So I have heard that clipless pedals are the way to go for my new roadie. And since it is going to come with them anyway, I figure I ought to get my questions answered first.

How hard are they to adjust too? I currently have platforms on the Mt bike and clips and straps on the (now deceased) roadie.

I have heard that they are great if I know how to pedal in them. What does that mean? Isn't pedaling pedaling? Or I am I going to have to learn some new secret?

The ones I am getting are SPD. Not sure what that means. Will any shoe fit the cleats? Do I have to wait until I have the cleats in hand before I go buy shoes? Will I be able to walk in said shoes?

Can I adust how hard it is for me to clip in/out of pedals so I don't fall on my head and become a joke/menace on the roads?

Thanks, I appreciate it.

I just switched from SPD to Look style and the latter are much easier to get in and out of IMO...the SPD were smaller and took more effort to clip in....once in though they are pretty much the same...no you don't need to learn any new secrets!!...you will pedal more efficiently though....they aren't made for walking so I just put them on nest to the car and get on the bike, and reverse when I get back...most shoes will accomodate both SPD or Look cleats....SPD take 2 bolts and Look style take 3....hope this helps!

Do, or did, you like to flip the pedals over to get your feet into the toe clips? If so, you'll miss it with clipless Honestly, clipless is pretty much like platforms except that your feet engage in the pedals. You put your foot on the pedal as you start out, smoosh your foot around until things click (while pedaling) and of you go. As you get used to them, things will be much smoother and you'll find engaging the pedal to become second nature. I'd suggest that you use double sided mountain bike pedals rather than road pedals if you can (arrange a swap with the bike shop).

I think this comment may be for people who have knee problems with clipless. Some people do but most don't. I'd suggest investing in a set of 'multirelease' cleats which fit in the catch mechanism on the pedal a bit looser than single release. Take a look at how your feet fit on the pedals prior to setting up your cleats. Some people pedal heel in or heel out or, like me, straight ahead. Look at how you pedal (use a trainer ) and then adjust the cleats on the show accordingly.

SPD stands for Shimano Pedal Dynamics (I think). It's a Shimano product. The cleats will fit most any shoe without problems. I'd suggest looking a mountain bike shoes rather than a road shoe since they are easier to walk in. You don't lose much in terms of weight or stiffness and you can actually move around once you get off the bike.

Yes. Your pedals should come with instructions on how to do it but it's pretty simple. There is a screw on the back of the pedal (one on each side for mountain bikes) with a +/- arrow on it. Adjust them kind of loose when you start out and you can tighten them later (I never have )

Good luck

Clipless seems scary before you start riding them, but I am yet to know anyone that did not get used to (and dependent) on them fairly quickly.

As for pedaling, clipless helped me learn to apply more even force throughout the entire cycle of the pedal. This helps a lot going up hills. So I would say that you do pedal differently (in a positive way) with them than on flat pedals. You can get a similar result with clips and straps, but I found I had to get them cinched down tight (which was way more scary to get out of than clipless) to get the same benefit and that the top of my feet hurt/went numb.

I second cyccomute's suggestion to look at mountain bike style shoes. They are more versatile and walkable than road shoes. I like Lake and Specialized brand shoes, BTW.

I just made the switch this weekend, adding some MKS quick release Cube pedals to my Dahon folder. (They're "quick release" in the sense that the pedals come off the bike easily, not that your foot comes out of them easily.) The MKS pedals have their own cleats, but the cleats work with any SPD-compatible shoe.

I found it to be a pretty easy adjustment to make. I put the hardware together Friday night and then spent an hour straddling my bike in the living room, practicing putting each foot in and out of the pedal. I was worried that I would have to be extremely precise about how I put my foot down, but with the tension in the pedal loosened up I found it pretty easy to get my foot in. Getting out just required a little foot twist.

Saturday I hit the road (really a combination of road and multi-use trail) with the pedals. I definitely noticed the difference in my riding -- my speed was up, hills were easier to climb, and I was working muscles that haven't been used so much in the past. My big fear was falling, and I did fall twice. The first time was on a rough patch of road where my water bottle bounced off the bike. I stopped suddenly to get it and forgot to release my foot. The second time was near the end of the ride -- I approached a light, released my right foot in preparation for the stop, and then found myself leaning to the left when I actually did stop. The thing about the falling is that you only fall when you've already stopped, so it's a pretty gentle fall. I was embarassed, but not hurt. (It helps that I was wearing tights for the cold -- otherwise I might have gotten a scrape). I know that as I get more used to the pedals, these kinds of falls won't happen (or will happen only very rarely).

In sum, it was not hard for me to get used to them and I noticed a definite benefit.

(And on the shoes -- with the mountain bike style shoes, there's enough rubber tread on both sides of the cleat that you can walk around without going "click-clack" and without worrying about damaging someone's floor.)

So you used to ride with clips and straps, where you had to pull the strap tight and reach down to loosen it when stopping?

Clipless will be a piece of cake. The trouble stroies all come from riders who have ridden nothing but platforms or the like.

Clipless aren't hard to adjust to. If nobody has told you, make sure you unclip before you have to in the begining, because there will be a few times when you don't get out them as fast as you need to otherwise.

Toppling over while still clipped in is a rite of passage. Nearly everyone has a story about it. Some of us have more than one (different systems )

my 1st attempt at clipless(MTB)....661 session shoes(($16 ebay), and Crank Brothers Candy SL's ($48 used w/ used cleats).... I love it! the clipless system works very effeciently and it was cheap for me! I can't imagine going back! IMO, getting used cleats made it easier for me, they are VERY easy to get in and out of, I have not crashed once yet while being "clipped" in, and at a discounted rate. Just food for thought....

With platform pedals your pedal stroke is 1-2. You push down with your right foot pressing down on the sole of your right shoe, then you push down with your left foot pressing down on the sole of your left shoe and you repeat this over and over.

With clipless there is no 1-2. You whirl your feet in a constant circle. When you really have it going good you are not applying preasure on the shoe at all. Just one long WWWWHHHIIIRRRLLL.

And, when you stand up to honk up a hill, you can yank like crazy with both feet. It's like a turbocharger If I get too enthusiastic, I can even hop the rear wheel off the ground.

You can also ride over train tracks in the rain, start tipping over, and right yourself with a clipped in foot. Not to mention hitting potholes, ruts, mounds of ice, etc and your feet do not fly off the pedals. When my feet leave the pedals the rest of me tends to follow. Prevention of racking ones self is always a plus in my opinion.

Ditto what everyone else said. It's not that hard. Particularly if you've done the drill with reaching down to loosen straps on toe clips. Good lord, how un-ergonomic is that?

The fall will happen the first time your brain is occupied with a dozen other things, and you haven't built the muscle memory/reflex to unclip yet. When prepared for a stop, it will be easy as pie. But one moment early on in your experience you may be running through a grocery list in your mind, simultaneously admiring a particularly nice view, when something occurs neccessitating an abrupt stop/foot down.

You'll revert to "old" muscle memory if you haven't built the new patterns, and that's when the fall, if it's going to happen, will. You'll just forget in that moment of instantaneous reaction that you are, indeed, attached to your bike.

It is? I've never seen a new bike that came with clipless pedals. Always had to buy them separately.

A decent road bike almost always comes with clipless of some kind. Some might come with no pedals at all. but never with platform pedals. In theory they might come with clips and straps, but I just can't see any bike shop doing that and staying in business unless they specialize in 'classic' bikes.