Originally Posted by
modernjess
My anecdotal experience is 20 years of riding clipless in all forms of biking road/MTB/commuter/winter etc. I can say with 100% certainty that platforms are not safer. I've had many many crashes, none of which were made worse or have had anything to do with the pedals. In fact I'm certain that they have saved me from many crashes dues to increased bike control I gain from being connected to the bike.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
And once you are connected you find all kinds of situations where the pedals keep you on the bike through situations where you might have bailed or crashed before.
Originally Posted by
cyccommute
I find that clipless keeps me upright and on the pedals in many situations where I would have bailed with platforms. I can hop the wheel or use body english to keep the bike upright.
Statements like this seem to reinforce the concept that its the cyclist, not the equipment that really matters.
If a piece of equipment emboldens a cyclist to take more risks with the expectation it will mitigate the risk most of the time it doesn't make them safer, it just raises their threshold for failure.