OK my first thought with the new pedals and shoes was "Wow these take more force than I had presumed, to lock in and out". Set all the way minimum. Perception is that the force needed is significantly more than downhill ski bindings. Anyways it takes me a number of tries to get snapped in so I quickly mastered small, low speed orbits at traffic crossings.
The pedals and shoes feel fantastic. I was worried about knee soreness etc. from being locked in to an immobile position. I found instead that I'm way more comfortable because usually as I become fatigued on a ride, I begin to struggle with foot placement on the pedals and feel awkward and clumsy on them resulting in a compounded sense of burnout and weakness. These shoes and pedals are wonderful and have eliminated the feeling that I'm draining energy just trying to maintain good form.
So I rarely ride during daylight hours as I am in the Phoenix area and it is summer. Late night or early morning is when I ride to avoid the sun, the heat of the day, and dangerous pedestrians on the bike paths (which is another thread altogether).
I'm pedaling as hard as I can as I crest a little hill, at this spot I have to turn left across six lanes of roadway onto a canal road. The street light by the bridge is out and so is the first light on the canal road. As I head up the canal I immediately realize that I am on the "wrong" side!! I slam on the brakes to make a quick turn across the bridge/dam/pump structure. Just in a split second I decelerate enough to make a 90 without having to bank hard and I stick my foot out to counter balance...... and as you know my foot did not stick out and I flipped over like a domino. I pounded the bridge landing pretty hard but thankfully my body took the brunt and my bike was not damaged. I felt like a turtle for a minute as I labored at getting my feet out as I held my bike up off the gravel. Then came hobbling over the narrow bridge surface in the road shoes whilst pushing my bike. Another minute to get rolling and re-engaged in the pedals. I choose to look on the positive side. It could have been worse, I could have pitched off the bridge in the middle (no guard rails) and gone for a swim with a bike bolted to my feet, late at night with no witnesses. The pedals are so comfortable I had forgotten all about them.
I learned my lesson. The next day Performance had NiteRider MiNewt350 lights on sale, I'm replacing my lower end light.