dalameda

I rode the Wine Country metric century on Saturday - great ride, great route, and a fun time. I had the opportunity to test out a new truly clipless shoe system. We are all familiar with SPD's and SPD-L's and LOOK, etc. Well on Saturday I rode the entire metric on my new CRS system. The CRS in this case stands for Can't Remember Shoes, or at least I didn't remember I had forgotten to put them into the car until I was almost at the event, so I ended up having to do the ride in my sneakers. In my defense I had recently switched from SPD's and a mountain bike shoe to SPD-L's and road bike shoes. Before I was used to putting on my bike shoes at home. The ride wasn't horrible, and the platform was big enough to rest my feet on, but I could definitely tell the difference in power, and standing up was nerve racking. Hopefully I've learned my lesson, but probably not.

DiabloScott

I had a friend who damaged her bike the day before a century, and borrowed a friend's bike for the century. She got to the start and asked me to change the pedals to her pedals but I could only get one of them off - her son had tried to remove them and rounded off the flats on one. So she rode the whole thing with one sneaker and one foot clipped in.

Wound up buying her friend a new set of pedals and cutting the old one off.

Biker395 

Whoeee. I would not want to ride a metric like that. Kudos for finishing it!

B. Carfree

I'm reminded of a man I saw riding a few double centuries with toe clips and bare feet. Lucky for his feet, he only weighed about 120 pounds soaking wet (and less by the end of these rides).

Steve Sawyer

I just switched to SPD-SL pedals/cleats, and am still getting used to them, but that will come in time. The only thing I don't like about them is my old SPD pedals were a full platform and could easily be ridden with sneakers when just going for a casual spin. I'm doing a 250+ mile ride over 5 days this summer, and will be venturing out looking for sustenance (and beer) after pitching the tent. I'm half tempted to put a pair of platform pedals into my duffel bag to switch out for the evening local out-and-back for dinner so I don't have to deal with my road shoes, but I'll stick with the clipless for the serious daytime riding!!

+1 on Biker395's admiration for toughing it out with the tennis shoes!!

Dudelsack 

I'll tell you a tale that will make your b*lls shrink up like raisins...(a direct quote from a famous movie. Anyone know it without resorting to Google?)

I have switched from SPD to SPD-SL. I love them except this Saturday when I stepped into a bathroom with a beautiful shiny new concrete floor. Crap it hurt when I slipped and hit the floor. I was so banged up I had to make the call of shame.

Yes I have cleat covers. No I wasn't using them.

RoadTire 

oooops. I'm even afraid to take the stairs in my spd-sl.

B. Carfree

I ride from Eugene, OR to Davis, CA a couple times per year. Along the way, I take a 24 mile off-road detour that avoids a dangerous stretch of hwy 101 just north of hwy 1. When the rains hit (about 100 inches per year on the unpaved stretch), the clay can be challenging enough that I throw my cycling shoes aside and ride on my Keos with sandals or running shoes. Since my wife is joining me on a tandem on the next trip down, we have a new approach to this stretch. I'm going to attach some cleats onto small samples of laminated flooring and put something on the top for traction. When we get to the muddy stretch, we'll just put on our camp shoes/sandals and clip the platforms into the pedals. Instant platform pedals and lighter than bringing two extra sets of pedals.

leob1

Yup, had some close calls too. The cleat covers don't come off till I'm standing next to the bike, and go back on when I get off.

dalameda

I'm not even going to mention the many times when I did remember to wear my road shoes, but then forgot to take the cleat covers off when getting on the bike. Dudelsack, I've noticed on some charity rides they intentionally put the porta potties on a slight slope so they can watch cyclists come skating out of them on their cleats. I think they have contests for most distance covered, and most dramatic fall.

Steve Sawyer

Ya know - that thought occurred to me too. Might be a little tough prying them off, but yeah - might make more sense than an extra set of pedals!

Biker395 

Aw, the SPD-SLs are cake. I remember using SPDs with the pontoons!

Did a snappy Irish jig more than once on those things. Good riddance!

Steve Sawyer

That's been the the second-biggest adjustment in switching to the SL's - I've ridden off trying to get my clips into the pedals while still having the covers on at least 3-4 times since making the switch. Makes ya feel REAL smart!!

I have to say my first big adjustment is that you CAN'T do anything with those pedals until you ARE clipped in. I used to wear a pair of touring shoes with the small SPD clips and PDM-530(?) platform-style SPD clipless pedals. It was nice being able to pull away from a light or maneuver through heavy traffic (vehicular or pedestrian) and just use the platforms. But with the SL's there is NO friction at all between the hard plastic sole of the shoes and the hard plastic & metal of the pedal, and I've banged my ankles a couple of times trying to move without being fully clipped.