Originally Posted by
merlinextraligh
The advantage to clipless pedals isn't efficiency. I don't think there's much doubt that pedaling along at a submaximal steady effort, platform pedals work as well as clipless.
But riding a bike, certainly racing a bike, involves more than submaximal steady state efforts.
If you never sprint, never accelerate to close a gap, or catch another rider, never climb a hill as fast as you can, there probably is not a big advantage to using clipless pedals.
There is likely a reason that all racing cyclists, and the vast majority of fast recreational riders use a pedal system that firmly attaches their foot to the pedal.
Which means that the answer oftentimes comes down to the question: Why are we cycling? Here in the Road forum, where people do "accelerate to close a gap, or catch another rider, climb a hill as fast as you can" - riding competitively - clipless is necessary. If I watch the end of the flat stages at the tdf, the insane sprints, I can't imagine trying that without having feet attached to pedals. But if this thread started in - say - the Commuting forum, there might be a completely different set of answers.