Newb here, as you'll see by the following.....

Background: I bought a hybrid this summer for exercise and have been vastly surprised at how much I've enjoyed riding it, which has brought me to this forum, which has led me to peruse the last 100 pages of threads here in the General Cycling Discussion, which has led me to.....

Am I to (FINALLY) understand that 'clipless' pedals require special shoes with 'clips' that require one to 'clip-in' and 'clip-out' of the pedals?

From one of a myriad of threads I have delved into in attempting to decode the jargon:

"Nearly everyone has an embarrassing crash with clipless pedals initially. What happens is you go into a stop, you forget to unclip.............One way to prevent this, is to practice clipping in and clipping out on a short tool up ride."

So, forgive me, not trying to troll, and for pete's sake I tried HARD to figure this out on my own.......

WHY ARE THEY CALLED CLIPLESS PEDALS IF YOU NEED SHOES WITH CLIPS AND YOU NEED TO CLIP IN AND CLIP OUT?

There, I feel better just for asking.

They are called clipless because they engage by way of a cleat on the bottom of the shoe. It is a cleat not a clip.

A clip is referring to the plastic nose piece on old style pedals known as a toe clip. The new clipless pedal don't have the plastic clip which is why they are clip-less.

Riders clip in and clip out of clipless pedals when they should be saying "engage and disengage".


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toe clips (black plastic piece) and straps

Thank you, my sanity has been restored.

How about 'cleat in' and 'cleat out'?

You think that's crazy, just ask about tire sizes. 27 inch tires are bigger than 29 inchers.

Might be better than saying "I'm engaged", or everyone would be looking for a ring.

To further muddy the waters, in Olden Times of Toe Clips, racers did have cleats on the bottom of their cycling shoes which helped secure the shoe to the pedal.

Paging Jean-Luc Picard! Captain Picard to the bridge!

yes, and you park in a driveway and drive on a parkway.

I just started riding recently and I also struggled with this, so don't feel bad. I figure that they simply needed a new term for the new style of pedal and since the plastic cages were called clips and the new pedals didn't have the cages they were "clipless".

Why in the world are 27 inch tires bigger than 29 inch tires? That just makes my head hurt.

The late, great Sheldon Brown explains here.

Wow, after reading Sheldon's article I now understand why there are organizations which were strictly created to standardize various things.

Actually, by the time plastic toe clips came along, clipless pedals were already well established. Toe clips, to me, are made from metal, either aluminum alloy or steel, and they also required the use of leather straps to attach your foot to the pedal. Cleats were optional. When I use my clipless pedals, I usually click in and out

I always thought you "click" in to clipless pedals. Not clip in.

When my shoe secures to the pedal's retention mechanism:"Click".

fify.

So what do you call the plastic things that became popular around the late '80s - early '90s? Are they not toe clips and the nylon straps not straps? Do you just close your eyes and deny their existance? Is it a Evolution-Creationism type struggle you are having or can we insert a made-up third option... like plastic toe-holding devices were introduced by the aliens who landed in Red Square in the 1980s. Perhaps plastic toe clips and EPO were both gifts to mankind from the spacemen. Just wondering.

As one who actually used old style toe clips and straps, it always gives me a laugh to read the ubiquitous "everyone falls from clipless pedals." The old style meant that as you approached a light, you had to reach down to loosen the strap and then wiggle your foot out. Clipless is a snap: twist your heel and you're out. You don't even have to take your hand off the bars.

Are clips and straps supposed to be tight enough that you have to reach down and loosen it each time you stop? This is news to me I have them but I don't strap them down that tightly. hmmm...........

THis is how it used to be done - when people would use toe-clips because they were looking for the ultimate performance. Serious bikers also had cycling shoes with a cleat that grabbed the edge of the pedal. This is really only practical for road biking as the need for quick dismounts when riding off-road can make tight toe clips dangerous.

Even with loose clips and straps I think clipless are safer and have more predictable release than toe clips.