Poor hibiscus09,

You will get used to those pedals. Be patient and practice a lot. Even I eventually mastered my Looks..., by:

- starting with a loose tension as possible (you have found out by now how to work the loosening bold;
- always being alert, anticipating stops by releasing one foot just to be on the safe side (the clean side, by the way, is on your left--where the chain(rings) won't leave 'rookie marks' on your calves);
- knowing that with clipless pedals, you can continue pedalling with one foot only;
- not hurrying the release, gently turning the foot: there is always more time to clip out than you think;
- getting better at bike handling in general;
- keeping the pedals and cleats clean;
- not panicking.

The last time I panicked (an unexpected sharp turn, some nasty flora and fauna approaching), I still succeeded in releasing one foot (a brute, abrupt, uncoordinated movement, which I could not reproduce easily--the cleat looked damaged afterwards). No harm done there.

If it's too late and you are already dangerously close to the road surface, beyond recovery, perhaps it is better not to resist the fall, but rather to go 'along with it'. I learned this the hard way: the proverbial granny was blocking the road and picking an unpredictable 'pace line'. While going down, I struggled hard to free my foot, only to 'shave' my leg by scraping the cable mount on the top tube.