My 1st 50 miles on the new Como 5.0

[Stefan Mikes]

Guru, I am not sure if you read what more experienced riders such as mschwett were trying to tell you. If you don't listen to mschwett, how do you think the Rider Care would explain it to you better?

A car. We all slow down very much before taking a sharp turn. In manual transmission cars, you have to additionally downshift to the second gear. Don't slow down and the accident is imminent. Would you discuss with Ford that their cars are wrongly designed for such a case?

Technique. The inboard pedal up on cornering. The crankarms horizontal over a speed bump. Don't try pedalling in these two situations. Technique.

On a sidenote I managed ground contact with one of my pedals this week when I took a turn while pedaling (trying to be really sporty I guess) - that was scary for a second.

The user has understood the dangers of the wrong technique while riding his Vado SL. And you Guru?
P.S. It is not down to the wheel size, as the Vado SL is on 700c wheels and the pedal to ground clearance on the M size is 4.7" there.

 

[GuruUno]

Ok. BUT, you still haven’t explained to me how I’m supposed to start from a dead stop and proceed forward while turning. I still have to pedal to accelerate. Never had to deal with this issue in the past. That is my point. What do I want from Rider Care? Acknowledgement. Options. Like I’ve repeated, I never had to deal with this.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Ok. BUT, you still haven’t explained to me how I’m supposed to start from a dead stop and proceed forward while turning. I still have to pedal to accelerate.

Rotate the inboard pedal with your foot backwards then ride. At slow speed, you are almost vertical. Let the initial momentum take you through the corner. (You can repeat the backwards-forward quarter turn crank movement as many times as you like).

Didn't you notice you are the only person to experience such issues?!

 

[mschwett]

…
however, I think it’s the wheel size difference.

wheel size is taken into account in calculating BB height. obviously bigger wheels will make it higher, of course! a 700c bike with a 270mm BB has the exact same bottom bracket height as a 650 bike with a 270mm BB.

i don’t see what someone on the phone can do to help with this! do you have an LBS you trust?

 

[sc00ter]

After blindly buying ebikes online (aka-no test ride) I sure as heck would have taken a bike out for a long test ride before buying if given the option. So you didn't take the new Specialized out before buying it Guru? Why? I think you would have noticed pedal strike on a test ride. But I did buy a ebike that I ended up putting on consignment because it wore me out on my commute, and I did take it out for 15 miles before buying it, so we all make mistakes I guess.

 

[GuruUno]

I guess I’m old and stupid. Never had the pedal issue before. Thanks all for the replies.

 

[CodyDog]

A difficult situation but certainly not a design failure. These companies know exactly what they are designing and putting into the market. Each ebike I have owned (3 to date with another on its way) all ride differently and required an adjustment on my riding style to get the best out of the design.

 

[mattie_b]

the Vado SL is on 700c wheels and the pedal to ground clearance on the M size is 4.7" there.

I think that is the issue. Can't speak for the Como, but the clearance on my Vado is 3". I am guessing increasing that clearance would decrease the number of strikes. The clearance on my old bike is 4.5", which is a 50% increase in clearance compared to my Vado.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

There's a simple practice to learn avoiding pedal strikes on a speed bump. Just briefly stand on the pedals and let the bike coast over the bump. Soon, keeping the crankarms on the horizontal will become your second nature.

 

[mattie_b]

There's a simple practice to learn avoiding pedal strikes on a speed bump. Just briefly stand on the pedals and let the bike coast over the bump. Soon, keeping the crankarms on the horizontal will become your second nature.

Thanks Stefan! I agree changing my (or developing a) technique will help with this issue. I was simply chiming-in to say I am having a similar issue and that this was not an issue with my old bike.

 

[GuruUno]

There's a simple practice to learn avoiding pedal strikes on a speed bump. Just briefly stand on the pedals and let the bike coast over the bump. Soon, keeping the crankarms on the horizontal will become your second nature.

So, after listening to Professor Stefans' suggestions and changing my riding style for the new Como, I only had 3 pedal strikes today during my 22-mile ride.
Never having to be cognizant of the possibility of a pedal strike before the Como, it's just a habit to be alerted to.
So on the positive side, I'm very impressed with the smoothness, ease of positive shifting, and overall comfort of the Como.
Albeit I put on my Kinekt Suspension Seatpost and Selle SMP saddle and SQ Labs handgrips.
Overall a very nice and comfortable bike, but still annoyed by the pedal thing and kickstand. So close to getting it right.
If Specialized was smart, they'd take the Turbo Vado step-thru and pair it with the new Como handlebars, it would be a killer appearance-wise bike and identical performance between the two.
If I hit the lotto, I'll build it.

 

[GuruUno]

Keeping the inside pedal at 12:00 oclock is second nature... If it's not, you are going to scrape, or fall.

But......" keeping the crankarms on the horizontal will become your second nature"
12:00 o'clock causes a strike unless it's the opposite of the turn
Overall point of the entire discussion was that is was outta sight outta mind before the Como, just sayin'

 

[Oberst]

I may be stepping into the fray without the full backstory so take my comments for what they are worth. When turning from a stop, to avoid pedal strike, I keep the bike more upright and use sharper steering rather than leaning until speed is up sufficiently to allow leaning and coasting through a turn and keeping the inside pedal at 12 o’clock. Mine is the older Como so yours may be very different but my approach is fairly universal from many bikes I have ridden. Sort of like cars where you do all your braking before the turn and accelerate out of the turn to maintain stability. Again, just my perspective and not necessarily right for you.

 

[CodyDog]

I may be stepping into the fray without the full backstory so take my comments for what they are worth. When turning from a stop, to avoid pedal strike, I keep the bike more upright and use sharper steering rather than leaning until speed is up sufficiently to allow leaning and coasting through a turn and keeping the inside pedal at 12 o’clock. Mine is the older Como so yours may be very different but my approach is fairly universal from many bikes I have ridden. Sort of like cars where you do all your braking before the turn and accelerate out of the turn to maintain stability. Again, just my perspective and not necessarily right for you.

Exactly! Shouldn't lean into a turn unless you already have efficient speed which allows you to position pedals through the turn.

 

[GuruUno]

I know a lot of readers here may think I’m a nit picker, but being made aware of a condition that did not occur previously and sharing that experience is my intention.
if you wish to, there is a great reference article I stumbled upon I’d like to share regrading crank length.
It’s refreshing to know I’m not going crazy or letting Stefans opinions make me feel like I am doing something stupid.
read: https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-gear/are-mtb-cranksets-too-long-for-a-lot-of-riders-they-might-be/
So I’ll most likely order some shorter cranks and give some reports afterwards.
thanks to all for your endurance with my observations and sharing.

 

[sc00ter]

Just wondering, did you double check the stated specs on your new Specialized with whats really on your ebike? Is there a chance Specialized installed the wrong length crank arms? A friend has a Revi Cheetah, I know its a poor comparison, and he strikes the pedals almost every time he rides it. His is mostly down to bad technique but the cracks look to long to me. We checked the specs and its correct but I told him to shorten the arms as well.

 

[CodyDog]

On an earlier response to you I showed a picture of my wife pedal height on her Como which was double the height of your Como. Also, I think the normal response to fix pedal strike has basically been covered by some of the responses.

With that being said, I went back and looked again at your picture and I'm scratching my head on why the pedals on your Como are so close to the ground. Of course it's caused by crank length but it would be interesting to compare your crank length with other Como's. Two inch clearance doesn't seem right.

Although I believe the design of Specialized are well thought out and intentional, I'm wondering if there was some issues in parts inventory and a shortage causing the use of a different available crank. Again, 2 inch clearance seems low.

 

[Calcoaster]

I know a lot of readers here may think I’m a nit picker, but being made aware of a condition that did not occur previously and sharing that experience is my intention.
if you wish to, there is a great reference article I stumbled upon I’d like to share regrading crank length.
It’s refreshing to know I’m not going crazy or letting Stefans opinions make me feel like I am doing something stupid.
read: https://www.singletracks.com/mtb-gear/are-mtb-cranksets-too-long-for-a-lot-of-riders-they-might-be/
So I’ll most likely order some shorter cranks and give some reports afterwards.
thanks to all for your endurance with my observations and sharing.

Interesting article. I’ve noticed that the current premier bike fitters debunk the older fit rules, giving long, very technical rational for their new and improved rules. Saddle height got lower, KOPS (for set back) is looked down on, and crank arm length is getting shorter. That would lessen your pedal strikes and might even be better for you, depending on your leg length (and multiple other factors the new group of experts like to ramble on about). I tried several on line calculators and this one gave me the most reasonable sounding answer.

Optimum Bicycle Crank Length Calculator

Calculate the optimum crank length for your bicycle

www.machinehead-software.co.uk

 

[GuruUno]

So, 160mm looks like the preferred crank length.

What’s the best crank length on an E-MTB?

The trail in front of you gets steeper and you don’t want to lose your momentum, so you start pedalling like a maniac. Then you hear a loud clunking noise and everything comes to an abrupt halt… the next thing you know you’re flying over the bars! What happened? Chances are you jammed your crank […]

ebike-mtb.com

thoughts?

 

[mschwett]

I may be stepping into the fray without the full backstory so take my comments for what they are worth. When turning from a stop, to avoid pedal strike, I keep the bike more upright and use sharper steering rather than leaning until speed is up sufficiently to allow leaning and coasting through a turn and keeping the inside pedal at 12 o’clock. Mine is the older Como so yours may be very different but my approach is fairly universal from many bikes I have ridden. Sort of like cars where you do all your braking before the turn and accelerate out of the turn to maintain stability. Again, just my perspective and not necessarily right for you.

it's not just your perspective. in the unlikely situation where you are both turning and accelerating hard from a full stop, the speed of the bike is so low that you would NOT lean over to turn.

leaning a bike at low speed leads to falling over. leaning a bike at high speed leads to turning.