Going clipless

[johnnyb47]

Hi,
This subject has probably done the rounds so many times on Cycle Chat but i thought I'd ask anyway.
I've got some new cycling shoes that were given to me a few years back. They've got two holes to attach cleats to, and looking at them the cleats would be recessed from the grip of the shoe. From this im assuming there MTB shoes
The peddles ive been using on my road bike are classic 80s quill type and i use no toe clips. I find them ok but being quill types they can be a pain sometimes in getting them the right way round when i start off, and on other occasions i will find my feet will fly off them when pushing hard making me look a right nanna to on lookers. A lot of my cycling buddies are somewhat perplexed as to why I'm refusing to go clipless, but to be honest I've been holding off the idea because in afraid of falling off, being stuck at things like traffic lights ect :=))
My cycling buddies have also commented that going clipless will help in cycling faster and more efficiently. I'm two minds tonight as to bite the bullet and to buy a pair of clipless peddles. As I've already got the shoes its not a big commitment in money to buy some peddles but I'm still a little reserved just incase i don't like them . Most of my rides are long distance affairs were clipping and unclipping would not happen often, as opposed to city riding.My right foot always seems to naturally rest on the far outer of the peddle and i also get knee pain from that side too (old age creeping in lol) and often find myself consciously putting my foot into the correct position most of the time. Watching YouTube videos tonight, it has you believe that going clipless is one of the best ways to go in cycling improvements regarding going faster, but i much prefer to have and take on the advice of experienced people of cycle chat.
Thanks for reading and advice given. A bottle of wine tonight, so my grammar and spelling may be worse than normal :=))
All the very best
Johnny

 

[rivers]

Shimano m520s. I have them on my winter/gravel/cc bike. If you want something with a bit more of a platform, m530s. Both are double sided, sonyou can just stamp on the pedals

 

[And]

His Johhny, did you see this recent thread? https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/using-clipless-pedals-for-the-first-time.257702/

 

[johnnyb47]

Thanks for the reply. As a complete newbie to this new fangled thing (to me) how hard hard they to get used to. Is located the cleats with your foot a dark art or am i overthinking this 🤔

 

[Slick]

For me, the only real benefit of clipless is my feet don't slip of in the wet, I'm certainly not aware of any speed benefits. Also, you can set them up to avoid knee pain and very light grip to allow you to unclip very easily. I like them, but I wouldn't worry about it if you don't.

 

[Slick]

Thanks for the reply. As a complete newbie to this new fangled thing (to me) how hard hard they to get used to. Is located the cleats with your foot a dark art or am i overthinking this 🤔

Over thinking it. Stamp your feet in the pedal to clip in and twist out. Everyone has had a near miss mostly due to forgetting but touch wood, never went down yet.

 

[johnnyb47]

Thanks for the thread redirection @And

 

[rivers]

Thanks for the reply. As a complete newbie to this new fangled thing (to me) how hard hard they to get used to. Is located the cleats with your foot a dark art or am i overthinking this 🤔

Double sided spd is dead easy. Just put your foot on the pedals, and they will engage.
Make sure to loosen the tension on the pedals when your first learning to make unclipping easier.

 

[Spiderweb]

I went clipless back in 2010, for the same reason as you I’d been putting it off for a couple of years. All I can say is I wish I’d have made the change sooner. Stop overthinking and just do it, you won’t have regrets.

 

[Mike_P]

Thanks for the reply. As a complete newbie to this new fangled thing (to me) how hard hard they to get used to. Is located the cleats with your foot a dark art or am i overthinking this 🤔

The position of the cleat is slightly adjustable side to side so it's a case of trying them out initially to see what adjustment is necessary to allow you to clip in easily. Once you have one pair of shoes aligned the position of the cleats can be eye balled so as fit cleats on any other shoes pretty accurately.

 

[johnnyb47]

Brilliant advice and many thanks for the replies 👍👍

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Johnny, forgive me for saying this, there's no easy way. Aren't you quite a senior / mature cyclist?

If so, what have you found missing while cycling all this time without clipless pedals? Is there anything? Or are you just seeing that people use them widely now and wonder if you're being left out?

I love my road pedals and shoes, it feels direct and I like the hard sole But: My tourer and hybrids have flat pedals, for those pursuits then hiking shoes work really well. What is it you're seeking?

 

[ColinJ]

Double sided spd is dead easy. Just put your foot on the pedals, and they will engage.
Make sure to loosen the tension on the pedals when your first learning to make unclipping easier.

And make double sure that you loosen the tensions on BOTH sides of BOTH pedals... I got distracted when fitting new pedals to one bike and only did one side of one of the pedals. I didn't discover that until I came to a stupidly steep hill, decided to walk up it, but then discovered that I couldn't unclip the foot on that side. Fortunately, I started falling the other way and was able to get that foot unclipped in time!

 

[johnnyb47]

That's a brilliant post @CanucksTraveller.
An absolute yes to your question that I'm a mature/senior cyclists. My body definitely says this, but my mind says otherwise lol. Call it a mid life crisis as i can't afford an expensive convertible car, so cycling it has to be 😊.
Seriously, even at my aging years i still enjoy pushing the boundaries of what i can do and find ways to improve it. Call it immaturity (i often do as well as others ) but it makes me happy to try and drive myself to a better plain of fitness and well being. My dad is exactly the same. Hes approaching 80 (bless him) and is still weight training and cycles regularly pending on current lock down measures. He drinks and smokes like there's no tomorrow. Looking at him you would think he was 30 the way he act's. One day he will just go pop, but i will know he's lived his life to full and enjoyed it to how he wanted to live it.
Watching him has kind of rubbed off on me, and notably have followed his course in life. Right or wrong i don't know, but i always find it good to try and just maybe get some pleasure in trying 👍

 

[CanucksTraveller]

That's a brilliant post @CanucksTraveller.
An absolute yes to your question that I'm a mature/senior cyclists. My body definitely says this, but my mind says otherwise lol. Call it a mid life crisis as i can't afford an expensive convertible car, so cycling it has to be 😊.
Seriously, even at my aging years i still enjoy pushing the boundaries of what i can do and find ways to improve it. Call it immaturity (i often do as well as others ) but it makes me happy to try and drive myself to a better plain of fitness and well being. My dad is exactly the same. Hes approaching 80 (bless him) and is still weight training and cycles regularly pending on current lock down measures. He drinks and smokes like there's no tomorrow. Looking at him you would think he was 30 the way he act's. One day he will just go pop, but i will know he's lived his life to full and enjoyed it to how he wanted to live it.
Watching him has kind of rubbed off on me, and notably have followed his course in life. Right or wrong i don't know, but i always find it good to try and just maybe get some pleasure in trying 👍

In that case, more power to you, get yourself your clipless pedals and enjoy!