Originally Posted by
DrRobert
Until they hit a little sand, grease or a freshly waxed floor, then its like skating on ice. Oh, did I mention wooden stairs?
I have both and the MTB cleats are much easier than roadbike.
For a newbie the learning curve is much lower. About everyone I know has fallen over with road pedals (the rest won't admit it
1) I've walked and seen lots of roadies walk on wooden stairs, sand, grease, and freshly waxed floors. Is it as comfortable as walking in my running shoes? No. Is it perfectly walkable for teh purposes of taking a short break off the bike? Yes.
Consider - any woman can tell you heels are harder to walk in than flats. Yet millions of women manage to walk in heels. Apparently, humans are capable of working through a little discomfort or using a litle extra balance and coordination when the situation calls for it.
2) All road or MTB cleats are not created equal.
3) I respectfully disagree that road cleats are more difficult than MTB cleats. I have both, learned on MTB cleats. While my first cleats were challenging to get in and out of us, that was a matter of clipping in and out of them a few dozen times and the motion becoming 2nd nature. My Speedplay Zeros are FAR easier to clip in and out of than my SPD cleats with either Shimano or XPedo pedals, but the Shimano and Xpedo pedals are still easy to get in and out of. I run them on my CX/gravel/backup bike without problem.
4) I don't know anyone who rides ANY sort of pedal who hasn't fallen at some point, whether MTB, Road, or even flat pedal. We're balancing on two wheels - sometimes you fall. The trick is to simply train properly so that the falls are minor and infrequent.
BB