RACE FACE ATLAS PEDAL REVIEW

Review by Drew Rohde | Photos by Dusten Ryen

Originally launched way back in 2014, the Race Face Atlas pedal has been Race Face’s big and burly flat pedal for gravity-oriented riders looking for big pins and big grip. Looking to improve on some of the pain points while still living up to the Atlas pedal name, Race Face set out to increase durability, make the pedals more serviceable (no custom tools needed!), make them even grippier, and make them compatible with every crank arm on the market. And to ice the flat pedal cake, Race Face gives the new Atlas pedals a lifetime warranty.

THE LAB
Wider and thinner than the previous generation Atlas pedal, Race Face changed the platform of the 6061-alloy pedal body to offer more contact platform (110mm x 108mm) and improved vertical clearance around the chromoly axle.

Also new are the longer and adjustable pins. There are now ten hex traction pins per side and really do a good job grabbing the bottom of your shoes, and shin bones. Race Face offers nine colors to in the Atlas pedal, and we chose their Kashmoney Gold.

Other major goals with the new Race Face Atlas pedal were to make them compatible with SRAM carbon cranks with crank boots as well as carbon cranks from many other brands. Offering a lifetime warranty wasn’t enough of a gesture with the new Atlas pedals so Race Face made sure these pedals wouldn’t develop play as quickly, for a more positive experience by the user. If you do end up wanting to service your pedals, there are zero custom tools required and you’ll be able to quickly get your pedals feeling brand new again.

THE DIRT
We actually spent about two weeks just looking at these pedals before we even got them dirty. They sat on the edge of a desk before being mounted to a custom-build that Drew’s been working on for quite a while. The gold matches the Kashima coating and other gold bits from Race Face and TRP nicely.

It was finally time to get them out for some testing once a couple pairs of new shoes showed up and they were insanely grippy. After a couple rides with great results, we opted to put on some older shoes just to make sure it wasn’t the fresh rubber that was leading to such impressive grip and comfort. No matter the shoes, old or new, these pedals will bite. Of course, that also means they’ll put a hurtin’ to those sensitive shins or calves if you slip up. The pin height is adjustable; however we ran them at full height for full traction and wouldn’t change them.

The Wolf’s Last Word

In our relatively short test period with rides through lava rock fields, epic eBike adventures and everything in-between, these pedals have not developed any play, noise, or friction yet. We will update the review if things change sooner than we think they should but after a couple months of riding, we are fans.

If you’re a flat pedal rider looking for a slim, classy looking pedal that offers a lot of traction, a lifetime warranty and doesn’t need any special tools to be serviced, then the Race Face Atlas pedals could be the ones you’ve been looking for.

Price: $179.99
Weight: 390g
Website: Raceface.com

Disclosure: Our team selects all of the products we review and do so with honesty and objectivity in mind. Some of the products we receive come directly from Competitive Cyclist, who also value our readers and have offered them a 15% discount (exclusions apply) on their first purchase by using LOAMWOLF15. Through this program we may also receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support, TLW.