Going clipless for the first time!!!

nico79

Well my shoes and pedals have arrived today and i'm just about to go out with them for the first time.

I have been stood still getting used tot he feeling for the last 30 mins and now feel brave enough to go out and try them!!

Wish me luck.

Wooliferkins

Was anybody watching the first time you f####d up an unclip? No? Then it didn't happen

louthepoo

you'll be fine, you'll never go back. Just make sure you can unclip before stopping or its one of the most shameful and sorry sights ever! You can loosen a screw to make it easier to unclip - i've had to!

seanoconn

Good luck and first time out don't try and unclip on any steep hills, trust me!

Hals1967

seanoconn wrote:

Good luck and first time out don't try and unclip on any steep hills, trust me!

Or if you decide not to follow that good advice, make sure there's a nice soft grass verge you can fall into

random man

seanoconn wrote:

Good luck and first time out don't try and unclip on any steep hills, trust me!

Especially if it's at a junction. I went clipless this week and have come off twice - first on a hill at a junction, second when a bee or wasp got in my helmet as I was going round a tight bend.
I ended up in the hedge scratched to bits, the bee flew off.

nico79

Been out and all seemed fine at the nice slow speeds i was going.

I did have a little trouble clipping in :oops:

The un-clipping seemed to be fine but the big test will be tomorrow when i go to work with them.

I can see it been a problem with stopping on hills but i think i'll cross that bridge when i come to it.

petemadoc

I've only been using clipless for about a month now, all good except when I go up hills!

If I stop on a hill I can't clip back in without going down the hill a little while I get back in and then start going up again. What am I doing wrong?

nico79

I did go up a slight hill on my trip tonight but didn't try to un-clip and clip back in.

I started to be able to clip back in easier towards the end. I found that it was lining up the cleats with the pedal.

I also think that my opinion will change very soon the more i use them.

Flibb

I am a month into a pair of shimano m520s, my first spds on a road bike, and my first road bike. They came with some odd plastic flats with reflectors, which I have left attached on one side. My strategy is to unclip early if traffic is slowing, get on the flats, then I have the option to accelerate easilly on the flats, clip in, or drop a foot if I have to stop. My nearest oo fk moment was when deciding wether to stay clipped in or drop a foot, hence using the flast to remove the problem until I am a bit more certain.

msw

PeteMadoc wrote:

I've only been using clipless for about a month now, all good except when I go up hills!

If I stop on a hill I can't clip back in without going down the hill a little while I get back in and then start going up again. What am I doing wrong?

Nothing - it's just tricky! Whether it's on a hill or the flat, you need to get enough momentum from your first push with the clipped-in foot to coast while you clip the other one in. As you get more experienced you'll clip in faster so will need to coast for less time, and you'll also be able to push off harder.

For the time being, push off as hard as you possibly can. If you can, it sometimes helps to do a whole revolution with the clipped-in foot (push down, pull up, push down again) to get yourself moving, and only clip in second time round.

giant_man

PeteMadoc wrote:

I've only been using clipless for about a month now, all good except when I go up hills!

If I stop on a hill I can't clip back in without going down the hill a little while I get back in and then start going up again. What am I doing wrong?

You're stopping! That's what you're doing wrong!

Flasheart

giant mancp wrote:

PeteMadoc wrote:

I've only been using clipless for about a month now, all good except when I go up hills!

If I stop on a hill I can't clip back in without going down the hill a little while I get back in and then start going up again. What am I doing wrong?

You're stopping! That's what you're doing wrong!

+1 got it in one

bilirubin

Lol,

This has made me feel better, I have been clipless for the last month, at first I could not understand what all the fuss was about, give ways, red lights etc, unclip, foot down, no problems!

I then decided to add a few extra miles to my training loop which included a steep hill, first time up it my legs went near the top, by the time my brain registered that I could not pedal any more it was too late to think about unclipping and bingo, I am laying on the floor still clipped in.

After a quick chuckle to myself, a drink and a few deep breaths I clipped a foot in and aimed to carry on..................oh no, I could not get enough momentum going to get a full revolution of the pedal to get the other foot clipped in, on the second attempt I was on the floor again :oops:

I managed to get going in the end but it is hard if you stop on a hill, I think clipless will improve my hill climbing because I aint planning to stop on anymore

bice

louthepoo wrote:

you'll be fine, you'll never go back.

I have. I like clipless, but only for long rides. I am really enjoying zipping around London and commuting on my Trek 1.7. I use firm plastic cycle clips (the ones with straps), which means ordinary shoes and no hassles.

A bike that used to languish in the cellar except for long rides is now used to pop off down to the shops. Very convenient. Easy to get out of at traffic lights etc. No faffing about with special shoes.

(There was a feature in the Standard about a cycling copper on an MTB who swore by it for crime control. Probably rightly when on the bike. But he used spds and said he occasionally ran after crims, dumping his bike wherever. I doubt he catches many when he's on his feet with SPDs.)

SPDs are great, obviously. But not versatile for urban use, where simple clips are better. Mine will go back on this weekend if I use the Trek on a Suffolk ride on Sunday.

petemadoc

Glad I'm not the only one who has trouble on the hills. I live in Snowdonia and on the steep hills round here it's impossible to get up any momentum without going back down the hill a couple of metres to get clipped in.

It definitely makes you try a bit harder to get to the top without stopping!

And to Bilirubin - I did exactly what you did the first time I stopped on a hill

nico79

Well it was my first commute to work today.

All went well except when i had to stop at a junction, i then had to set off and cross the rather busy road whilst trying to clip in. I took my time and made sure there was a BIG gap in the traffic before i even thought about setting off.

I did struggle to get clipped in but like MSW suggested i had to do a full revolution before i managed to clip in. People that were around did give me some strange looks but never mind.

All in all it went well and i did notice a difference, especially when going up hill out of the saddle. This might just be in my head though

invincible

the 1st moment i had with them was about 2 weeks afer going clipless & had a wobble due to leaning wrong way to pedal i unclipped whilst at the front of a huge row of traffic....

had a tentative look back to see the lady in car behind me giggling away at my misfortune :oops:

carl_p

I really must stop reading threads about clipless moments. It's making me feel nervous. I've had one this year, must be due another soon.

Bunneh

Out of over 10 years using clipless I have fallen off because of them... twice! FIrst day I used them and the cleat twisted in the shoe (not tight enough) and again, same issue. I feel weird on flat pedals now, can't get the same power element into flats.

potters1863

Was reading this last night and was wondering how people manage to fall off as I have had my spd sl shoes for 6 months without ever falling off.

Guess what ? Today I was pedaling up hill towards some traffic lights in Macclesfield, waiting for them to change and they didn't so I had to stop. Hadn't unclipped as I usually would and fell over onto the pavement,

Good entertainment for the motorists who were waiting for the lights to change. Gravel in my knee and trying to hide somewhere out of view of the laughing audience.

Will make sure I concentrate in the future as much as I have up to now

NWLondoner

Do you ever have trouble if you set off on the wrong foot?

I always unlip with my right foot and leave my left clipped in.

However on the odd occasion when I have uncoupled both I have to clip in the left foot first !! If I clip the right in first I have an absolute nightmare getting the left foot in ?

nico79

NWLondoner wrote:

Do you ever have trouble if you set off on the wrong foot?

I always unlip with my right foot and leave my left clipped in.

However on the odd occasion when I have uncoupled both I have to clip in the left foot first !! If I clip the right in first I have an absolute nightmare getting the left foot in ?

I have noticed this however i leave my right foot clipped in. i try to make sure i clip the right one in first as i find the left easier to clip in.

carl_p

potters1863 wrote:

Was reading this last night and was wondering how people manage to fall off as I have had my spd sl shoes for 6 months without ever falling off.

Guess what ? Today I was pedaling up hill towards some traffic lights in Macclesfield, waiting for them to change and they didn't so I had to stop. Hadn't unclipped as I usually would and fell over onto the pavement,

Good entertainment for the motorists who were waiting for the lights to change. Gravel in my knee and trying to hide somewhere out of view of the laughing audience.

Will make sure I concentrate in the future as much as I have up to now

Ya see, as soon as you read a thread on this subject you fall over. Damn, just read it again.

unclemalc

I've had plenty of clipless moments lol, some more embarrassing than others...

However, beware falling to the right: apart from the shame of lying like a fool in front of the nearest vehicle you may well bend the derailleur in towards the hub which does all sorts of nasty things to the mech and how the chain behaves. If it's bad you will have to use brute strength to pull it back into line...!!

anto164

I've had a few 'nearlys' but never come off when unclipping.

Seen plenty of people falling sideways when failing to unclip though. Still makes me giggle..

nico79

anto164 wrote:

Seen plenty of people falling sideways when failing to unclip though. Still makes me giggle..

Sounds like your tempting fate there. Hope you have a rabbits foot handy next time you go out

anto164

if i can't unclip, i'll just stay in a trackstand :P

bilirubin

anto164 wrote:

if i can't unclip, i'll just stay in a trackstand :P

Show off

sparkman

tried wellgo and shimano clipless,. Many almost off bike moments one almost under a tesco wagon.
Anyways back on toe clips with snug but not to tight straps so foot comes out easy. They give me the confidence of knowing I can get my foot down fast, won't slip off the pedals, wont bugger my knees up from poor positioning. And;
give me good pedal efficiency because a clipless corpse with a crushed head has a lousy efficency anyway
Sorry but, not a "whats in fashion at the time" kind of person.
The way I see it, if clipless is stopping me from enjoying my cycling after many, many years without em, then I really don't want to bother. You either follow the sheep or do what's right for you, no shame in that.

bilirubin

sparkman wrote:

tried wellgo and shimano clipless,. Many almost off bike moments one almost under a tesco wagon.
Anyways back on toe clips with snug but not to tight straps so foot comes out easy. They give me the confidence of knowing I can get my foot down fast, won't slip off the pedals, wont bugger my knees up from poor positioning. And;
give me good pedal efficiency because a clipless corpse with a crushed head has a lousy efficency anyway
Sorry but, not a "whats in fashion at the time" kind of person.
The way I see it, if clipless is stopping me from enjoying my cycling after many, many years without em, then I really don't want to bother. You either follow the sheep or do what's right for you, no shame in that.

Whatever floats your boat but to label clipless riders with a "following a fashion" tag is a bit harsh.
It is well proven that being clipless improves your pedaling efficency, ouput and cadence and it is for these reasons cyclists do it including those on here.
I am 52 and have just returned after a looooooooooooong lay off from the bike, I spent the first part of this year in toe clips before I took the plunge and went "clipless", I wished I had done it straight away.
Due to my age and stamina I was considering getting a triple fitted, but since I have been clipless I realise that a lot of my effort was being wasted in the wrong areas, now all of my power is transferred through the pedals in the correct way.

No fashion or sheep involved in my decision making, just listening to good advice.