Fear of falling with clipless pedals
 

I've tried to adjust to clipless pedals.

With the 1st set of shoes and pedals I bought at LBS when I bought the road bike, I had trouble getting my right foot out of the pedal before falling. I've fallen countless times.

My friend took me to another bike shop, where they told me that the shoes were not stiff enough and that the pedals were MTB pedals, not road pedals, so I bought a new pair of shoes and Speedplay pedals. In the shop, they seemed really easy to get in and out of.

Well, on the street, while they aren't as difficult to get my right foot out of as the previous shoe/pedal, I still have trouble and I've already fallen once at an intersection.

Now, when I know I need to get my foot out, I'm getting apprehensive and scared.

Today, when I had to ride to a meeting, I rode my folding bike that has platform pedals, rather than ride the road bike. Well, not just because of the pedals but also because I can put stuff on the rack in the back instead of in a bag on my back. But, I noticed how much more comfortable I was when I had to come to a stop and when I had to walk for any distance. It's really difficult walking in the new shoes.

I've been trying to get used to clipless since October. Granted, I've been sick the past few weeks and didn't have a chance to practice since I got the new pedals, but is there something wrong with me that it is taking me so long to adjust?

Is there some technique that will help?

Assuming that the pedal and cleat are in good condition,(i.e. not broken) the only thing that will help is practice. Lean up against a wall and clip in and out with both feet. Get it down so that you can clip out without thinking that you're clipping out, rather, that you're putting your foot down. Then move on to the ubiquitous grassy field and practice some more at various speeds, and "sudden"stops.If you get this far, riding out in the world is easier. You usually know when you need to stop, prepare for it, clip out one (or both)when you see a need to stop.I usually unclip one side if I'm in slow traffic or on a MUP with unpredictable traffic(read dogs&kids) Don't go back into traffic unless you're confident in your ability to get in and out. No sense in getting killed over these things.

Apart from that,many pedals have some tension adjustment for the pressure needed to clip out, make sure yours are set to light for now. Read the manual that came with them. Eh, that and the occasional drop of lube on the cleat to keep things smooth.

As with anything else, practice helps. Find some place with no sharp objects, etc and practice clipping in and out while the bike is still moving. Actually by the sound of it, you tried to unclip when the bike came to a stop. Try unclipping before that, while the bike is still moving and you are slowing down.

When you are coming to a stop, unclip one side first and lean slightly to the unclipped side. You may have to slide forward off the saddle, so that your foot can touch the ground as you roll to a stop. Above all, relax! Practice loosening your grip on the handlebars and relaxing your shoulders. Breathe in deeply and let the air out as slowly as possible. Tension is the enemy of balance.

Do you own a trainer? If so, put your bicycle up on the trainer and practice clipping in and out. While you are doing that, if you find you are still having difficulty, make some adjustments to your pedals to make them looser.

BTW - I've got mtn bike shoes, and the SPD pedals, and they are just fine for clipping in and out ... I've got literally thousands of kilometers with the pedals and shoes, and I've clipped in and out probably thousands of times too. I've never heard of someone needing stiffer soles to make that process easier!! All I had to do was to loosen off one screw. You can get them so loose you're almost stepping out of them ... and then you need to tighten them just a little bit.

My mtn bike shoes are also much easier to walk around in than my roadie shoes ever were.

Dude, I learned how to use LOOK pedals on a sidestreet outside of my LBS many years ago.

Okay, try this - put your bike parallel to a wall, get on, use your arm to support you, and clip in with both feet. Now clip in & out with your foot on the opposite side of wall until comes natural. Get off, turn around the bike and do the same thing with your other foot.

Maybe the tension is too tight? When I got my new LOOK pedals last summer, I made them as tight as possible. Oops, I almost fell over at a light and had to forcefully jam my foot out.

Practice hundreds of times. Set your bike up next to the couch when you'd normally be watching TV or something and just practice clipping in and out. About 30-45 minutes a day should do it. The rotation motion of the foot really isn't natural, so you'd need to make it automatic through lots of repetitions.

You might, But you will probably live.

Just swing your heel to the outside and twist the cleat out. Like the above as well just relax, I think we've all fallen at least once. Practice at home, makinging adjustments if you need to.

'mmmm it is your fear that stops you now young Skywalker'

On the other hand some people never get use to clipless pedals, Toe clips and straps still work just fine. You can even still get the retro-cool stainless steel and leather ones.

Falling is just part of this learning process, unfortunately. I've been riding these pedals for years and still occasionally fall while daydreaming.

Thank you, everyone, for your replies. I'll keep practicing.

I think what's going on in your head rather than your physical ability to click out is causing you problems. Have a couple of beers, and practice riding in an empty golf course...:)

+1 on the trainer idea if you have it. Got to build that muscle memory...

Relaxing and thinking calmly is the biggest trick. The moment you panic, your instinct is to lift your foot off the pedal to put it down. When it won't let go you get more panicked and shortly after flop over. Clip out one side well before you anticipate a stop. You can rest a different part of you foot over the pedal for stability without engaging the clip. Stay with it, though. They are great.

Stay out of traffic until you get it down. Falling over in you yard is embarrassing. Falling over at an intersection full of cars is terrifying (from experience).

Falling in front of a rush hour bus is far more embarrassing then terrifying (from experience).

'Course we were both stopping for a light and I happened to be in front of it. I am glad that I could provide a small amount of entertainment to lighten their day.

Falling while clipped in is a right of passage. Accept it.

I have never been able to figure out why this helps, but it seems to. My LBS manager told me when I first purchased mine to look down at the foot I was planning to disengage. It helped!

It does also help greatly to have the tension on the release as loose as you can without having the shoe disengage when pulling straight up. As mentioned by an earlier poster, you can always tighten it later.

This should read: "Falling while clipped (while at a stop light where several onlookers gape at your slow-motion drop to the ground) is a right of passage. Accept it."

:D

Been there, fallen like that.

It's to the point now, though, that riding w/o clipless pedals on other bikes feels un-natural, un-stable, un-secure.

MicheleC, Keep on practicing!!

I was pretty bad at this in the beginning too because I used the AeroLite pedals which required a bizarre roll-to-the-outside-and-yank motion to free myself. I actually practiced catching my fall with one hand and easing into the ground gently. Woudln't recommend this unless you've got some upper-body strength... could break your wrist and collarbone..

All these suggestions are really good. As for commuting, I would (and do) use MTB pedals and shoes.
Next time you go out spray your cleat and pedal down with some chain lube to free up the mechanisms a bit and give you a better feel.
Also, if subtle ankle movements aren't working for you, try hugely exaggerated movements to try to clip out (while on a trainer or leaning against a wall). Throw your leg out like you're six years old and gliding through a giant puddle. It will help get the motion down.

Keep trying, eventually it will become so automatic you won't know you are doing it. Last time I rode a bike WITHOUT clipless pedals I kept twisting my foot when I slowed to a stop.

And the golf course idea is a good one. It doesn't hurt so much when you fall. Parks work as well.

Make sure you practice on the REALLY nice greens near the hole...leave loads of weird indentations..... lol

Break a cleat while you're at it, you get double bonus points.

Remember when SPD first came out?

THAT was a tough summer of biking!!

I remember, fondly, watching my buddy Jeff, get slowed up on a technical trail bit and teeter right over into a tree, *****ing and screaming he couldn't unclip....

And I did the same a few times as well! I think we were trying to keep them dialed real stiff, like ski bindings - for some reason, we didn't trust the concept of SPD keeping you on the pedals....

Go for it ... leave them as loose as possible at the beggining.

Just like straps, bend your heels outwards so to unclip.

I can clip and unclip at +- 100 pedal rpm without trouble at all, it is a matter of getting used to, like in ten minutes.

I think meybe you should practice riding getting used to toe clips first. You gotta get used to thinking about disengaging your foot from the pedal when riding. I found the transition from toe clips to clipless, pretty smooth.

p.s. make sure your toe clips are fully loose when riding if you decide to use this method.

you've already been on them since october. you shouldn't be falling by now. you need to get your bike shop to LOOSEN the pedals so that it's easier to unclip.

by the way, there was nothing wrong with your previous SPD MTB pedals either. i used SPD all the time and there's nothing easier. they just needed to be loosened. your bike shop is fleecing you with horrible advice and obviously doing a bad job adjusting your bike components.

sd

I kinda agree with shag-d. SPD is one of the most common clipless pedal types... and it isn't particularly hard to disengage unless it's set really tight. Your shop should be giving you better assistance.

I agree with most of the above comments, the only thing that hasn't been mentioned is that you could try (if you have SPD compatible shoes) getting the Performance Campus pedals. They're SPD on one side and a platform on the other (there are a few other brands that are the same way). That way you can clip in and out some of the time and use the platforms in situations when you're nervous (like traffic, intersections, whatever).

You should practice in a way where you won't get hurt if you fall. Grab some rollerblade elbow and knee pads to wear while practicing :). And wear like a sweatshirt or something else thick to pad yourself. Since being tense makes it harder to learn, you need to be comfortable with the idea of falling, and then ironically you won't fall as much.

I fell about 5 times at stoplights when I was learning SPD in Toronto. I fell once on the intersection of Dundas and Yonge street (downtown Toronto) and about 50 people saw me crash onto the road. Someone yelled 'are you drunk?'

Embarrassing!

I am much better now.

It was 2 different bike shops, but in defense of the 2nd bike shop, he worked really hard to adjust the pedals and cleats, working on it for several hours with me, to no avail. This was on the trainer, so there was no fear of falling on my part at the time. The SPD cleat would just not come out when the shoe was on my foot, no matter how hard I tried.

What he eventually figured out was that because I have such overpronation (also a problem when I run), I needed a shoe that was stiffer. After several hours of working at this, I was the one who made the decision that I was fed up with the shoes and the cleats, and wanted to try something else.