It takes practice, and a couple of falls. I can now guarantee you that I will unclip before I fall. FWIW I used SPD's.

Also, it can pay to practice falling. My wife got so scared for a while that I took her out to a soft grassy field and we fell sideways for practice. That helped dispel most of the fear.

I don't mean to say that skipping foot retention is some sort of failure. It's not, at all. My saying I much prefer to have it than to go without it is merely a statement of my own preference. If you've given it a good try and don't like it, that's just fine. I am just trying to show you what it takes to be comfortable with it.

Another thing that can help is doing balance practices, which you should do without foot retention. Ride as slowly as you can. Once you're good at this, pick some rough terrain and ride slowly. Even if you don't improve your balance, you can learn your limits of balance, which is even more important.

Another balance skill is to ride while looking backwards and try not to veer off your course. This is an important skill for riding in traffic. A head turn serves at least two purposes: it lets you see what/who is behind you, and it signals to those behind you that you know they are there.

I've ridden three kinds of clipless pedals so far. SPDs, Eggbeaters and now speedplays. Eventually you get used to yanking your foot sideways instead of pulling up to remove your foot in emergencies. For some it may take longer but you'll get there eventually.

Right now I ride on a fixed gear with clipless pedals. Less complications combined with a higher ratio of efficiency

See, I have no problems with balance. I can nearly do a trackstand on my commuter often long enough to wait for a light change but if I was clipped in, I would never attempt that, I'd unclip and put my feet down, I would be afraid to fall.

It's not the fall itself that I'm afraid off. But it's falling sideways in front of passing truck or bus that scares me. I may still go back to SPDs for cross country riding or weekend rides on calm roads. But in the city I'd never attempt riding with clipless. Most of the time I'm riding in a 3 feet wide corridor with cars parked on one side and traffic within an arm reach on the other side. All it takes is a zombie coming out from between parked cars, I don't have the comfort of planning my stops so I can unclip ahead of the time.

Adam

I think people can be quite adept at releasing themselves from clipless pedals when necessary, - to the point where it's pretty much reflex. The larger question is whether the advantage of clipless pedals make it worth the expense and effort of getting to that point.

The answer isn't the same for everybody. If all I did was commute I probably wouldn't bother with them, but I've grown accustomed to having foot retention. There's been been at least one instance that having my feet attached probably saved me from a fall, or at minimum looking stupid. There was another time (pre-clipless) that partially slipping off the pedals while doing a standing climb caused an unpleasant encounter between crotch and top tube. I didn't fall but... ouch. Granted, it was a rather clumsy act that largely lead to my slipping, but still.

I taught myself to trackstand last year on my commuter. With clipless pedals (Time's). In traffic.
These days I feel completely at home clipped in although needless to say I've had some little 'incidents' in the past. But I've been using them for so long now that I feel uncomfortable when not clipped in, riding flats.

I solved the slippage problem by using large BMX pedals with studs and large sole sneakers. I never slip. Yeah, it ruins the sneakers faster though. So yeah, for commuting clipless pedals are no go for me, I'm content with the BMX pedals.

Adam

I had been cycling for four years before I finally switched from platform to clipless (and took another two years to get my first road bike). In both respects, I knew their value, but money was an issue. In my first month with clipless, I failed to release properly and went down ONCE - and never since then. Never taught myself how to track stand either (but it's a usefull skill).

I cannot recommend clipless foot retention highly enough.

I use BMX pedals in the winter. I've so far not experimented with clipless in icy/snowy road conditions. The periodic need to get a foot down quickly has trumped the possibility that better control via foot retention might help me keep me upright.

You are not doomed to fall over if you use clipless pedals.
Not everybody who uses clipless pedals falls.
If you convince yourself that you will fall, that can increase your chance of falling.
Self-fulfilling prophecy.

If you're not using studded tires in the Winter, safety and bike control are just not that important to you. For me, I've *never* had a Winter surprise where my foot didn't automatically unclip at just the right time and my suddenly released foot was the counterbalance I need to regain control in most cases. In my experience, the slipperiest surface is a very thin layer of slush with water on top; nothing for your studs to bite into and not enough depth for your tread blocks to do you any good. Deeper slush not a problem, glare ice is a joy and I never miss a patch if I can. In slippery conditions a foot down will often *make* you fall with studded tires. Reason: Your tires have more traction than your foot. On ice a foot down is an absolute recipe for a fall.

Years after I had "mastered" clipless, I went out for a ride with an old friend who took me into a completely new (to me) group. We came to a light about 20 miles into it, and I just couldn't get out of my pedal to put my foot down. Fought if for a while valiantly, hopped a bit, finally keeled over into the grass about 10 ft from where the fun started. Everyone was laughing at me like I was some noob. It was quite a show. It turns out I hadn't properly greased and tightened a cleat screw on my new-ish shoes, and it had fallen out, so the remaining screw had me firmly attached but the cleat wouldn't rotate to click out.

Morale of the story: with clipless, you are never safe.

I feel sorry for you...

Adam

I have studded tires and it's typically not the ice (at least not ice alone) that causes a problem. Anyway, for me the worst is loose snow over uneven, rutted ice. Especially in the dark where it's tough to judge the contours. This winter I had to deal with long stretches of that from late December through the first part of February. In 5 seasons of winter riding being able to get a foot down quickly has saved my bacon more than once.

Having foot retention means there's going to be a delay in getting that foot down. Maybe it's so small that it doesn't matter but I haven't been willing to take that leap of faith so far.

There's other downsides too. Keeping feet warm is a major concern when it's below 0. With platform pedals I've got all kinds of options for foot gear. With clipless, not so much and what's available for cold weather use is pretty expensive. Then there's the potential problem of getting snow and ice packed in cleats and clipless mechanisms. Maybe in practice it's not a problem but it's a complete non-issue with platforms.

I keep meaning to try clipless in the winter to see if I feel like it gives me better control over the bike, - enough to outweigh my concerns above.

One day, I'll visit Minnesota. I'm sure that if I do it in the winter, it will satisfy my curiosity for the rest of my life. You have some amazing conditions, where I would not recommend clipless.

I've been riding clipless since 1987. I started out with Look and switched to SPD about four years ago. I had one almost-fall in the beginning, and it was scary. I was taking a long-ish day ride, and I was towing my toddler daughter in a trailer. If I injured myself, I would be stranded with a crying kid. But I pulled up to a garbage dumpster and held on and got myself out.

Fast forward to this past fall. (Does that sentence sound funny?) My wife bought pedals and cleats, and we were on her first ride. We were on a bike path with zero traffic. I rode off the path and onto a steep grass bank. I tried to pedal back up onto the paved path but lost my momentum and fell over sideways. I burst out laughing because I thought it was so stupid. It was at such low speed my wife thought I did it on purpose as a joke. And it was MY first fall in cleated shoes.

Oh, long, long ago, I occasionally rode with toe clips and the old fashioned cleats where a slot in the cleat grabbed onto the rear edge of the pedal. THAT setup scared me, because it required reaching down to loosen the strap. As a result, I would usually tighten my left foot but not my right foot (my exit foot). It was an unfortunate compromise.

Lol, I live in Minnesota, and about a month ago hit a really long section of the LRT trail in St Louis parked where they did a crap-tastic job of plowing it. It was all bumpy rutted, nasty...etc. I had to make it through...made my usual 30 minute trip into an hour and a half trip.

Did the whole thing using clipless, clipped in. I think it actually helped - better control of the bike with my feet attached to the pedals. The conditions were so bad I had to deflate my tires to about 15psi and I think I was traveling about 5mph.

It's like someone else said about mountain bikers - of all people, they would have the most need to be able to put their foot down. And they all still use clipless. It's sort of a matter of getting used to it.

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But, as have been said repeatedly, if you have a feeling like it's dangerous to ride clipless there's really no problem with just not doing it. Being able to, say, fix a flat, or adjust your derailler are more important things for sure. Some people can trackstand - I can't, and maybe I'll learn to eventually but if I never do - it's just not that big of a deal.

Toe straps are the way to go! I've never used clipless pedals but if there is a way to get out of them i could only imagine that it wouldn't be any good for using up force. With toe straps just a little practice (getting in them) allows you to use both down and up force! I am not completely sure about the clipless lacking this ability but I do know the only way out of straps is back out the way you came... I love em, they are cheap, safer, convenient, and you can use your existing shoe, also good for sharing a bike with another person (VARIETY). clipless just seems soooo extravagant to me. I've done wheelies with the straps and when I pop em too high and fall backwards... i slip right out of the straps and land on my feet. I would not be able to do that with clipless.

Lots of very informed opinions here, and excellent advice.

Downshifting before you have to climb is very important, as is progressively downshifting during the climb while maintaining a high cadence, before bogging down under high resistance. Clipless allows you to maintain a secure "grip" while reducing resistance, especially doing 2-3 cog changes at a time.

Practicing standing up to pedal uphill is useful, so that if you do bog down, you have a lot more power to keep moving at a very low cadence (e.g. 20 rpm). Last year this happened to me when I went down to 1st, and barely made the crest. It was scary, I was down to 1 mph, but I refused to go down, I just strained my quads to their limit, and just got to the top. I was dumbfounded. Then I noticed I was on the big chainring. Oops.

For commuting, if you are riding the same route, you can practice the shift changes (maybe using platforms for your testing), and develop routines of when to shift (although these can be greatly complicated by varying situations with car traffic, it still helps). Go for more cadence speed and lower resistance than you need here.

I got some DH SPDs, high quality binding with a platform shell. These provide adequate traction for start ups across intersections without having to be clipped in. I used a dremel on the cleats initially to make release easier, and also facilitate easy bi-directional ankle-turning release. (Turning in is easier for me, knee problem.). I have the spring tension set at it's lightest setting. Only one unwanted clip-out three years ago when I was acclimating. Clipping out when I want out is very easy whether the pedal is up, down, or in between.

For most of the winter, I use platforms, because I need warm boots, and am not willing to go the $250+ route for SPD cycling boots.

Yes the trails were often terrible, but roads near my house were worse and being roads with traffic, - more dangerous.

There's a couple of differences between mountain biking and commuting. Serious mountain bikers are often dealing with huge drops and other situations where being clipped in is a real advantage if not a must. And if they fall over riding in the woods they don't need to worry about a tailgating SUV turning them into speed bump.

Maybe next year I'll try clipless in the winter and become a believer, -or a frozen pancake.

You'd probably go: "Eh, - no big deal" and head back home. It just gets colder for longer and the snow sticks around or gets compacted into ice rather than melting in a few days or weeks.

If I was 2 miles closer to work my winter commute would be a piece of cake. This Feb I finally got smart. By heading out of my way a few blocks I was able to cut the bad stretch down to the 5 blocks closest to my house.

I doubt I'd call it no big deal. You have temperatures I can't even imagine.

I just don't get the fear of clipless. They take a little bit of thought and effort to get into, but, I have never had even the slightest bit of trouble getting out. if you are having problems, something needs adjustment/replacement.

I did clipless this winter. I think it does help sometimes when you need the control to power through some sloppy slippery stuff at low speed, or take a tight corner at a crawl. Releasing in time to put a foot down is never an issue.

Winter biking and mountain biking have a lot in common. The first time I rode clipless on a mountain bike ride, I was apprehensive about the idea (I was comfortable with clipless, but new to mountain biking). I figured, though, that a slow-speed tip-over with the clipless was better than getting rattled off the platform pedals at higher speeds. I had to do a LOT of emergency foot dabbing in some of the tight switchback climbs (I'm not very talented in tight spots), and every time I saved myself from tipping over, I was kind of amazed. I didn't even have to think about it... and my foot was free. That sideways heel twist really does become your natural reaction after a while! Now I've even gone winter mountain biking with clipless, and it truly does give you the extra bit of power and control when you really need it.

When I finally sprung for clipless about five years ago, I was enamored with the power increase that they made possible. I could sprint harder and jam up hills faster, and that was way cool and totally justified the cost to me. Yeah, I fell twice, once at an intersection and once burning out on a steep uphill, but you learn how to get out pretty quick.

But I'm a commuter, not a racer. Hard sprints just wear me out faster, and don't shave any noticeable time off of my ride. And having to wear a separate pair of shoes for riding and for work or walking in the store got to be a real drag. I tried skate style clipless shoes, and I still scarred up floors. After the first year I began to wear my regular shoes more and more, and started to ignore the clipless side of the pedals. I still clipped in for pleasure rides, where I'd leave the house and return straight to the house so it didn't matter what shoes I wore.

Going back to platforms regularly also illuminated one more potential disadvantage to clipping in: it made me a poor pedaler. I would overpower the backswing because I could, and would end up just pulling straight up and jamming straight down on the pedals. When I went back to the plats, I had to re-learn circular pedaling. If you feel like you can't transfer power to your bike without clipless, then you've forgotten how to pedal.

If the trail is so bumpy that my feet might rattle off my pedals, then I'm not in the saddle anyway. I ride a rigid bike and my skinny ass doesn't provide adequate suspension for my spine. So I'm standing on my pedals. If I'm standing on my pedals then I cannot be rattled off of them. Winter conditions are such that I get stuck on stupidly rough frozen footpaths, and I have never once rattled off of my pedals.

I wear three different types of footwear year round, one for below 10F, one for between 10F and 45F, and one for summer. When I want to go play disc golf and the course is flooded, I wear rubber boots. And it's never a problem on the platforms. Both of my winter boots hold to my BMX pedals with no slide. I picked up a pair of these this summer and they're almost too grabby. I have to lift my foot all of the way off the pedal to reposition.

If you like your clipless setup, great! Ride what you want to ride. But don't try and convince others that they need clipless to ride. Or that there'll be much of a difference in anything other than a few specific situations (sprinting, hard climbing, and bunny hopping). I'm not afraid of clipless, and I feel that over the course of two years I gave them good try. When my old Novara with the clipless setup was stolen, I replaced the bike but not the pedals. I spend enough money on accessories that I do need to commute, like lights and fenders. I don't feel like blowing more money on racing gear that makes almost no noticeable difference in how I ride. I'm not racing, I'm just going to the store/school/work/bar.