# Ritchey Design Echelon Pedals



## Ritchey_Dave

The whole office is now rocking new Ritchey Echelon pedals!


















These lightened up my bike over my last pedals (only 230g a pair) and given that they're mostly alloy versus nylon, they're much more durable.


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## StillKeen

Saw these on the sjscycles site in the UK ... about 30 grams lighter than DA7810, and 1/2 the price ... better yet they match the bars and stem on my bike ... if only I could get white ...


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## Helmsdini

Anyone have any input or reviews/ real world experience on these pedals? I cannot seem to find anything except a preliminary review on Bikeradar. 

I am looking at switching over from my Look KEO 2 max pedals since my wife wants to step up to road pedals. I don't really have much of a gripe with the Look pedals other than the bearings not feeling too great, and I have raced on them for 2 years. I guess I should add that I am a 183lb sprinter, and I have a right-knee tracking issue that might affect my pedal selection. 

Things that intrigue me:

Lower claimed weight compared to look
Alloy construction 
Low stack height
USA owned company
Low cost
Look cleat compatibiltiy

Can anyone give any advice on these pedals? I am specifically concerned with release tension (as I can't find it listed on the Ritchey site) and how secure/ stable the platform feels as compared to Look. 

I assume that the Colavita/ Baci, Webcor, Jamis-Sutterhome and United Healthcare are probably fielding these pedals under race conditions?

EDIT: N/M.. looks like those teams are using Shimano, Mavic and Speedplay pedals.


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## Ritchey_Dave

Here’s some great feedback/quotes from 2 of the Colavita women badasses:

Rushlee Buchanan:
I've ridden the Ritchey Pedals for a year now and they have been a dream to ride with no problems at all. I choose the Ritchey no-float cleat and find it very stable and responsive. The Pedals are light and clean design which make riding so much nicer and faster. You can tighten the pedal tension to your liking which is awesome as we are not all the same creature!
All in all I am very happy with the Ritchey pedals and cleat system and am excited to be riding and racing on it in 2011.

Modesta Vzesniauskaite:
"the release tension can be adjusted easily to suit, its easy enough to release when you want to and I have never had a problem with my foot coming out of the pedals in a sprint" 

"the pedal feels nice and stable, I use the cleats with 6 degree float and its gives me a little bit of movement whilst still feeling that all the power is going through the pedals"

Modesta is one of the teams sprinters with 2 stage wins in the 2010 Joe Martin stage race as well as a podium at the UCI ranked Gatineau GP. She has been a pro since 2003 and has represented Lithuania at numerous world championships and the 2008 Olympic Games


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## Ritchey_Dave

More praise for the Ritchey Echelon pedals.

Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Colavita Forno d'Asolo Pro Cycling Team):
Personally my experience has been great with the Echelon pedals. I was reluctant to change off my SPD-R SL Dura ace pedals because there are a lot of differences between the two. These differences are now the reason I love these pedals. You have a low stack height, long spindle, wide platform, a more natural float, and the ability for a really tight release tension something that is very important to me being a road sprinter.


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## NattyIce

I bought a pair of the Ritchey Echelons a few months ago after spending years on Look. I chose them mostly because the features matched up well to the Look options and they were cheaper. I measured the cleats and the contact platform and they match up to the KEO's almost exactly. I've been on the Ritchey's for most of the season and haven't had any issues, plus they feel solid and I can get the tension super tight--unlike the Looks.


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## TM-17

thanks for the input. Anyway you could post a pic of your pedals? I really have not been able to find (read) anything bad. 

How does the float feel? is it free or forced center? Any pedal squeek?


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## NattyIce

I haven't posted enough for RBR to let me post a photo, but I think I have approx 800 miles on the Echelons. Float feels fine, I used the standard red cleats that came with them, and am not sure if Ritchey makes other options besides this float and fixed. They're free, not forced, which would be a deal-breaker for me. No squeak yet, but I'm sure they'll start making noise when the cleats need to be replaced, which was the case with all the pedals I've had that share a similar design.


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