RhythmRider

I used Power Grips (straps) on my pedals and became quite used to them. Recently a friend enthusiastically extolled the greatness of clip less pedals. I wasn't ready to fully commit so I purchased Shimano's PD-A530 hybrid pedal...half platform, half clip less. Bought some MTB shoes and a pedal wrench!

Today was my first ride with the new set-up....I went to the Jones Beach Greenway...18 miles from Cedar Creek Park to Tobay Beach. No crashes! I liked being locked into the pedal although I'm not too sure about the benefits of the upstroke.

Even though the cleat is "recessed", I still notice the cleat crunching the ground as I walk! Who knows, maybe I'll get a fully clip less set-up down the road.

Nermal

I used to like my Power Grips, too. Still, the strap was always on the underside of the pedal and there was always the chance of snagging something before I got the right foot into the grips.

You ride clipless for a couple of weeks and try the platform side for a day. When you take off from a standing start, you will know whether you were gaining anything on the up stroke.

Nightshade

AWWWW,man! Why did you have to screw up a perfect street pedal set up for damn clipless!!!!!!

Remember who the friend was that got you into this mess when you crash!!!

MRT2

I witnessed a bad crash a little over a week ago. I was riding with some people and the guy riding just behind me lost control of his bike and rode off the MUP into some trees and shrubs. He was hurt pretty bad. Broken nose, jaw, and orbital bone, and possibly a concussion. You know what part of his body wasn't injured? His feet, ankles and legs, because when he crashed, the clipless pedals worked according to the design and his feet released from the pedals.

saeyedoc

I got the same pedals a few months ago, have only used them with regular shoes once or twice. I do like being able to clip one out and easily use the other side when approaching traffic. I like always having my feet in the correct position.

fietsbob

yea thats how it is .. recess the cleat more and it would not engage in the pedal ,
unless Shimano goes back and redseigns its pedals and all other ones by other companies
taking their compatibility standards from Shimano does the same , world wide ..

You can hold your breath, waiting for that to happen, if you wish

gregjones

Mine SPD shoes crunch on concrete sidewalks walking into the store but don't leave marks on the floors. Don't know how the crunch but don't mar. Hasn't been worth figuring out why. No marks, no problem.

joeyduck

I agree about riding for a few weeks then use the platforms. You will notice the difference when your for comes flying up without the pedal.

I find this even with toe straps.

I have been in need of replacing my pedals. Once in a while on an upstroke my right cleat lets lose, damn annoying on a start when you suddenly have an unexpected free foot.

cyccommute 

Poor Nightshade. He's simply convinced that even thinking about clipless pedals is going to result in death and dismemberment. I have fresh scabs on my knees, a bruised knee, bruised shoulder and a pretty good headache from a crash just this weekend. I caught a lip on my mountain bike and crashed on a pretty good downhill. I came completely off the bike and landed a good body length away from the bike (about 6'). My feet came out of the pedals before the bike hit the ground. I had several close calls over the rest of the weekend (60 mile bikepacking trip) and not once did I think about getting my feet out of the pedals.

Don't listen to the (only) naysayer on the Forums, RhythmRider. In fact, at 20 mph on a gnarly downhill the last thing I want to think about is my feet coming off the pedals. Keep riding, you'll get used to them. And, if you really want to find out about how the pedals ork on the upstroke, go mountain biking and use them to clear a rock field. It'll make a believer out of you.

cplager

On my regular bike, I've got clipless pedals. On my folding bike I didn't, but going down hill, I had to stop pedaling as my feet kept flying off the pedals. I felt horrible not being attached to the pedals, so I put dual sided pedals on and everything is much better. I find it much safer.

I bought Nashbar's commuting shoe and find that on even surfaces, I don't get the crunch.

Jaeger99

This. Platforms feel really weird to me now - and far less secure.

intransit1217

I like pulling on the upstroke. Works the hams and gives the quads a break. Getting power full circle is a lot of practice, but clipless is the first step. Good on you.

Watch for knee pain, have them adjusted so you don't do inadvertent damage. Crunch on !

Looigi

I first used clips (cages and straps) then on an early MTB tried Power Grips for awhile. They were OK but I didn't like the feeling of the strap pinching my foot when it was tight enough for good retention, especially on longer rides, so went clipless, that was like 25+ years ago or something.

joeyduck

Ditto to all of this.

I remember how tired and sore my hamstrings were when I first started using clipless. They hurt, in a good way.

Also check your adjustment to do away with any knee pain, I have almost no cartilage left and two rebuilt ACL and it took a few weeks to get them set right.

Remember to check your cleats the first few weeks, I have had my loosen a bit and that is scary when your shoe won't detach. Just stay calm and use the other foot. Then stop and tighten them.

Nightshade

Masochist !!

You write about your injuries as if you enjoy them!?!?

A unique defense of clipless to be sure i.e. to enjoy pain.

cyccommute 

That whooshing sound you are experiencing is the point going completely over your head. The point isn't the injuries. Those would have occurred with or without clipless. Crashing while mountain biking isn't pleasant but it is the nature of the activity. Road biking has nice smooth pavement but mountain bikers deal the hand that was dealt them.

Part of the point (which I'm sure you'll miss) is that I crashed and came out of the pedals without any conscious effort on my part.

The other part of my point (which will be lost on you) is that several times during the ride...including several 20+ mph downhills...my feet didn't slip off the pedals which would have been far more disastrous then the crash that left me with skinned knees.

Still one more part of my point...which I didn't elucidate...is that when climbing a hill at 3 mph in a 16" gear over rocks the size of baby heads, being able to pull up on the pedals...well...make climbing a hill at 3 mph in a 16" gear on a baby head strewn trail possible. You, and others, might think that it would be better to push up that kind of trail but, having walked about 8 miles of the 60 miles because I didn't have the legs or lungs to do otherwise, I can tell you that riding is far better than pushing.

Nightshade

If injuries are not central to your POV then why bring them into the conversation??

Or........are you a closet masochist as I noted ???

Clipless pedals should be called......."The Hurt Locker".....for guaranteed pain!

winston63 

The cleats on my shoes (spd) also crunch the ground, but that doesn't seem to cause them any harm. I've got a four year old pair of Shimano shoes that are still in good shape and I've walked a fair bit in them.

I honestly have no idea if I get more power riding with clipless or not, but I actually feel much safer and in better control of the bike when I'm clipped in. Once you get used to it, unclipping is completely automatic and doesn't present any increased risk.

cyccommute 

Whoosh again. Don't just stop when you see the word "clipless". I know it makes you see red but read a beyond that. It's clear what my point was but I'll reiterate: I came out of the pedals before I hit the ground. No death and no dismemberment because I was using clipless pedals. Perhaps dismemberment for other reasons but not because of the pedals.

umazuki

Let me just say that I too had an accident with clipless - my tire got stuck in a storm drain as I was taking off. I was fine and the bike was fine, just a little banged up. I would have been more banged up if I were strapped in and all tangled up in the bike. Instead, my clipless pedals disengaged, I was thrown free of the bike, and I walked away. Comments, Nightshade?

IMO the benefit of clipless is not so much "pulling up" - it's to keep your feet locked to the pedal. This allows you to spin - think of it as pedaling in circles, instead of pedaling in squares like you do without any retention. Spinning will make you faster, and is necessary for longer/faster rides - if you mash with clipless, all the force in your pedal stroke goes into your metatarsals (the ball of your foot), leading to a phenomenon known as "hot foot" (you'll know it when you get it).

meanwhile

There are none (except in extreme standing sprints): this has been proved with strain gauges and powermeters.

meanwhile

No, it really doesn't. People span for a century or so using straps and even platform pedals. It isn't even hard to do so.

Most people who have tried both would say you'd have come away easier with Powergrips. And obviously if you'd been riding with BMX/freeriding MTB pedals then there would have been no issue at all.

meanwhile

..All hail the Power Of The Placebo, Mightiest Force In Bike Marketing. (Bar Ignorance.)

meanwhile

How do you people manage to do this type of stuff? It's like you're Incompetence Gifted...

GravelMN

RythmRider

You have chosen wisely. I too went with dual sided SPD pedals, 530s on my road bike and 324s on my gravel grinder/mixed surface touring bike. I use the multi-release (silver) cleats and set my retention as low as possible without having accidental clip outs. I too like MTB style shoes with recessed cleats and pick styles that look like ordinary sports shoes. I recently picked up a pair of Shimano Click'r CT40s which are more generous in the toe box than any other shoe in this style and price range.

Now please excuse me for a moment:
.
Nightshade, everyone has a right to his/her opinion but you are a panic monger when it comes to clipless. I've read your previous rants on the subject, including your descriptions of your "clipless" crash and your berating of riders and bike shop mechanics for ever even suggesting that there might actually be benefits to clipless pedals. Your comments about being locked to the bike, unable to escape the inevitable doom that befalls all clipless riders, show a lack of knowledge about clipless systems and are absolutely incorrect. I believe in one of your previous posts, you stated that you tried them once and that being "locked to the bike" caused you injury in a crash. Maybe you should have consulted one of those bike shop mechanics and learned to adjust your pedal retention . . . just a thought.

While I have not used every clipless system, with the proper selection and setup of an SPD clipless system You Are Not Locked to the Bike and can easily and instictively release in any direction except straight forward and straight back. The majority of individuals I have met with complaints about SPD being difficult to clip in or out have been using the outdated single release cleats (which are rapidly disappearing) and have had the pedal retention set way too high for their style of riding. Another common problem is not knowing where to place your cleats in relation to your foot and pedal. It takes about 15 minutes to educate them and make the proper adjustments. Every single person I have helped get properly set up has ended up liking clipless and failed clip-outs drop to zero.

I ride both with and without clipping in and can tell you that there is no additional risk from being clipped in when your cleats and pedals are properly adjusted. In some circumstances safety is enhanced by the aid in keeping your feet centered on the pedals. You can certainly ride without clipping in and I do so frequently. I personally don't think I get much performance benefit by clipping in except on sprints and steep hills. IMHO I do get some comfort, security and safety benefits so I choose to use them. If you don't . . . ride on my friend . . . but don't feed everyone inaccurate information about clipless being some kind of death trap.