Originally Posted by
PaulRivers
I don't think that even makes sense. Some studies have said that even tour de france level pro riders do not actually gain efficiency with clipless pedals. I haven't been 100% convinced that's the case, but at best even for them the difference is small.
"Some studies". How about "some references" that aren't from Rivendell.
Originally Posted by
PaulRivers
Completely the opposite, if you have foot and knee pain you're far more likely to increase it with clipless systems that hold your foot in exactly 1 place the entire ride. I went through 3 pairs of shoes, 2 fitters, and doing specific exercises to eliminate knee pain from clipless, and that is not untypical. It's a lot easier to avoid knee pain with flats.
The very few times I've ridden platforms in the past...I've been riding clipless since the early 90s and toe clips since the early 80s...I experienced knee pain from the over dependence on the pushing down on the pedals and not being able to pull up on the back stroke. And, yes, I've read Rivendell's stupidity on "not being able to pull up on the pedal". It's an absolute falsehood. Try pedaling one legged sometime on clip less (or toe clips) and on platforms. If you can't "pull up on the backstroke" you can't return the pedal to the top of the stroke when pedaling one legged.
Originally Posted by
PaulRivers
The foot retention might or might not help with cadence. Don't even see a benefit with track standing, in fact it makes it more risky if you do fall over that it's slower to get your foot down.
People project their fears of being unable to unclip onto clipless all the time. It's not true. I have had many instances of being unclipped without thought of doing so. Most recently, I crashed while on a mountain bike and ended up a full body length downhill from the bike without touching the ground first. The bike was 6 feet uphill from me and my shoes were still on my feet. I didn't even think about unclipping.
Originally Posted by
PaulRivers
The people who mention they're commuting in the rain and foot retention have an interesting point. I'd argue that you can get the same grip for that situation with wide pedals with pins, plus decent shoes.
MTBR is just full of gruesome pictures of pinned pedals and the aftermath of contact of shins and calves with them. To be fair, there are a few pictures of injuries from clip less but they are fewer and far less bloody.