These cleats are the first clipless pedals that I ever used or owned. I have nothing to compare them to, but will say that for a newb, they were extremely easy to clip in and out of. No problems whatsoever. I now have around 3000 miles on them and they are still running strong. The little rubber cushion on the bottom of the cleats is long gone, however, it does not affect the pedals themselves.

I shyed away from the speedplay for the same reason you stated above. Here in the desert, we have a lot of washes on the roads and sometimes have to clip out to traverse. No issues with clogging or griming up that you would experience with speedplay. I rode the Tour De Tucson, which requires 2 wash crossings (one was about 1/4 mile across) with no problems at all.

From one newb to another, I would recommend.