Look Geo City Grip pedals

The Look Geo City urban pedals offer loads more grip and comfort than standard flat pedals and they look really trendy too, with neat swappable rubber platforms in a variety of colours. They're a great upgrade for those who put in the miles but don't want to be clipped in.

If you prefer to ride in normal shoes and you want to upgrade the plastic pedals your bike came with, these Looks should be of interest. 

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Unlike the cheap plastic jobs that often come with an urban commuter style bike, the Geo City pedals feature a wide base and a non-slip rubber platform made by Vibram on both sides. These rubber platforms sit atop a composite base and can be swapped out with different colour platforms, to allow you to style up your pedals to match your bike (or not).

The pedals have long reflectors integrated into the base on both sides (so they won't fall out after five minutes of riding); Look even makes an ultra posh, ultra expensive version of these pedals that have built-in LED lights instead of reflectors.

The pedal spindles are made of chromoly, and they're as easy to install as you might expect – just thread them on to your cranks, tighten them up and away you go. Thankfully, Look has stuck with the typical 8mm hex here rather than the 6mm some pedals have, which can make them a pain to loosen if they get seized after a few winters.

> How to fit and remove pedals

Swapping the inserts out is a cinch thanks to just four screws holding the two platforms in place on each pedal.

While riding, the difference in the Geo City pedals and the standard ones on my Vanmoof Electrified S is night and day. As I said, these are much larger, so there's a lot more to put your shoe on. This is ideal when you're setting off from a stop and you want to stand up and be confident that your foot isn't going to slip off – especially if you have particularly large feet.

The vulcanised rubber platform is manufactured by renowned footwear sole brand Vibram, and is called Look Active Grip. Although it might be easy to look at the collaboration as a tidy bit of marketing, the Vibram platform does seem to be quite effective in use. The tyre-like tread is very grippy, and apparently the grooves also aid in water drainage. Whether or not this is just more marketing, wet riding is markedly improved. I no longer have to worry about slipping off the pedals and smashing my shins and/or getting run over my a motorist from behind.

Another advantage of the entirely flat platform on the Geo City is that pressure from your foot is evenly distributed across the pedal when you press down, though you might not notice the difference so much if your shoes have very chunky soles. If, like me, you usually wear Converse-style sneakers with a relatively thin sole, it's a lot more comfortable when you don't have jagged bits of plastic and metal stabbing the underside of your feet.

> Buyer’s Guide: 9 of the best flat shoes for commuting, leisure and urban cycling

Although weight isn't usually a huge concern on an urban bike, even less so if it's electric, the Geo City pedals weigh in at 538g for the pair, which is pretty hefty. For reference, the pedals that I removed from my Vanmoof were 238g, so that's quite a lot more. For me, it's not an issue because the bike already weighs as much as an anvil, and the benefits that the Geo City pedals bring far outweigh this, pardon the terrible pun.

I'm sure the style of these pedals won't be for everyone, but I think they look great, in a big and slightly retro kind of way. I prefer the less shouty black platforms to the red, but you can also choose crazy camo or an eye-searing lime. You can also buy replacement platforms, though they aren't particularly cheap at £38 a pack.

Which leads me neatly to the question of money: are the Geo City pedals worth the £58 asking price? I didn't think so initially, but after thoroughly testing them and realising what a difference they make, I think they are a worthwhile upgrade, especially if you ride your bike every day in all kinds of weather. Heck, you can easily spend more than £50 on a helmet or a new pair of tyres, so why not something that helps you propel yourself forward in a safe and efficient manner?

And they work out cheaper than some: the sneaker-friendly MKS Urban Platform EZY pedals combined with the Steel Half Clips, as tested by Shaun a few years ago, work out at nearly twice the price at rrp (though you can buy the pedals at a discount here and the clips here), and don't look nearly as grippy or comfortable.

You can buy cheaper though: Matt liked the Race Face Chesters, which are £49.99 (and lighter, if that matters, at 368g), and eXotic's Alloy Flat pedals are £34 and were highly thought of by Jim on our sister site off.road.cc. Both are distinctly more mountain bike style, though, and I would doubt are as comfortable in sandals or thin-soled trainers.

If you want to take a step up (or a side step) and try the clipless route, the Shimano PD-ES600s pedals are worth a look. The simple two-bolt cleat system makes it easy to get in and out, and there are loads of 'normal' looking shoes out there that work with SPDs. They are £12 more, though.

If you're dead set on sticking to flat pedals then the Look Geo Cities are an excellent choice, and they'll really make a difference to how much pleasure you get from riding your bike around town. If tyres are an essential first upgrade on a bike, then good grippy pedals like these come a close second, I reckon.

Verdict

Comfortable, grippy and trendy looking pedals – a worthwhile upgrade for urban cyclists