Clipless is pointless...unless you are a pro who gets fittings from the very best people in the field. Locking yourself to a pedal is an excellent way to create business for knee surgeons but not a good way to ride a bike.

For fitness and recreational cyclists, a good BMX pedal (one that fully supports the entire forward portion of the foot) is a better way to go. It enables you to select the best foot position for your needs at a given moment, but easily change your foot to another position. A GOOD BMX pedal "locks" to a rubber soled shoe or sandal and your foot can NOT come off the pedal by accident.

Rivendell sells both an expensive and an inexpensive BMX pedal made by MKS. Both are fine pedals, but the expensive one is built to last a lifetime.

There are folks who do not know how a bike works, and they delude themselves into thinking that they are "lifting" the pedals with their feet. Every scientific study done on pedals proves the opposite...as the pedal rises, it is lifting your foot and leg.

The speed of the bike depends on the speed of your cadence. A person who can maintain a 100 RPM cadence for an hour with clipless pedals can also maintain a 100 RPM cadence with BMX pedals.

The best part about BMX pedals? They work just as well with some $20 sandals as they do with any rubber soled shoes you own. Heck, they even work with "flip flops" for a ride to the beach.