Clipless Shoes Slip!
 

I use Look pedals - no particular attachment, just what I bought when I went to try clipless pedals a couple of years ago. My frustration is this... when I am stopped and put my foot down, I find that my shoe slips (because the "clip in" part is relatively smooth plastic). I do the obvious things - avoid wet areas (difficult because I'm in Portland, OR) and stay away from painted pavement, but it is still unnerving. This is the area I'm most concerned about getting an injury. And, I use a 10-year old hybrid so it's heavy... add the panniers I use sometimes and I can be in trouble if I start to lose the bike because my foot slips when I come to a stop.

Any thoughts? I'm not opposed to getting new pedals but prefer to to be able to use the same shoes if I can. I've thought about going to a standard pedal and wear athletic shoes...

SPDs don't really slip that much

If you're doing any amount of stopping/starting/clipping/un-clipping/walking you might want to consider switching to mountain bike shoes and pedals.

--Marcus

I am very happy with recessed Shimano SPD cleats and double sided mountain (Shimano M520) pedals.
Al

+1

My shoes are tolerable to walk in. I could not say that about my Sampson cleats.

I've been using Look clipless pedals for more than ten years. My solution is to only use them on my road bike, and to use cleat covers when I'm not on the bike. When I'm commuting, for which I have a different bike, I use recessed-cleat SPD shoes.

I ditched my Looks for this very reason (that and when you miss the clip in, the cleat tends to slide off the pedal). Since your ride is a hybrid, I think SPD or eggbeaters and ATB shoes would probably be a better choice. Check out Lake shoes. They are quite comfortable.

I'll second the vote for SPDs, I use SPD pedals, (it is a combination platform/spd affair - made by shimano), and shoes which have rubber cleats around the metal SPD cleat, which makes it easier for me to walk in them - especially on slippery surfaces.

I use Looks on my road bikes, and performance brand spds on my fixie and my mountain bike. That way I can walk without problems when I get to work (fixie is my main commuter). When I do use the Looks, I have the 'kool' covers so the cleats don't wear out as fast. You might try putting new cleats on before you do anything else... maybe they're just worn and don't clip in well...

train safe-

I have a set of Looks, but I only use them on my "play" bike. Both of my commuters have Eggbeaters (paired with Specialized mountain biking shoes) for exactly the same reason you suggest. IMHO, eggbeaters are far and away the best pedal for commuting. The difference for me is that the bike with the Looks gets ridden 30-100 miles at a time, and the number of times I put my foot down on a ride like that I can count on one hand. My commute though takes me through the city (mainly Hillsboro, Tigard, Tualatin, and Wilsonville) and I sometimes have to put my foot down at every stoplight. I also run errands on my bike, and it is nice to be able to walk like a normal person when I go into a store.

my recommendation: time atacs and corresponding mtb shoes.

save those roadie shoes and pedals for a road bike. (i wouldn't really trust the person who sold you those to commute in in the first place either)

Another vote, here, for recessed SPDs in an MTB shoe.

+1
I have these and they are easy to maintain. No adjustment for clip out tension. They are great. You may need new shoes to go with them though. BTW: SPD shoes are compatible with Times.

My shoes have little pads located on the soles to prevent slipping when I walk in them, you might try gluing some home made ones onto your soles in stratigic spots where your sole comes in contact with the pavement (make sure they don't interfere with the cleats' ability to grab the pedal. Check out some road shoes to see what I'm talking about, most new shoes have them.

I second the TIME ATAC MTB pedals/cleats I've been commuting and touring on a set for about 5 years now with almost no maintenance at all. I did take the bearings out to grease it up once but I did that out of boredom one day rather than necessity.

MTB shoes tend to be a lot easier to walk in. If you are looking at keeping your road pedals, perhaps Lake makes road shoes that are more walkable, i.e. have more traction on it to go over the larger road cleats.

Jay

I use cannondale MTB shoes and SPD cleats. They are very comfortable to walk in, and never slip.

...and another.

+1

x2 .... road looking shoe black on black, two velcroes only