the only thing holding me back from clip less right now is $. I plan to get them some day for sure.

Meh...I moved my toeclips to the road bike and put the platforms back on the commuter.
After riding with the clips, I pedal differently with the platforms and have had no problems (my shoes actually seem to "stick" to the pedals better) and spinning is easier.

Now......If I can just stop whacking up my shins on the pedals when parking or loading the bikes.:D

Toe clips is the best way to ride, in my opinion. I was on a group ride Saturday, and a roadie with clipless pedals lost traction on his rear wheel. He went down hard, bruising* his shoulder and getting a pretty good road rash on his knee. His wife was right behind him and couldn't unclip in time, and she went down too.

This was not a race, this was a breakfast ride. WHY the hell do you need to be clipped in for a recreational ride like that?



Give me toe clips any day of the week.


*The guy who went down is a manager in my office. This morning, he said the swelling is down but he's still in a LOT of pain. I think he's got a hairline fracture in his shoulder.

works fine for my 30 mile commute, but I'd like to go clipless soon. The clips or straps don't bother me, but I haven't found a pedal that doesn't have hot spots on my feet. I think clipless would be more comfortable.

I use toe clips and I have NO idea what you're talking about. I go in and out effortlessly. Once in a while I miss coming back in, usually when pulling away from a light in traffic, and as soon as I get a chance to ease up I flip the pedal around and BINGO, I'm in. I just don't get people who do clipless for casual (i.e., non-race) riding. Why put yourself at risk?

What does your change of clothes have to do with clips, clipless or platforms? I take a change of clothes too, but I don't waste a bunch of room taking an extra pair of shoes.

On the contrary... if you have a hot spot with a pedal, you can shift your fit a bit to relieve it. If you go clipless, you are stuck. If you get a hot spot, tough luck, you're stuck with it for the rest of your ride.

Does anyone make deeper/longer toe clips? I think I would like mine better if they fit my foot, it would also keep my heel off the chainstay.

+1. This is what sent me back to toe clips from SPD style clipless. I purchased a set of SPD for my commuter and after a year of fiddling (different shoes, different pedals etc.) I could never alleviate hot spots when riding for more than and hour. Also I found that in the winter the pedal acted as a heat sink and my feet would get colder faster. I got some Soma Double Gate toes clips in the large size, I wear a size 11.5 & 12 shoe and really like them. They with a set of MKS Touring pedals, have made things much more comfortable.

While I really enjoyed the attached feeling that the SPD pedals provided, my current set up allows much more flexibilty in foot position and choice of shoes. Clipless work well for some but they are not mandatory, as many bike shop sales people would make you believe. The total cost for my set up was under $50.

Take a look at the SOMA double gate toe clip. It is an updated verison of an old Weinmann design. The double gate supports the strap so sliding your foot in and out is very easy. The clip is curved to follow the shape of the foot more closely. I think they are good up to size 13US. I don't really tighten the strap that much and use the clip to keep my foot from sliding around while spinning fast, climbing short steep hills or in bad weather.

[quote=Doohickie;7722585]I use toe clips and I have NO idea what you're talking about. I go in and out effortlessly. Once in a while I miss coming back in, usually when pulling away from a light in traffic, and as soon as I get a chance to ease up I flip the pedal around and BINGO, I'm in.
QUOTE]

Yeah, I never tighten my straps, either.

The advantages of clipless are that the pedal/shoe connection is firm, and that getting in and out of them is a hands-free exercise. For a roadie to get a good firm connection, they had to slip their foot in, and then reach down and tighten the strap. Getting out in a hurry? No way.

For more casual riding or commuting, I leave the straps loose enough to slip my feet in and out of, so it's still hands free, and most of the time I don't even have to look down. I avoid scraping as much as possible by careful crank positioning through turns (when coasting is an option.) I still think it's better than plain platforms because I can use proper pedaling technique without my foot slipping. It works out for me that my foot position is perfect with the clips, whereas without them I'm always hunting for it.

Even without the need for special shoes, I still have shoes pretty much dedicated to the task, and I keep a spare pair of business shoes at work. On the bike I wear some low-cut day hikers. They have a somewhat stiffer sole than most of my other shoes, but they are also very comfortable to walk in.

I have clipless on my road bike, and I love them for that (in principle) although I presently have issues with my toes going numb after a while. Need to fiddle around and spend money trying to fix that with new parts, as I've tried everything with this pedal/shoe combo and cannot alleviate the problem. It's also difficult to walk, as it's an older style Sampson/Sakae system with a very tall shoe cleat. I've commuted with this, before, but then I could practically bike to my office, whereas now I work in a large building and need to be able to walk.

i like clips for my commuting and most of my riding, i usually just wear some comfortable slip on shoes...i may try clipless in the future but clips are great right now, people really dig the power grips too

I use toe clips and straps on all my bikes. I am use to them and like the fact that I don't have to buy
"special shoes". However, I was wondering does anybody out there use Mountain bike style shoes that are clipless with their toe clips and straps? I know they are designed for clipless but I find the shoes are pretty good looking. They have a narrow toe which of course would work well with clips and straps. I guess I'm contradicting myself with this question -- Using clipless shoes with traditional toe clips and straps!?

not sure if i am right on this one but i think there are pedals that are designed to work with cleats and you can have clips and straps too, someone chime in if this is inaccurate

In reply to eastvanbike, I have ridden with mtn bike SPD-type shoes using Campagnolo pedals with toe clips. One problem is that the toe section on most mtn SPD shoes is pretty wide compared to road racing or touring shoes, and the sole is very thick even at the tip of the shoe. Also, the bottom of the shoe isn't smooth, but either heavily or slightly lugged. This makes it hard to flip up the pedal and get the foot in. Also, the shoe is very wide at the sole, so if you're going to use them with toe-clipped pedals, you need a wider platform than a Campy-style quill pedal (would work better with MKS touring pedals, in my opinion). All in all, not really practical. But on the other hand, a touring type SPD shoe is very usable with toe clips.

When I first started bicycling about 25 years ago, I used toe clips. I switched to clipless about 12 years later, but never really liked it. When I would find myself in a troublesome situation, I would try to pull straight out of the pedals (as though I had on clips), and fell over several times. I eventually got used to them, but I always had a lingering discomfort.

Last year I tried the Grip King platform pedals depicted here http://www.rivbike.com/products/list...product=14-053

I will never use another pedal again. I have them on my touring bike and my cyclocross bike. They grip well and give you lots of options in terms of foot placement, which is important to someone like me who has size 13 feet. They are great for commuting, especially if you have a lot of stop and goes. I obvioulsy have no trouble getting in and out of these, and you can use either side of the pedal.

Just a thought.

Thanks for the replies. I think I will just stick to wearing narrow toed running shoes which I use right now. I have some New Balance runners I can't use with the clips and straps because the toe part is way too wide to fit in the toe clips!

I tried out toe clips and find that it can get to be a hassle in the traffic on my commute, getting in and out of them, so I just went back to platforms. I know myself, and I doubt I would like clipless. I have been lusting over some of those Grip Kings myself, and lost out bidding on some one ebay a week or so ago. They were listed as MKS Lambda pedals. Really wanted those suckers......

Straps? I don' need no stinkin' straps. I got tired of them years ago and took them off. I just slip my foot into the metal portion of the strap on my old road bike without worrying about slipping off to the side. It never happens. On my hybrid I have plastic toe clips that don't have provisions for straps.

I find with clips and straps you keep them loose -- not cinched up tight and then it should be no problem getting in and out of them. I have used them for years on my city commute with no problem. It comes natural after awhile. Bigger platform pedals would help too.

I ride an old 'Utopia' also. I use the toe clips because the expense of switching over to clipless didn't justify the means for me. Besides I didn't want to walk around in cleats when I'm off the bike. In the winter I wear LL Bean Snow Sneakers, which fit fine in the toe clips.

I haven't bought any clips in a long time but they used to come in different sizes,then you could mount them inside/outside the pedal to fine tune the depth.

If your dragging a upside clip through the corners,you have your weight on the wrong pedal.

Platform all the way. Love being able to wear whatever shoes I want without having to pay any attention to the pedals.

Do people actually ride platform pedals without clips? Every platform pedal I have ever seen had clips on them. I guess some people might ride them without clips, but I think there would be better options. But, to each their own.

big plastic platforms on the singlespeed and clips and straps on the fixed...woot

the pair of shoes is hardly any extra room. And I don't use clipless for casual riding, i just wear whatever shoes I grab first. My commutes aren't casual rides. What risk are you putting yourself into? There is no risk with clipless pedals. There is more risk with platforms and toeclips than with clipless...