2 weeks with clipless..fell at busy intersection...as predicted here.
08-21-12, 03:59 PM
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2 weeks with clipless..fell at busy intersection...as predicted here.
After two weeks with clipless pedals on the road I fell for the first time at a busy intersection while slowing down. ( I fell once in my cul de sac while practicing).
Not sure why I couldn't get out of clip but down I went.
First thing I thought of as I picked myself up and wiped off the dirt and gravel was how I read here that this would happen.
At least the woman in the car i fell next to opened her window and asked if I was OK.
Not sure why I couldn't get out of clip but down I went.
First thing I thought of as I picked myself up and wiped off the dirt and gravel was how I read here that this would happen.
At least the woman in the car i fell next to opened her window and asked if I was OK.
Last edited by buckwheat987; 08-21-12 at 04:18 PM.
08-21-12, 04:06 PM
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Been there. Nothing is quite like the combination of fear and embarrassment that one experiences the first few weeks of clipless pedal use. I promise that soon you won't even think about them, disengagement will just happen naturally, as if you had ridden that way forever.
08-21-12, 04:11 PM
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I fell my first day at an inersection... I got my left foot unlipped and stopped, then I stretched my back and lost my balance and couldnt put my right foot down... oops.
08-21-12, 04:14 PM
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08-21-12, 04:45 PM
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08-21-12, 05:07 PM
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08-21-12, 05:12 PM
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I remember that happening once (or twice) I could imagine all the people in their cars thinking "oh look at mentally challenged person trying to ride a bike"
08-21-12, 05:12 PM
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It happened to me when with SPD-SL pedals but never with Speedplay. Getting in and out is just is just easier with Speedplay.
08-21-12, 05:15 PM
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08-21-12, 05:21 PM
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08-21-12, 05:28 PM
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I haven't fallen because I couldn't unclip (yet, touch wood). I'll probably regret typing that. However, I did fall using toe clips and straps with regular tennis shoes. The problem wasn't the straps, the problem was that the tread on the bottom of the shoe caught on the pedal - so sliding my foot to the rear didn't work. Crap. I was in the driveway, and who needs a helmet in the driveway. Me, apparently. Concrete is hard when compared with your skull, trust me on this point.
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08-21-12, 05:41 PM
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08-21-12, 05:43 PM
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I haven't fallen because I couldn't unclip (yet, touch wood). I'll probably regret typing that. However, I did fall using toe clips and straps with regular tennis shoes. The problem wasn't the straps, the problem was that the tread on the bottom of the shoe caught on the pedal - so sliding my foot to the rear didn't work. Crap. I was in the driveway, and who needs a helmet in the driveway. Me, apparently. Concrete is hard when compared with your skull, trust me on this point.
08-21-12, 05:43 PM
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08-21-12, 05:52 PM
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Ha def been there. All kitted out, looking the part, and then tip over like a tree in front of a busy intersection. I just laugh it off and try to get very far away once the light turns green (⌒▽⌒)
08-21-12, 07:41 PM
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Went clipless this past weekend. Due to the falling horror stories on here, I was spooked. I ride my road bike in city traffic a lot, and my LBS suggested M520s.
From a technical standpoint, I needed more info on exactly what it feels like to clip in and out. They were kind enough to throw a bike in their trainer and taught me how.
I've ridden a few times, and don't fear falling at all. Unclipping is cake. I slow early at intersections so I don't have to stop completely, then accelerate when it makes sense. If it seems that I'm about to stop, I'll unclip just in case.
What nobody warned me about is how frickin' sore I would be from using new muscles from lifting my legs.
From a technical standpoint, I needed more info on exactly what it feels like to clip in and out. They were kind enough to throw a bike in their trainer and taught me how.
I've ridden a few times, and don't fear falling at all. Unclipping is cake. I slow early at intersections so I don't have to stop completely, then accelerate when it makes sense. If it seems that I'm about to stop, I'll unclip just in case.
What nobody warned me about is how frickin' sore I would be from using new muscles from lifting my legs.
08-21-12, 07:51 PM
#24
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The world is full of 2 kinds of people. Those that have tipped over with clipless and those that will tip over with clipless. No one escapes. I went 23 years between falls but it happened again recently. Third time since 1983.
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08-21-12, 08:03 PM
#25
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I have fallen twice now. The first time was in the driveway when I forgot what I was doing. The second time, I had a car right on my butt as I was approaching a car parked on the side of the street. I slowed down for him to pass but he just slowed down as well. The next thing I knew I had stopped without unclipping. Timber! 