What can I expect from riding clipped in ...?

[Tiny01]

Evening all ...

Well had my 1st road bike ( Giant Defy Advanced 2 ) for just coming up to 6 weeks now , my Strava dashboard is showing 650 miles to date I'm averaging 17-19 mph on most of my rides that range from midweek rides 20-25 miles & more at the weekends 45-65 miles .

I'm still cycling with flat pedals one side , cleats the other , I have touring cycling shoes but not fitted the cleats in yet .

The bikes going back to the Giant store on Saturday for its first service & when I purchased it we agreed that we'd fit me up with the cleats & I'd have a go on the trainer clipped in , make sure that I'm comfortable with feet attached to the pedals & go from there .

What can I expect from riding clipped in as apposed to how I'm riding now ? Any advice for a newbie riding clipped in for the first few times , I'm a little apprehensive about it but feel it's a step that I want to take to get a bit more out of me / bike , any advice really appreciated .

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

Expect your feet to be clipped in.

 

[bozmandb9]

Extra 5 mph on average, respect from fellow cyclists, and total sex appeal to women!

But seriously, probably a very painful 'clipless moment' at some stage, and overall a more satisfying cycling experience, feeling more connected with the bike. Don't worry about it, my son just went clipless, and he loves it, always wants to go out on the bikes now, even more than before. Maybe get some practice clipping in and out on grass, before trying it uphill at traffic lights!

 

[Crandoggler]

Expect that at one point in time, when you least expect it, you will fall off like a complete idiot.

Loosen the pedal so you can unclip freely at first. Tighten thereafter.

 

[Cuchilo]

I'll take falling over and looking like a tit over getting a studded pedal in the shin any day !

 

[vickster]

Potentially sore feet if the cleats aren't set up right and the shoes aren't comfortable

But on the plus side, you feet won't slip in the wet and you can get better traction from lights. I'd ditch the current pedals though and get ones with clips on both side, the others are a pita once used to clipless imo

 

[13 rider]

Just think when stopping unclip one foot in plenty of time and importantly always lean the way of the unclipped foot .After a period in clipping just becomes second nature

 

[midlife]

M520's like these?

Loosen the cleats as much as possible at first..........at first get a bit of speed up before you try and clip in to reduce "wobble"

Shaun

 

[Tin Pot]

Expect that at one point in time, when you least expect it, you will fall off like a complete idiot.

.

Yep . Just try to roll with it.

 

[midlife]

Check this site out when ready.............

http://bikeshed.johnhoogstrate.nl/bicycle/pedal/removing_spd_platform_adapter/

How to remove the platform.

Shaun

 

[Tin Pot]

Evening all ...

Well had my 1st road bike ( Giant Defy Advanced 2 ) for just coming up to 6 weeks now , my Strava dashboard is showing 650 miles to date I'm averaging 17-19 mph on most of my rides that range from midweek rides 20-25 miles & more at the weekends 45-65 miles .

I'm still cycling with flat pedals one side , cleats the other , I have touring cycling shoes but not fitted the cleats in yet .

The bikes going back to the Giant store on Saturday for its first service & when I purchased it we agreed that we'd fit me up with the cleats & I'd have a go on the trainer clipped in , make sure that I'm comfortable with feet attached to the pedals & go from there .

What can I expect from riding clipped in as apposed to how I'm riding now ? Any advice for a newbie riding clipped in for the first few times , I'm a little apprehensive about it but feel it's a step that I want to take to get a bit more out of me / bike , any advice really appreciated .

It obviously seems like a big deal to you now, but a day or two later, it won't.

It's nice to feel like you can power through both legs to get up hills smoother and faster, rather than pistoning your way up.

Eventually you forget about it.

Then you fall over

No, really, you forget about it and it becomes a non-issue.

 

[raleighnut]

Potentially sore feet if the cleats aren't set up right and the shoes aren't comfortable

But on the plus side, you feet won't slip in the wet and you can get better traction from lights. I'd ditch the current pedals though and get ones with clips on both side, the others are a pita once used to clipless imo

I disagree, all of my SPDs are single sided whether the A520s or bearcage/clip combis and there is a trick to getting them to flick over automatically both ways. I've seen people trying to flick them over with their toes whilst looking down and wobbling about but once you realise that they're weighted to hang a certain way you can just use physics and timing to flip em over, its to do with when you take your foot off and replace it and what the cranks are doing at the time.

 

[vickster]

I disagree, all of my SPDs are single sided whether the A520s or bearcage/clip combis and there is a trick to getting them to flick over automatically both ways. I've seen people trying to flick them over with their toes whilst looking down a wobbling about but once you realise that they're weighted to hang a certain way you can just use physics and timing to flip em over, its to do with when you take your foot off and replace it and what the cranks are doing at the time.

In hundreds of miles I never got that knack (with £60 A600s) and I even took an alarming tumble as a result. Double sided clipless for me from then on. Physics fecked me over

 

[Cuchilo]

In hundreds of miles I never got that knack (with £60 A600s) and I even took an alarming tumble as a result. Double sided clipless for me from then on. Physics fecked me over

Yeah but to be fair you do fall over a lot .

 

[jefmcg]

I'd ditch the current pedals though and get ones with clips on both side, the others are a pita once used to clipless imo

I've got 22,000km on the same pedal** as @Tiny01, and they almost always are SPD side up when I go to clip in.

**M324, and yes, obviously I am stalking him