Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - my first clipped ride

Today I was at EMS to pick up a pair of gloves, and while I found a set of nylon toe clips with braided nylon straps for $7. You may or may not remember that I just got my Mark V last week. I figured I might as well get the (vegan-friendly) cheapies to learn on.

Well I threw them on at my cousins house in Cambridge, MA and opted to go up Comm Ave to my place in Brighton to see how I liked them, since it's pretty dynamic on a Friday night, it has an assortment of hills, a strong likelyhood of a couple of quick stops, and places I can tear ass.

I'm completely sold on toe clips. I'll admit it was a little clumsy kicking in, but it's easier than I expected it to be. It didn't really occur to me how much energy I was using to just to keep my feet on platforms. I feel like I'm better able to accelerate/decelerate and keep a good cadence. Plus I really like having the muscles on the front of my thigh help out the muscles in the back.

The only thing that I wish I had was a narrower stiffer, smooth soled sneaker.

So yeah, if you're new to fixed and on the fence about going clipped, I can't reccommend them enough.

oh man, wait till you go clipless.

In the spectrum of pedal superiority, it goes:
platform --> clips --> clipless

*ducks*

yes. i love clipless too. i think you'll enjoy it.

*ducks too*

clipless for the win

*specifically doesn't duck*

Yeah I love toe clips too.
*smartass for the win*

I figured I might as well get the (vegan-friendly) cheapies to learn on.


It's all good 'til you hit a chipmunk.

right. i'm going back to my cave to eat some mold.

i only use clipless on long training rides. fu ck them for short city rides. clips FTW

who was talking about adjusting clips on the fly on a fixy. "tighten them down so you can't get out of them, if you need to get out of them just reach down and loosen them."

anyway...i vote clipless, even for short rides, so much more control. similar to the difference between 48x16 and 48x18. IMHO...

big ups on clipless, big down on soft soled shoes like cons or skateboarding shoes while riding a bicycle in general, im most ho.

Clips And Toestraps!

S/f,
Ceya!

So I'll be the first to ask. YOU WERE RIDING A FIXED GEAR WITH PLATFORMS? Tell me you have a brake...

i was thinking of going clipless, this thread is a good advertisement.

i had heard that the thing to worry about with clipless isn't getting your feet out of them when you need to but your feet coming out of them when you don't want them to. talked to my coworker about this (big road bike racing nut) and he said he's never once had his feet come out accidentally, but he's also not riding fixed, anyone had a problem with this?

also eggbeaters, i've heard many people large up on here, those you can clip into on 4 sides, correct? thinking about going with that.

^^^^^ that was me by the way ^^^^^^

(didn't realize my cousin had signed in as himself and posted here last night)

I use Candy SL eggbeaters and they effing rule. Accidentally clipping out is only an issue if you have no float, your cleat is worn away completely, or your pedal has many, many miles on it. Even if you do manage to unclip accidentally, it's no different than breaking a toe strap or a clip except you have a much better chance of getting back on the pedal or stopping with your other foot which is likely perfectly engaged. I would say balance is the key when accidentally unclipping.

eggbeaters are sweet. theyre so easy to clip in cuz u can just like slide your feet over the pedal and catch the side and rotate it around into place. so much easier than every other pedal in the world ever

I use Shimano 520's on all my bikes and have never once accidently unclipped.

I've used many variants of the SPD setup without issue although I prefer the shimano ones over knockoffs. Currently I run 525's? I think. They have a small plastic platform surrounding the pedal. They are a little stiffer and I can ride with real shoes if need be.