Looks to me like a disaster waiting to happen. When riding clipless I tend to pull up on the up stroke. Looks likely to be too easy to disengage if doing so. No thanks.

Plus apparently no float and no adjustment of angle. Looks great!

The magnet would hold better against pulling straight up than it would against rolling your ankle, maybe that's what they had in mind. Still not something I would trust on a hill climb. And zero float kills it for me.

I doubt they were going for a replacement for clipless pedals. Probably just a more slip-resistant take on a platform pedal.

Interesting concept I guess, but it seems like a solution in search of a problem to me.

fail.

Its targeted at riders leery of being locked-in on a clipless pedal. I think its unnecessary since there
are a good number of platform pedals available that offer a secure grip and let allow the rider to disengage when necessary. The main selling point of course is the natural upward motion to release the pedal bindings. An SPD takes time to learn how to twist the heel outward.

For your requirement, it is about the shoe, not the pedal. You'll need SPD and mountian shoes.

I have Specialized Tahoe shoes and there is zero clicking, even on marble floors.

I had the same reservations about being clipped in...till I tried it. Twist out spds took me about 2 seconds to figure out getting out. Getting in takes a bit more time to figure out.

Anyone who can not master spds rather quickly has no business on a bike period.

+1 Think Jamie Hynaman's Mythbuster air-duct climbing experiments with super powerful rare-earth magnets. They tended to disengage and slip rather abruptly.

Has anyone actually tried these?

I'd like to think that these were designed with product synergy in mind for R-sys riders. Wheels exploding? No worries, EZ Ride lets you get your feet out in time!



Joking about explosive R&D aside, Bikeradar has a "review" in which they give the system 4 stars. But, there's no real review to be read:

Apparently, it works brilliantly in the rain, has smooth bearings and good sealing, and works well as flat pedals even without the shoes.

Funny, the review makes them sound just like my normal flat pedals. Brilliant in the rain, super-smooth bearings, and good sealing. They work well as flat pedals, because they are.

I think the reviewer could have taken some time to elaborate and quantify their benefits, explain how the testing was done, and justify the design of the product - because otherwise, it doesn't sound like they honestly do much more than flat pedals with pins in them do which makes it hard to justify the purchase of a proprietary combination at a much higher price than a decent pair of pinned BMX pedals.

What happens when you really wanna unlcip fast and maybe a weird position. If the magnet is strong enough to hold what makes it weak enough to release easy enough?

I'll stick with my crank bros. No noise. I'll have to wait a bit though as I was dumb enough to ride in on Jan 5th and try to cross an ice covered path.
I did not unclip in time before hitting the ice.
What I did do is twist just enough as when the exposed heel hit the ground and take the weight of the bike and me, the clips were still engaged.
I heard a crack and hoped it was just the ice. Nope, it was the fibula in two places.
It will be interesting getting back into clips in March (or April).

At least I solved the daily question of "is the weather nice enough to ride in or shall I take the car ?"

R-sys wheels? Release angles? This is the most road-forum-esque thread I've ever seen in here.

Which isn't intended as an insult, although I suppose it may be taken as one.

Funny how the comments on this product went from "Gee I don't know" to downright nasty. No one tried them first.. Well, I have this system and love it. Why did I choose this system? Several reasons.. 1. I have had surgery on both feet for Morton's Neuromas and needed a wider base for my foot. the small base at the precise point of the neuromas that conventional clips offer would be torture after just a few miles. 2. I am really just an advanced beginner and I am at a stage where I want the advantage of clipping in but am not that thrilled about being connected to my bike. 3. The shoes were comfy to walk around in (see#1).
-The magnet is incredibly strong. I could pick up the shoe with the pedal attached and it did not come off.
-Detaching CAN be done by twisting your foot. You do NOT have to pull up.
-I have had no problems with iron collecting on the magnet.
-I have had no problems going up hills
All in all this system works for me. To those of the psoters who posted snarkey remarks about something they have never tried.. shame on you. People like you are why some people do not cycle.
Kathy R

Cool, as I was reading this, was thinking in same line. Those magnets when trying to be pulled vertically will be extremely strong. Easily holding 60lbs+ with just single magnet couple of stacked quarter size. However, when you twist out of way (as in moving to side), the force decreases drastically. With proper pedal, I can see how this can be put into SPD format as well. It looks like to me the part where the shoe and pedal mate is to prevent accidental slipping to side where magnet will lose it's power. Instead of making it in single position, if they can make it in some section (say being able to move 1/2 inch on all 4 direction, it might be possible to accommodate rather wide range of motion while being able to held up.
The only concern I would really have with this would be... what kind of health impact does it have when you have such a strong magnet right on your foot for hours?

Probably increases blood flow to the feet

this is one of few threads dealing with these, so BUMP

i understand the objections to this system, and i think they will never be a decent replacement for clipless. however, they, or at least their idea, certainly has a place. one is for the person not comfortable with a firmer attachment, but would like a small power holding the feet in place. you don't have to mash upwards or do fixed gear skids to still appreciate having your feet held onto the pedals.

the other benefit i can think of is what leads me here. i'm actually here because while discussing the issue, my wife came up with the idea of magnetic pedals and we googled our way here. i have become so accustomed to my various clipless systems (speedplay frogs for city and fixed gear, crank brothers mountain, speedplay road for races, bebops in experimental stage, spd as a general backup) that i feel effectively naked on a bike with platform pedals anytime a technical situation comes up. however, i also have a big desire now to learn to control my bike more from my handlebars, because it adds a lot to your skills. this is really in relation to mountain biking. you can find lots of discussions in mtb forums of people suggesting you learn how to ride on platforms before using clipless. but there is no way that after learning to rely on the crutch of clipless pedals i'm ever going to be able to bunny hop a foot-tall log or ride off a several-foot drop on platforms. SO, i think i will be trying this system as a happy medium for training myself to not rely on my foot connection (since as is said the magnets can't possibly be strong enough to hold you foot on with any real upward pressure). I'm hoping they will give the added assurance, such as mid air, that my feet will stay on the pedals, while forcing me to learn to keep my feet there on their own.

Now, all this may be a moot point from an industry persepective. Based on internet availability (someplaces have them, but it's pretty scarce), i would guess that production stopped after the first run didn't sell and the idea has been shelved for several years. If i do go through with getting a set, i'll try to add on a review of how they worked for this application later.