to get different release angles. I chose the earlier release angle, and still have them that way to this day.

Once underway, clipping in to the Egg Beaters was just a little different than the Shimanos. Once you learn the slightly different technique and the pedal breaks in a bit, there is no more thinking about it. Click and you’re in! The four sided entry made it easy to clip in no matter which position the pedal was in. The tension turned out to be just perfect after an initial break in period. The effort to release from the pedals seems like it would work for beginners and more experienced riders alike.

One thing that I noticed right away in the increased float the pedals have. This refers to the angle you have to reach with your heel before your shoe will unclip from the pedal. A little float helps your foot go to its natural position, which is supposed to be easier on your knees too. I was surprised at my natural position. My left foot seems a bit toe in, while my right foot seems to be a little toe out. The Shimanos had very little float, and forced my feet into one position. Another cool thing is that even though the pedals have the extra float, I don’t recall ever unclipping unexpectedly!

I really started liking the SL’s, so I decided to outfit another bike with them. I didn’t feel like shelling out another $100 so I purchased the Egg Beater C’s for a bit less cash. The C’s weigh in slightly heavier at 294 grams per pair, but are still lighter than most other pedals on the market. It seems to me the only difference between the pedals is the weight. I can’t tell the difference in performance.

Aesthetically, the pedals go very well with single speed bikes. The pedals are a very simple design and compliment the simplicity of a fully rigid steel framed bicycle. They look pretty good on my geared bikes though too!

Some riders talk about a “hot spot” on their feet when using egg beaters due to the small platform size of the pedal. I may have experienced this once while on a long ride, coming down a downhill section, standing for an extended period of time. I may have just been tired and beat up though. Typically though, I have never felt any discomfort. It is good to point out though that Crank Brothers makes this design with various platform sizes surrounding the pedal, if you think this would be an issue for you. Your choice of shoe could also factor into the shoe/pedal comfort equation.

Going into winter I’m excited to try the egg beaters in the winter snow and mud. One thing the egg beaters are famous for are their ability to shed trail junk from the pedal. I’ve had experiences with the Shimanos where it was impossible to clip in after putting a foot down in the winter muck.

Well that’s a lot of words to say about a simple pair of pedals, but I really like these things. If you’re looking for a new pair of pedals or trying clipless pedals for the first time, go buy a pair. You won’t be disappointed!

In a previous post, I reviewed the Mary Bars from On One as installed on the On One 29er. At the end of the test period, I felt that the Mary’s didn’t feel quite right on the 29er. I suspect it was just a bit too much rise for my tastes on that bike, since the front end of the 29er is already a bit tall.

After testing the Mary’s on the 29er, I moved them to my On One 26 inch single speed. After several weeks of riding, I’m in love with these bars! The bars add just the right amount of rise, and the width is just about perfect. If you measure straight across the bars, they are around 26 inches wide; however, if you measure the total length of the tubing, they are closer to 28 inches wide. This seems to translate into a lot of leverage for a bar that feels a bit narrower.

Sometimes a good way to test things out is to go back to what you are used to after some time with a new product. I rode my hardtail last week, and the standard riser bars felt a bit odd with my hands straight out in front of me. I missed the comfortable bend all week and never really got used to the standard bars again. I’m back on the Mary bars this week, and I’m happy again!

My single speed On One Inbred is my favorite bike for commuting. The Mary’s feel very natural in the urban setting. You can sprint easily enough if you need to, but they are quite comfortable for just putting around too. Another concern for commuting this time of year is mounting lights. I was worried that lights would be crooked mounted on the strange bend, but they mount perfectly on the tips of the M’s.

Since I use the same bike for singletrack jamming at lunch, it’s nice to have a bike that feels so comfortable for both settings. It did take several days to feel as comfortable on the Mary’s as I did with the standard riser bars, but now they feel as natural as can be and don’t seem to hinder me in any situation. I like the body position the bars put me in for descents, and they feel like bar ends on the climbs. Slow technical stuff is great with all the leverage the bars provide.

In summary, I highly recommend these bars for your 26 inch rig, especially if you will be using the bike for multiple purposes like I do. Like many of the parts on my single speed, the Mary Bars are another great product from On One. Simple, practical, and durable.

Unlike the narrow straight bars available on almost every mountain bike in the early 90′s, there are a lot of new handlebars on the market today with a variety of bends and rise to suit different riders and styles. I recently acquired some On One Mary Bars, and mounted them on a single speed 29er for evaluation. As you can see, the Mary Bars have quite a bit of rearward sweep. To read my first impression of these bars, click on over to the Facility Bike Club blog HERE.

For a long term test of the Mary Bars on my 26er single speed, CLICK HERE.