Does suspension affect foot fatigue?

[Kai Drange]

After several years of regular riding I still find riding more than 5km a bit uncomfortable. I have never tried a wheel with suspension, so out of curiosity, do those who have notice less (or more?) foot fatigue?

 

[UniVehje]

Not really. Suspension helps on knee pain but not feet. If you still experience foot fatigue so quickly, maybe you should check riding position? Stand more forward. Make sure your heels are at the level of back of pedals and toes are hanging out. Standing too far back is the most common cause of foot fatigue. And try with different shoes also. 

[Funky]

3 hours ago, Kai Drange said:

After several years of regular riding I still find riding more than 5km a bit uncomfortable. I have never tried a wheel with suspension, so out of curiosity, do those who have notice less (or more?) foot fatigue?

 

Place the ankles with "L" hangers - you will feel like simply standing and wheel will go forwards by itself. (Yes your feet 1/3 part will be over pedals..) Yes it's more stretchy riding like that.. But at least your feet doesn't hurt.  

Also adding some 1-2 degree forwards/backwards into pedal tilt, may help. (I at start where riding with +2 on pedals - so whole euc front would sit more upwards.) But after time i found out that keeping at level "0" pedals is the best.

Edited July 28, 2022 by Funky

[Miko.cz]

For my own rides I found relation between feet pain and ride difficulty. As the conditions (terrain, snow, rain, fatique, length, wind, boots, size of pedals and their surface, maybe pads... almost anything) is getting worse, I want to "grab more" the pedals with my feet (yeah, sounds like Im monkey...) and thats the source of my pain that is hard to prevent (change position, one leg half-lift, "driving arcs" etc.) and I need to stop for a while (minute) lets say every 5-20km.

[wstuart]

For me, foot fatigue gets worse if I feel uncomfortable on a wheel - like if the wheel is less stable.  I actually experience more foot fatigue on my v11 because the higher pedals make it feel very wobbly. 

I experience rhe least foot datigue on my 18xl because it feels sooo stable

[rcgldr]

Shoes made the biggest difference for me, but most of my issue is with calf pain not foot pain. I switched to low top hiking shoes with stiff soles, but cushioned on the inside. I tried hi-top hiking shoes, but the ankle padding was too thick, forcing my heels outwards, and making it difficult to put my inner legs on the skinny upper pads on my V8F.

Riding on a bumpy trail was also an issue compared to riding on a smooth trail.

 

[UtahRider]

For me, peddle mode and wheel angle makes the biggest difference concerning foot pain. I use medium mode and 2 degrees tilt forward on my Begode wheels. Ill also carve and consciously rock heal to toe a tad when I’m starting to feel foot fatigue. Good stiff sole shoes or sneakers helps too.

[Kai Drange]

21 hours ago, UniVehje said:

Not really. Suspension helps on knee pain but not feet.

Thanks, I haven't noticed any knee problems, only feet and calves. I'm happy with my V10, so nice to know this isn't a reason to start looking for an alternative with suspension.

And thanks for the tips, everyone. Sounds like I should take a look at my pedal settings and stand more forward. I'm standing with one foot more forward than the other, but it does sound like my weight is too far back compared to what you are describing. I feel I lose the ability to break when standing more forward, but that is probably just imagined and something I will get used to.

As UtahRider mentions, I do notice that carving and lifting toe/heel helps. And I've learned to ride on one leg so that I can shake off that static feeling once in a while without having to stop. 

20 hours ago, Miko.cz said:

I want to "grab more" the pedals with my feet

Yeah, I used to do this as well. Perhaps I still do but have stopped noticing it... When I started riding, I experimented with different types of shoes and got the impression that I didn't do it when wearing minimalist, flexible shoes without cushioning. As if I had a good sense of grip on the pedals in those. But when I wore more cushioned shoes, I tried to compensate for not feeling the pedals properly by "gripping". Hmm, I haven't thought much about shoes lately, or if I still do this. I should check that.

[UniVehje]

1 minute ago, Kai Drange said:

I feel I lose the ability to break when standing more forward, but that is probably just imagined and something I will get used to.

1) you’ll get used to it quickly 

2) V10 doesn’t really need powerpads but maybe you could try pads for braking to feel more secure. Experiment by lifting the back of the existing cushion and putting something under it to make it bigger. Then you can use it to support  your calves when leaning back. 

[Funky]

8 hours ago, rcgldr said:

Shoes made the biggest difference for me, but most of my issue is with calf pain not foot pain.

I also had calf pain - because i had the 2 degree tilt in front. After i put pedals at level 0 position. I completely lost all the calf pain.

But gained feet cramps after longer riding.  But i fixed my feet cramps, by simply moving the feet little bit in front - over the pedals. Also if you move your feet more outwards of pedals (further away from euc shell.) It also feels better to ride. Ankles doesn't touch the euc.

[rcgldr]

Foot position - most of the expert youtube riders have their feet parallel and centered. This may because they use power pads on many of their wheels, and pad are normally setup with feet centered, so they use the same centered foot position when not using pads. Jeff from EUCO has his feet about 1/2 inch forward. 

[Miko.cz]

2 hours ago, rcgldr said:

Foot position - most of the expert youtube riders have their feet parallel and centered. This may because they use power pads on many of their wheels, and pad are normally setup with feet centered, so they use the same centered foot position when not using pads. Jeff from EUCO has his feet about 1/2 inch forward. 

I tried centered and than learned V-style, no pain changer for me. But V-Style without pads on default smaller 16S pedals gives me better control.

[rcgldr]

3 hours ago, Miko.cz said:

I tried centered and than learned V-style, no pain changer for me. But V-Style without pads on default smaller 16S pedals gives me better control.

By V-style I assume you mean toes pointed outwards? I ride toes out, but because they're normally out when I'm standing, and with them out on an EUC, I need my toes outwards so my knees bend forwards instead of forwards and inwards.

[mhpr262]

Try riding with higher air pressure too. I used to ride with only 30 psi or so in my Chao Yang 5102 because I got three flats in a row when I rode on dirt paths last year, but I recently tried 40 psi again and I noticed that the tire felt much more stable and there was much less foot pain with the higher pressure too. Apparently trying to counterbalance the constant minuscule wobbles of the tire at low pressure made my feet cramp up.

Edited July 29, 2022 by mhpr262

[Funky]

54 minutes ago, mhpr262 said:

Try riding with higher air pressure too. I used to ride with only 30 psi or so in my Cheng Shin 5102 because I got three flats in a row when I rode on dirt paths last year, but I recently tried 40 psi again and I noticed that the tire felt much more stable and there was much less foot pain with the higher pressure too. Apparently trying to counterbalance the constant minuscule wobbles of the tire at low pressure made my feet cramp up.

Didn't you get that backwards? Lower psi = more stable. Higher psi = more "harsh" ride.

At higher psi the tire feels more "wobbly" as you are riding knife edge.

Edited July 29, 2022 by Funky

[mhpr262]

The factory Cheng Shin CST 1488 on my V11 feels like that, yeah. But not the Chao Yang 5102 (I mistakenly called it a ChengShin in my post above). That one definitely feels better at 40 PSI on my V10F. Keep in mind though that I weigh 130kg, so 30 PSI in the same tire on the same wheel might still be perfectly ok for someone who weighs 70-80 kg. Biggest lesson is to really experiment with tire pressure I guess, it pays off.

[Funky]

1 hour ago, mhpr262 said:

The factory Cheng Shin CST 1488 on my V11 feels like that, yeah. But not the Chao Yang 5102 (I mistakenly called it a ChengShin in my post above). That one definitely feels better at 40 PSI on my V10F. Keep in mind though that I weigh 130kg, so 30 PSI in the same tire on the same wheel might still be perfectly ok for someone who weighs 70-80 kg. Biggest lesson is to really experiment with tire pressure I guess, it pays off.

Brotha from anotha Motha - we weight almost the same.  125kg here. And i ride my M/C tire 28psi the same as i rode my CST C-1488. Anything over 30psi i get that "riding on knife edge" feeling.. More wobbles at speed and so on. (I should try 40psi for joke.. I never went over 35 psi before.. As i tough if it's so bad at 35psi no point going higher.)

 

You know those tires have weight limit of ~90kg right? 130+wheel weight = 155-165kg??? 2x the limit almost.

Edited July 29, 2022 by Funky

[Rawnei]

On 7/28/2022 at 10:56 AM, Kai Drange said:

After several years of regular riding I still find riding more than 5km a bit uncomfortable. I have never tried a wheel with suspension, so out of curiosity, do those who have notice less (or more?) foot fatigue?

 

I don't have this problem myself but my gf who rides the v12 had really bad and very frequent foot cramps to the degree that if we wouldn't find a solution she couldn't ride anymore,  she has flat feet and suspeceted it was the angle of the v12 pedals causing it.

Willing to try things I managed to get ahold of some nylonove xl angle adjustable pedals with the ergonomic zones in front and middle, I adjusted them so they are completely flat on her v12, we did the first long ride today actually and no more foot cramps (well a tiny bit at the end but nothing like before).

So in her case it really helped having flat pedals and it could also have helped that they are xl and have the ergonomic zones.

Edited July 30, 2022 by Rawnei

[Glock43x]

I had to rest like every 10 mins to massage and rest my feet. I tested my rides wearing different shoes and I found out that high top, leather work boots felt the best. So now, I have a dedicated work boot just to ride my euc. Looks weird, but I can ride for 20-30 miles before needing a rest. Even then, my feet aren't even that fatigue/sore. 

Before trying new shoes, riding positions and pedal adjustments did not make any difference. 

[BarrettJ]

I found spiked pedals helped with foot fatigue a lot more than suspension (which helped more in almost all other “comfort” areas of riding - knees, back, etc). 
 

Being able to really plant my feet wherever comfortable for the ride and not worrying about slipping means I can really hang ten when I want to cruise. 

Edited August 3, 2022 by BarrettJ

[360rumors]

I have a v11 but I don’t usually have foot pain in any case. Some of the things that can make my feet painful:

- if I’m learning a new skill eg riding backward

- rough terrain

- shoes are loose

- socks are slippery

- shoes don’t have traction and are slipping from the pedals

[EMA]

mostly depend on position (specially if you ride with "raised pedals" ) , btw big size pedals help a lot

Edited August 8, 2022 by EMA

[mrelwood]

This is an interesting thread, as everyone seems to have their own method that works for them. And the others don't. I'm the same, some of the tips on this thread are crucial to me, most of them have no difference to foot pain.

I suggest systematically trying each tip whether or works for you or not. But make only one change at a time to keep track on which ones to try further.

On 7/28/2022 at 3:30 PM, wstuart said:

For me, foot fatigue gets worse if I feel uncomfortable on a wheel

This is a great point! And probably the reason why I get a bit less foot pain on the V11 than I did on the MSX.

 

On 7/30/2022 at 12:29 AM, Funky said:

You know those tires have weight limit of ~90kg right?

 Whether this is an issue can be and has been argued without end. What can't be argued though is that there isn't a single reported tire failure that would've seemed weight related. Many riders have been over the limits for years. And many tires don't even have any limits stamped on them. Riders have generally stopped caring, but every now and then a new rider is bothered by it.

The weight limit exists only for the intended purpose. Bicycle and motorcycle tires that we use are designed to be used in pairs. A limit of 90kg in a tire is meant for roughly a 100kg vehicle + a rider. When braking, the front tire gets way more weight on it, which the tire simply must be able to manage year in year out. If the exact same tire was released for EUCs, it would already have a higher weight limit because of this.