Originally Posted by tjspiel

I think people can be quite adept at releasing themselves from clipless pedals when necessary, - to the point where it's pretty much reflex. The larger question is whether the advantage of clipless pedals make it worth the expense and effort of getting to that point.

The answer isn't the same for everybody. If all I did was commute I probably wouldn't bother with them, but I've grown accustomed to having foot retention. There's been been at least one instance that having my feet attached probably saved me from a fall, or at minimum looking stupid. There was another time (pre-clipless) that partially slipping off the pedals while doing a standing climb caused an unpleasant encounter between crotch and top tube. I didn't fall but... ouch. Granted, it was a rather clumsy act that largely lead to my slipping, but still.

Originally Posted by CaptainDecisive

I taught myself to trackstand last year on my commuter. With clipless pedals (Time's). In traffic.
These days I feel completely at home clipped in although needless to say I've had some little 'incidents' in the past. But I've been using them for so long now that I feel uncomfortable when not clipped in, riding flats.