Do any serious road cyclists not use clip in pedals?

miurasv

Hi All. I'm new to cycling and got some Shimano Dura Ace pedals last week along with some very nice Northwave Road Shoes. I used them for the second time, came to a junction and couldn't get my foot out and fell off, scratching the brand new pedals and a few other minor bits. Anyway, I can't seem to get used to these pedals and it's very hard for me to get my foot out. The pedals are at their loosest tension too. My question is do any serious cyclist just use normal unclipped pedals as I can't seem to get used to the clipped ones and if so is there a good unclipped pedal that can be bought for a racing bike? Thanks in advance.

mattbass789

ive just started out with spd's too, i fell off at the bottom of my drive, only scratched the edge of the saddle, which may get replaced. but i think from what i hear the only isuue is getting used to them, it takes time, each time ive been out its becoming more natural. and the benefits have already been felt and make the whole experience more enjoyable and it just dares me to go faster and push harder.

Ive never seen a pedal that you speak of though mine did come with some very weird ones that looked ready for a cleat but had a proper toe clip. see what more experienced people say but my 2cents.

Porgy

depends what you mean by serious

i do 150 miles a week and have cycled for 35 years - if that's serious then i could never get on with clips either - fell off a few times - that hurt so I switched over to flats.

Anonymous

I had a spell recently on flats as I couldn't clip out due to injury. When I went back to my clip in pedals I'd forgotten how much they help, especially with climbing.
I was awful with the clip ins when I first started riding but you get better.

That said, if it means you are out riding your bike who cares what pedals you use?

sub55

wen i was a lad an i`m not that old now we used clips and straps with cleat-ed shoes and you could not get your foot out if you wanted to

Monty Dog

One reason not to buy expensive shoes and pedals when learning to use them - I agree on clips and straps - on your back in the the middle of the road with the bike firmly attached was not funny. I have some old pedals and shoes on my retro bike - I ride it occassionally to remind me of progress and how painful they were. The only people who ride clips and straps these days are usually tourists or people with serious biomechanical problems.

Smokin Joe

Lying under a pile of bodies after a road race crash pleading with someone to undo the toestrap on your pedal so you could untangle at least one leg from the frame was not an uncommon thing pre clipless.

The main reason people have trouble when they first go to clipless pedals is they try to pull their foot upwards as they unclip. Concentrate on keeping the foot flat on the pedal and just twisting outwards and it will soon become second nature.

Mothyman

thanks lads..I'll be needing this advice when i get my first bike...on which I am homing in soon!

vision267

Same thing happened to me with my 105 pedals.I had the pedals set at the highest tension (I like the tight settings).I have now fallen off twice the last time really hurt landed on my hip.I now use time pedals even though i prefer the shimanos much easier to disengage in an emergency.Though i will master the shimano pedals.

oscarbudgie

Using toe straps is an invitation for people who work in bike shops to patronise and humiliate you.

Smokin Joe

oscarbudgie wrote:

Using toe straps is an invitation for people who work in bike shops to patronise and humiliate you.

Unless you have a beard and a urine stain on your baggy shorts when they will understand

zedders

most have one or two offs when they first start out with clip in pedals, regardless of the make. its just part of life. I had two off in the first week. I had one or two near misses after that, and now nothing for over a year or so. As stated eventually it will become second nature. Just stick with it.
even though I'm still getting use to my new speedplays at the mo I pretty confident I'll be ok without any offs.

nolf

It's your first clipless moment, congratulations!

Unfortunately it's just a fact of life having clipless moments.
Once you get used to them unclipping becomes second nature. Persevere and in a few months you'll wonder how you survived without them!

bobtbuilder

I had two falls when learning to go clipless. Once at home and once on the roads. The best thing you can do is find a nice open stretch of road when you won't need to stop in a hurry, pedal slowly and practice unclipping. If you get so slow that you are going to stop / fall off, you can just pedal a bit to get your speed back up and keep practicing.

Like Smokin Joe said, the movement is a flat swivel of your heel, not an upward pull.

IMO the pros far outweigh the cons, and it soon becomes second nature.

prawny

The first pair of clipless pedals I had were tioga clipmans on my MTB, these were notoriously stiff until they were broken in. Anyway like you I got stuck in my pedals and went down, in the end I had to take my shoe off and kick it free from the other side.

I still use clipless pedals they're loads better, just make sure the tension is wound right off when the cleats are new and you'll be fine.

macondo01

Completely agree with Smokin Joe - think about the movement to get out - on mine a flat twist with your heel in to crank. I switched to different spd pedals and toppled a couple of times till I understood the different action. Then it becomes second nature. Good luck

TarmacExpert

Macondo01 wrote:

Completely agree with Smokin Joe - think about the movement to get out - on mine a flat twist with your heel in to crank.

Hmm, I always move my heel away from the crank to get out, but then my feet point outwards quite a lot so I have my feet positioned on the pedals with my heels almost touching the cranks when pedalling.

I agree, you just need to practice a bit. You can sit on the bike while leaning against a wall and practice getting in and out of the pedals. Once you get used to them it doesn't feel right to not have your feet firmly attached to the pedals.

Spokey-Dokey

know how you feel.
I am a novice cyclist, and the first clipless pedals i used where Mountain Bike style double sided, but on my road bike. Although the Cleat is smaller i found it easier to engage when setting off from traffic lights due to having two sides of the pedal with which to engage the cleat.

fuzzynavel

We've pretty much all been there...

Another thing to watch out for is when you unclip one foot and fall the wrong way..I unclip my left foot as a metter of habit but early on I found myself trying to put my right foot down...obviously it was still attached to the pedal but I was in traffic and luckily there was a car door to stop my head hitting the ground! ouch!

Tony666

I had always been happy using pedals with clips but call it vanity or whatever you like, thanks to Smokin Joe’s comment:

Unless you have a beard and a urine stain on your baggy shorts when they will understand

Today I went out and bought a pair of SPDs. I am doing a 75 mile Audix tomorrow so will let you know how many times I fall off!!! :roll:

STEFANOS4784

Too many scare stories IMO the only real problem i've had is, when i got spd-sl's, was flipping the pedal round now it's almost second nature. I had a clipless moment once when i had to brake hard and almost went up the back of a car so was to worried about that and plopped sideways. I rolled to avoid scratching my bike :roll: Very embarassing though......

oscarbudgie

Smokin Joe wrote:

oscarbudgie wrote:

Using toe straps is an invitation for people who work in bike shops to patronise and humiliate you.

Unless you have a beard and a urine stain on your baggy shorts when they will understand

I think you can forget about that Christmas card from the Dawes Galaxy Owners Club.

fatgit

I got my first set of clipless pedals and shoes this weekend, 5 minutes playing with the shoe and pedal before I put the shoes on were enough and after doing 50 miles haven't had a fall yet!

doktorsteve

The trick is to clip out early. Give yourself time to put a foot down.
I only fell off when I had a moment of hesitation arriving at a roundabout.

bice

Pedals and straps are really useful and when starting out much better to get used to a road bike for the first time.

These forums always end up sounding like the SPD marketing board.

I use pedals and straps for commuting in London and they are far preferable to SPDs, which I use as well, but only for long distance.

My daughter is using my Trek 1.7 at the moment and I have fitted it out with pedals and straps. She is doing the London-Brighton next week with them. They are fine.

You constantly read balls here about how difficult it is to get out of them etc etc ... but usually from people who have never used them. The unfortunate thing is that road bikes often come with (good) pedals but very flimsy soft plastic cages which aren't much good. The firmer plastic ones are much better.

I am going to use these on a lovely Ciocc frame I am assembling and will use for commuting and use in Italy as a run-about.

Pedals and straps are a good, low cost, simpler alternative to clipless. They are also versatile: somewhere on the web is a site about a couple who went across Russia and China. He loved his SPDs, but his shoes fell apart, whereas she sensibly went for simpler pedals and straps.

fatgit

bice wrote:

You constantly read balls here about how difficult it is to get out of them etc etc ... but usually from people who have never used them. The unfortunate thing is that road bikes often come with (good) pedals but very flimsy soft plastic cages which aren't much good. The firmer plastic ones are much better.

I have just changed from straps to SPD's and I find the SPD's so much easier to use than the straps. With straps you need to think about disengaging a lot earlier than you do with clips because you have to loosen the strap before removing your foot. I suppose it's all just personal preference!

I'm going to try the straps on my recliner

keef66

"I'm going to try the straps on my recliner"

You're fitting toeclips and straps to an armchair?? Do you live in an earthquake zone?

LittleB0b

slightly tangentally but...


... why are clippy in pedals called 'clipless'.

<insert confused looking emoticon>

roger_merriman

LittleB0b wrote:

slightly tangentally but...


... why are clippy in pedals called 'clipless'.

<insert confused looking emoticon>

becuase they don't have toe clips yes yes it makes little sence but words are like that...

dennisn

Smokin Joe wrote:

Lying under a pile of bodies after a road race crash pleading with someone to undo the toestrap on your pedal so you could untangle at least one leg from the frame was not an uncommon thing pre clipless.

The main reason people have trouble when they first go to clipless pedals is they try to pull their foot upwards as they unclip. Concentrate on keeping the foot flat on the pedal and just twisting outwards and it will soon become second nature.

Always heel outwards. Unless you like getting your ankle laid open by the spokes.

roger_merriman

dennisn wrote:

Smokin Joe wrote:

Lying under a pile of bodies after a road race crash pleading with someone to undo the toestrap on your pedal so you could untangle at least one leg from the frame was not an uncommon thing pre clipless.

The main reason people have trouble when they first go to clipless pedals is they try to pull their foot upwards as they unclip. Concentrate on keeping the foot flat on the pedal and just twisting outwards and it will soon become second nature.

Always heel outwards. Unless you like getting your ankle laid open by the spokes.

or just unwind the tension the pedals i have SPD single sided i can pull out if i needed to. saved me from any clippless moments thus far.