Commuting - Dumped the Bike...

I've been riding for several years now and have been extremely confortable on the bike. Especially my new road bike. Well I just put on some Speedplay Zeros and new road shoes. Well I dumped my bike twice in as many days starting and losing mometum and falling over. Now I'm afraid to ride. Damn that hurts.

I've been using the road bike for commuting to work (and longer rides in the evenings and weekend) and these road shoes are slippery. Am I stupid for wearing road shoes to commute? Should I suck it up and get used to it or be safer and go back to using my SPDs?

Apollo :(

speedplays take a bit of getting used to. You'll do fine. The only consession that I make to my roadie shoes is that I take the elevator UP to avoid waking up the granite stairs to the third floor. Walking down is OK...

good luck,
Tom

You will adjust to the new shoes given time. My personal preference is for SPD's simply because I use them for things other than riding. However even these took some getting used to when I first started using them. If you're really worried about it, go and see the shop you bought them from and see if you can get some tips on using them. You don't always have to learn the hard way.

I prefer SPD's for commuting. I would rather not to be in my road shoes and pedals at the traffic lights, with the motorists revving up behind me..no forgiveness if you miss a pedal..
Plus, as said above, they are really handy to go into shops and so on.

But then, while I haven't used Speed Plays, it must be a matter of getting used to them..practice makes perfect and all that..

I had a problem with Time Atacs..the MTB pedals. I got the hang of engaging them ok, but disengaging was a worry. I found them so tight they were ripping my knees to pieces. So in the end, I went back to SPD's. Nice pedals, the Time ones, and cost me a bundle, but I don't know if may poor old knees can hack it.

I have speedplay X2/3's on my road bike and my tandem. It is hard to clip in or un-clip once and a while, typically due to small rocks stuck in the cleats. This can be frustrating.

For the above and the ability to pedal without clipping in, I am going to use SPD pedals on my R40 and velomobile.

Keep the Speedplays. I have been commuting for 3 years in traffic wearing Looks. It took a little getting used to, but you'll get there. THe benfit is that you will get a lot better at balancing on the bike and never clipping out.

Well...I am getting better. It helps to have those 'coffee shop caps' when you're off the bike and trying to get inside, etc.

Thanks for all the feedback.

~Apollo
:beer:

I never used the Zeros, but I did start with the X3s partially based on the advices from this forum. You have to be careful with these advices, because the backgrounds and the skill levels of the various people are so diverse. I fell with the X3s twice, when I started. I had problem slipping and unclipping. The large metal cleat can be slipry, like walking on ice. It can be quite tricky, balancing a loaded tourer on steep hill, waiting at a light intraffic. Later I was so scared, I rode with clips, but they can be hard to get into under the same conditions. I then tried SPDs, and found them very easy in and out after a very short time. Recently I re-mounted the X3s on another bike, and found out a trick in twisting my foot when unclipping, so that dismounting is now really easy. I get more difficulty clipping in sometimes, again, loaded tourer stopped at the light - up hill, in traffic. Again, it is the large metal surface on the cleat, that can make you slip over the pedal when applying a lot of power, if you miss a little. The clipping is getting more comfortable with practice, but there are still little momentary frights. It just takes practice and relaxation to learn faster. By the way, they should compare pedals with cleats, when they indicate the weight, because the Speedplay cleats are quite heavy, comparasing to most others.