About Bike Energy Lab
The Cleat Key is made by Bike Energy Lab Ltd., a small team of cyclists based in Hong Kong. Our mission is simple: help more people get comfortable on their bikes. More comfortable riders ride more, and more people on bikes makes the world a better place.
Our founder: Antony Pringle
Bike Energy Lab was founded by Antony Pringle, a bike fitter and mechanical engineer who has been fitting people to bikes since the mid-1980s.
Antony started out fitting riders at a custom frame builder in Gatineau, Quebec, a shop that Bicycling magazine named one of the best bike shops in North America. There he developed a deep understanding of frame geometry, bicycle design and equipment selection.
His interest in bikes and speed led him to engineering. He holds:
- A degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Waterloo
- A Master's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Ottawa
- Advanced coursework in ergonomics (the fitting of people to machines), aerodynamics, and lightweight materials and structures
Antony is a registered professional engineer in the province of Ontario, Canada. He is one of only a few bike fitters in Asia certified by both the Fit Institute Slowtwitch (F.I.S.T.) and Retul, and he still races in local endurance events as an age-grouper.
Why we built the Cleat Key
In years of fitting riders, one adjustment kept causing problems: cleat rotation. It is the most important setting on a road cleat, it is closely linked to knee comfort, and it is almost impossible to judge by eye. Riders could get their fore-aft position close on their own, but their rotation angle was usually a guess.
Professional fitting equipment could measure it, but it costs hundreds of dollars and lives in a fitting studio. Cheap tools didn't measure the rotation angle at all. There was nothing in between. So we built it.
The research behind the protocol
The Cleat Key is the result of more than ten years of product development, and it is built around a method developed in our own fitting studio.
To find out what cleat angle a rider actually needs, we observed and measured hundreds of riders, from beginners to elite athletes. Using both a goniometer and digital motion capture, we compared the angle of each rider's foot in a simple jump test with the neutral position their foot settles into on the bike when power is applied around the pedal stroke. The relationship was consistent: the right cleat rotation angle is about one third of a rider's natural toe-out angle. This became the divide-by-three rule at the heart of the Cleat Key Protocol, and it has since been tested on hundreds of customers.
We have used this exact protocol to fit over 100 qualifiers for Ironman, IM 70.3 and UCI road cycling world championship events. The Cleat Key and its prototypes have been used to set the cleats of thousands of cyclists at every level, from first-time riders to professionals.
You can read the method in full in our written Cleat Key Protocol.
How the Cleat Key is made
We wanted a tool that would last a lifetime on a workbench, not a disposable accessory.
- Materials: transparent PMMA acrylic, so you can see the cleat and shoe while you work, and aircraft-grade 6061 aluminium.
- Manufacturing: made by a factory certified to ISO 9001:2015, producing mostly for the European market.
- Tested in the real world: prototypes were used, and abused, for years in a bike shop and in our fitting studio.
- Patented: the Cleat Key design is patented.
- Minimal packaging: a simple white box that doubles as the straight edge you need for the protocol.
The Cleat Key launched with the support of a successful Kickstarter campaign and ships directly from Hong Kong.
Who uses the Cleat Key
The Cleat Key is designed for individual cyclists, bike shops and professional bike fitters alike. We believe every serious cyclist should know their own cleat angle, and be able to set it themselves. Bike fitters, biomechanics specialists and bike shops are welcome to stock it, with quantity discounts available.
Get in touch
Questions about the Cleat Key, your setup, or reselling? Contact us or email info@cleat-key.com.
Set your cleats the way a pro fitter would. Get the Cleat Key tool →