KwyjibOz

Well i've been going clipless for about 2 months with no problems until today when fate..... oh yes and maybe a bit of stupidity reared it's ugly head.
Cycling down a bike path doing about 25 kph really enjoying it and this dog comes tearing towards me out of the blue so i slam on the skids and try and unclip at the same time, bad move,the braking beat the unclipping and over i went, first time i've ever fallen off in 15 years!
So the result is , friendly dog, extremely apologetic owner, scuffed knee and hurt pride.
I think i learned today to unclip BEFORE hitting the skids, but it could have been worse.

Nightshade

THE reason I do NOT like clips. You all to often can't get away
from the damn things in an emergency. What would have happened
if that dog had been a car instead?? Would we be reading your obituary?

Clips make as much sense as a seatbelt does on a bicycle. If you're racing
they are fine but for everyday in traffic they are......dumb.

Say what you will a good set of platforms are safer anyday.

Grampy™

.....and it would probably be safer to walk around with a football helmet on all the time.... I've ridden clipless pedals for tens of thousands of miles and have never had them endager anything except my pride once or twice. They have helped me be faster, climb hills better and escape a dog or two. Life isn't always about living the safest you can, it's about living.

bcoppola

+1. Besides, in a bike/car encounter I don't think clipless or platform would make much difference in the outcome.

I was astounded at the increase in pedaling efficiency and decrease in fatigue clipless pedals made when I switched to them a couple of years ago. It was almost like getting a new bike.

CrossChain

If all I did was commute in traffic or after-dinner ride around the block, I would use platforms only. For hard-core commuting, I would use easy to flip platforms with loose clips-n-straps. But for "real" road riding clipless simply works best for me. I don't feel "trapped" in clipless so much as secure. Also think clipless (or clips & straps) encourage more efficient pedaling.

I can recall riding platforms-only and hitting a pot hole...my foot bounced off the platform, hit the ground and my ankle got eaten by the pedal while I was doing a nard-plant on the top tube. The answer to "Which pedal is safer" swings both ways.

DnvrFox

More efficiency, less fatigue means safer riding, IMHO. Thousands of miles since 1999, wounded my pride 2 times in first month - that's it.

You learn to ride defensively with your clipless, just as you in other aspects of your other riding.

Monoborracho

With clipless, your foot never slips off the pedal at the wrong time.

However, I do have one bike that is platform/spd combination, which is perfect for the around town stuff.

Louis

I've always used old fashioned toe clips and straps and finally semi-converted to clipless a few years back. I like both.

I test ride bikes I've tuned up for friends, some of them have just plain old flat pedals with no attachment system, kind of like the neighborhood bikes of my childhood. Frankly, I don't see how anyone can seriously ride without being attached to the pedals. Loose feet seem far more dangerous, in my opinion.

Sco++

Clipless on the road bike.

Clipless/platform on the mountain bike. Use the clipless side 99.99% or so of the time.

KwyjibOz

I've never liked the straps and have always removed them from previous bikes and just had platforms but after going clipless i wouldn't go back, i would have to agree, they are definately more efficient and no more sore feet and you can stand up on the pedals easier....good stuff!

BluesDawg

This seems to be a minority opinion. I certainly don't share it. I've never been unable to get my feet out of clipless pedals in an emergency, but I have had my feet come off platforms at inoportune times with painful results. Clips and straps are the hardest to get out of in a hurry, but I use them on one of my bikes.

Clipless pedals do have a learning curve. Problems are most likely to happen in the first few months of using them. From the description of the accident in the OP, it sounds like operator error more than a problem with clipless pedals. I'm not sure why he was trying to unclip while skidding to a stop or why he would unclip before skidding. You need to be in firm contact with the pedals while skidding.

scottogo

pedal debate alternative