So I put my Look KEO Classics on today. Then attached my cleats with the position just about right on the shoe. Still need to zero it in a little. Went out the front door of my apartment. Went around the first corner a little too slow and started to teeter. Tried to lift my foot up. Start ****zing out trying to lift my foot. And fell. Whatever people say you will fall your first time. I would say 1 in 1000 don't fall. So then I unclipped lying down and started cracking up laughing thinking of all the people that say you will fall to new clipless guys and how many times I thought to myself, "When I go clipless I won't fall". Oh well.

I think this should be the official Village Idiot thread.

I plan to go clipless within the next couple months, and I've heard about the "everyone will fall thing". Well, I won't fall.

... expect a thread in a month or two with me falling in it too.

It's not that you forget you are clipped in. Because I knew I was. Just instinct told me to pull my foot up off the pedal. Not rotate my foot to unclip. Good practice when biking would be to force yourself to rotate your foot off your regular pedals until it becomes practice. Then you can post the I didn't fall thread.

And the fall is always in SLOW motion!

Well, since I use cage and strap, my inclination would be to try to slide the foot back!

I had those until today. And between trying to pulls backwards and upwards I was destined to fall.

Did it my first time. (luckily the bike was a loaner from the shop)

The salesperson from my local shop did it the other day, he was riding KEOs for the first time too.

i havent fell yet... but i practiced clippin in and out in spin class..sooo that might be why... i have came close..not thinking and being tired... came to a almost stop.. and lifted up..whoaaa..!! twist! and i was safe.. heheh

Welcome to Club Tombay.

I've had one fall, and several close calls. I hope that's all I have.

Hey, on TdC, I thought for sure you were going to crash when you rode into the ditch, you've got a cats balance!

I will probably fall on the way home after posting this. But I have been clipless for a month now and have only had some close calls. My lbs set up everything a little loose for me and it seems to have helped. If I even think I am going to stop I will twist out way in advance. I went clipless 2 days before my first century ride. I think that helped getting use to them.

I haven't gone to clipless, yet, but I do ride a tandem. You can't just throw your leg over the seat to get on, there's a set of handlebars right behind the seat to catch your leg. I had been researching tandems for over a year, read everything I could about them, I KNEW I couldn't just throw my leg over the seat. So I got my tandem down from the car the day it arrived, in front of friends and family, and proceeded to kick the damned handlebars and land on my butt with the bike in my lap!

It just isn't real until you fall once (in front of witnesses). I'm sure it will happen again when I go clipless.

Catherine

Yes, I'm sure that's based on a scientific survey of data

Your mistake was in clipping in both feet at slow speeds when you weren't confident in your maneuverability. If "started to teeter" needs "need to put a foot down" (rather than "time to stand up and get moving"), you'd better be able to put a foot down. Once you're used to the pedals, you'll be able to unclip more quickly if you need to, but while it's something you still have to think about, make sure you're unclipped at slow speeds when you might need to put a foot down.

I typically unclip my right foot when I'm coming to an intersection or a crowded area where I might need to stop suddenly and put a foot down. I almost never have to, but it's not a problem so I do it. Then the thing you have to watch out for is a slow-speed teeter where you're going to the left. Then you need to be able to go to plan B and get that left foot unclipped in a hurry.

It's one thing to know that you need to twist out of clipless peddles and it's quite another thing just naturally doing it. Until clipping out becomes an automatic response that you don’t think about, then you're in danger of doing the slow motion splat to the ground – fortunately when you do so, there'll be plenty of people around to see you do it to add to your embarrassment. On the other hand, you can help your cause out by always unclipping at least one foot whenever approaching a stop or hazard.

This movie explains it really well...but basically, your neural pathways haven't formed into a cohesive whole yet. You uderstand how to clip in & out, but your muscles/brain haven't gotten it down just right yet. Just like fzrdve says...it needs to be an automatic response. Until then, everyone will fall at least once. Just like I did.

I just had a few more falls, two in one day ! Tuesday I put my stuff on and mounted the bike. Since my driveway has a small decline there was no need to pedal. on my way down I "Clipped in" ,well when I get to street I start to pedal.

My chain came off and since there is a small incline to the street I slowed down and fell over . Two of my neighbors were out watering the grass. They just looked at me and shook their heads. These were the same neighbors I fell in front of before. (which triggered this thread https://www.bikeforums.net/general-cycling-discussion/313434-my-first-fall-using-clipless.html)

I get up un-injured and check my chain. All is ok, not sure why it came off since it was now on my granny gear. Anyway I mount the bike, wave at my laughing neighbors and remembered that I need to turn on my tail light since the sun had went down. I slowed, un-clipped my right foot and stopped and and for some strange reason I started leaning to the left. I kicked and kicked and kicked out my right foot, but to no help and I slowly fell to the left.

All in plain view of my neighbors again. They all came over to me this time and got me un-tangle from the bike and told me "Just forget about riding this bike today, and just go home". Which I did. I walked the bike home. I've got to be the biggest "Ass" that ever rode a bike in their eyes. I'm ashamed to go outside now, let alone attempt to ride my bike in front of them again. I'm going to run for president of the "forgot to unclip ass clown club" ...

My Motto is: "Free your feet or your ass will follow"

I had my fall, but it wasn't a very interesting story.

An idiot friend of mine has a great story.

He'd been looking to get into road cycling for a while, so about 2 weeks ago we finally go out and get him his first road bike. I get him into SPD pedals, because they're easy, low maintenance, they work, and you can walk around in your shoes.

I've got the pedal set real loose so he can pop in and out easily. He's pretty nervous about the whole thing. Sure enough, he's riding up and down the block, popping in and out, saying things like 'Is that it? That's easy'.

So in about 30 seconds, he's already overconfident.

At the end of the 5 minute ride, he slows down and starts trying to TRACK STAND! I'm sitting there staring going 2..1..

Sure enough. BAM, the idiot falls. As he falls, he sticks his knee out instead of tucking it in to land on the side of his leg and takes a nice divot from his knee. hahahaha. He hasn't tried the track stand thing again.

Made me laugh so hard, my co-workers are looking at me like I'm sure your neigbors looked at you.
I got tears in my eyes.

I have been riding clipless for a good 8 years and I still will get caught out once in a while.
The last time was summer before last. Had uncliped my left foot and just rested it on top of the pedal at a stop sign, deciding to track stand and wait for the light to turn green. After about 20 seconds I looked to my right to see other riders comming up beside me and as I looked back forward, I realized I was begining to fall to the left. When I moved my left foot to put it down, I heard a loud CLICK and there was no chance of recovery. Hit the road hard, broke a couple of ribbs on that on.

That wasn't my first clip-less fall and I'm sure won't be my last. But I love riding clip-less.

I fell within the first 15 minutes. I was test riding the dang thing and the stores clips were waaaayyyy tighter than on my pedals. So I did a doink right at the front door of the store in front of about four customers and three or four employees. If that was not bad enough, the pedal's clips were so tight I had to take my shoes off, stand the bike up and then wrench them out of the pedals. I guess I should have checked before I left but I never expected them to be that tight!

I've never fallen, but I have had two 'incidents'.

The first was catching a crack in a parking lot while doing slow (~2mph) circles around a friend who was fixing his bike. I jumped off the bike, and the leg on the opposite side didn't unclip and kinda twisted my knee. I managed somehow to pretty much lift the bike and cought it in the air. Bizzare.

The second was coming to a stop in traffic, I had my left foot unclipped. I stopped, and was balancing up on the right foot, and started to feel like I was falling to the right. I almost fell (in stopped traffic), but just barely managed to get my foot out.

Thats the worst of it -- no falls.

xxx

I don't think it's the practice that helps either. Because I knew how to unclip. Just the instinct to pull the foot off the pedal while falling. Fell again today in front of witnesses this time. Should be the last time.

I finally took the plunge and got clipless pedals today. No incidents on the ride to the lab from the bike shop (probably half a mile). But you should be expecting my 0mph fall story soon.

Good for you, Joe! I'm thinking about it, but the thought of putting clipless pedals on my comfort bike seems kinda silly...