Tires, geometry, a dropped chainstay to accommodate a huge tire, the gravel/ adventure niche is the most dynamic in the industry now. Gravel and enduro are where the most product is being developed and oddly pedals haven’t kept up.
I’m not sure why that is, but it’s been at least 20 years since anything new has happened with pedals, which started from ski bindings by ski companies.
The demands of riders have certainly changed since clipless pedals were invented and I’d like to have a recessed cleat road pedal for long rides on dirt roads. Until such time as that happens, TIME and LOOK (both all capped) are releasing iterations of their long standing and excellent pedals.
I have no complaints about a LOOK pedal in road or mountain (or TIME) and it comes down to what fits your body better. They both work well, what I have no use for and that’s just a personal preference is Shimano’s pedals.
I know people love them and I’ve happy they do.
According to the PR, when designing the new X-Track, LOOK engineers concentrated on the interaction of three major factors: contact surface, weight, and the entry/release mechanism, thereby creating a “ready-to-ride” pedal that is easier to use.
That means a cleat you can more easily walk on. The X-Track is also
- Tested by the best riders in the worst conditions
- Developed to maximize pedaling efficiency
- Best power to weight ratio in the XC pedal category
- Optimal contact surface: 515 mm²
- Intuitive positioning / easy to engage
- SPD Compatible
That last bullet is the most significant because this is LOOK’s version of a SPD pedal with their cleat that as I said above, I don’t have a lot of use for. I hope that LOOK is filling in a shelf-space category and soon they’ll innovate without licensing Shimano’s technology, which I’m just gonna say straight up, doesn’t work for me here in the wet, muddy Pacific Northwest.
Elsewhere sure and they’re much easier to walk on.
The X-Trac’s come six different ways and priced as such:
- X-Track $49.99 195 grams
- X-Track Race $89.99 182 grams
- X-Track Race Carbon $129.99 174 grams
- X-Track Race Carbon Ti $249.99 150 grams
- X-Track Rage $74.99 227 grams
- X-Track Rage Plus $129.99 218 gram
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