Is THAT what I was afraid of? (clipless)

[grey]

OK... after months of the pedals sitting and gathering dust out of nervous fears and tales of falling, I finally put the pedals on my bike. After the first clip in/out on each foot, I was so tweaked at myself for being chicken! It's SO EASY and MUCH faster/safer than the toe cages!

Also changed saddles to one my husband hated on his MTB (it's a little, lightweight saddle, even has blue trim so it goes with my bike silly as that is). My ride yesterday was FANTASTIC.

First time in years with no numbness in my toes and no ankle pain. And my girl parts are happy for a change! Wooooooo!

Waaaaaaay too eager to go out and ride again!

[jobob]

Excellent!

[jlnc]

Grey, what made you finally do it? You make me want to go give it a try!

[TrekTheKaty]

Yeah! Just watch those sudden stops--that's when you forget. I had a mantra--unclip, unclip, unclip. Clever, huh?

[grey]

Grey, what made you finally do it? You make me want to go give it a try!

I decided it was worth a shot and was tired of people telling me to at least try it.

Seriously, it's much easier than the toe cages. I've gotten my shoe stuck in those, and sometimes it seemed forever to get my foot INTO them too (pedal turned wrong way, trying to get started & navigate traffic at same time, not cool).

I love to ride. :-)

[jlnc]

I don't have ANYTHING right now...just the pedals that came with my bike and some running shoes.
When I ride now, I feel like my foot will slip off when I start from a dead stop, or if I need to stand while pedaling up a hill (don't do that very often at all...) Maybe I'll get up the nerve to give them a try soon! Good luck!

[m.eliza]

Waaaaaaay too eager to go out and ride again!

There's no such thing as being too eager to get back on your bike

[westtexas]

Definitely I am also in love with clipless. Once you get the mechanism down, it's so easy. Your feet are always in the right position too. Today I rode downtown on our "bike path" and even with all the lights and stop signs, I just can't imagine riding any other way.

Congrats to you for taking the leap Grey!

[LivetoRide]

Nice! Congrats on making the switch

Often times, switching to clipless is not as bad as some make it out to be. Yeah, some may have a little bit of a harder time getting used to them, but it's seems to be more of a mental thing in many cases (and I guess the idea of being clipped in could be a little frightening). It's defiantly got to be much easier and safer than toeclips (I refuse to use those...death traps ).

For others thinking of making the switch, ask your LBS or the shop you plan on purchasing the pedals from if they'd throw you on a trainer (especially if you do not have one) to practice clipping in and out a few times. Just...be extra cautious when walking around / getting on and of the bike especially if there floors are slick and you go for a road type setup! I admit to slipping and almost falling

[emily_in_nc]

Often times, switching to clipless is not as bad as some make it out to be. Yeah, some may have a little bit of a harder time getting used to them, but it's seems to be more of a mental thing in many cases (and I guess the idea of being clipped in could be a little frightening). It's defiantly got to be much easier and safer than toeclips (I refuse to use those...death traps ).

ITA. A friend just started riding, and I gave her an older pair of Eggbeater Candy C pedals off the MTB I recently sold (she also has a mtb but with urban tires and is riding on the road). She rode it a few times with flat pedals but then had her bf put the Candys on and just fearlessly got out there and rode with them. I gave her a short lesson, and she did just fine. She did fall once trying to get started at a stop, but was not hurt. She just got up and kept going. She has a wonderful attitude and is not nearly as fearful as I probably would be if I hadn't been riding clipless for years!

It's mind over matter, really. Good going, Grey - you rock!

[LivetoRide]

ITA. A friend just started riding, and I gave her an older pair of Eggbeater Candy C pedals off the MTB I recently sold (she also has a mtb but with urban tires and is riding on the road). She rode it a few times with flat pedals but then had her bf put the Candys on and just fearlessly got out there and rode with them. I gave her a short lesson, and she did just fine. She did fall once trying to get started at a stop, but was not hurt. She just got up and kept going. She has a wonderful attitude and is not nearly as fearful as I probably would be if I hadn't been riding clipless for years!

It's mind over matter, really. Good going, Grey - you rock!

To me, it's like my other sport of horseback riding: you're going to fall at some point. Clipless pedals or not, chances are that if you ride enough, it'll happen. To be honest, I'd be more afraid of falling while climbing with regular platform pedals that if I were to fall climbing w/ clipless pedals.

For those that are worried about making the switch, another thing that can help are the double sided pedals where one side is just a regular platform pedal and the other is a mtb style clipless pedal (TIME has a set, Shimano makes a few different models...).

And some perhaps are not aware that you can adjust the release tension of many clipless pedals.

[jamijo]

Yay for no pain! Congrats on the clipless!!

I switched to clipless about 2 weeks ago, and even in my short little rides, they've done wonders for my feel on the bike and effectiveness in pedalling.

[Owlie]

Woo! No pain is always a good thing!