Originally Posted by TrojanHorse

One caveat about speedplay cleats - they're metal and feel "slippery" on asphalt when you put your foot down. Traction can be an issue on some surfaces, and they are pretty unpleasant to walk around in. I got a set of keeponcovers which addressed that for me. That's one of the appeals of the various mountain cleat systems. The cleat is recessed in the shoe so you don't have traction problems when you put your foot down. Plastic cleats like the shimano variety also seem to be less problematic in that regard, but they do wear out more quickly.