Originally Posted by
Street Pedaler
Hi, this thread came at a great time for me. Thanks!
I've been using platforms all of my life but I'm in the process of ugrading from a Trek 7300 to a Madone 5.2. I'm also a little skittish at the thought of clipless pedals but do want to get them on the new bike. My problem is that I'm a klutz, lol. As far as getting a decent set of clipless pedals and shoes, are there any specific brands/ models that any of you can recommend that are, for lack of a better descriptive, more "Foool Proof" than others? I'm not so worried about ease of getting into them as I am ease of getting out of those suckers in a hurry, lol. Thanks again for the thread and TIA for any suggestions.
I've been down this road before -- I find it very difficult to clip out of most road pedals, and even SPD pedals with the normal SH-51 cleats. (Yeah, I know, reduce the tension, blah blah blah. It doesn't work for me.)
If you're doing SPD pedals, you can get the SH-56 "multi-release" cleats. You can still turn your foot out, but you can also roll it away from the bike and unclip that way. I have those on my MTB shoes. On my road bike I've got Speedplay Frogs which are really more of a mountain pedal, but have no spring tension -- there's no resistance when you turn your foot. The "free float" does take some getting used to and isn't for everyone, but I love it.
Re: the speed/efficiency debate -- I don't care about that at all. I ride clipless because I like having my feet held to the pedals. No slipping off when I hit a bump or ride over something on the trail. No slipping when I stand up to accelerate from a stop light or climb a hill.