Quote Originally Posted by liza View Post
In an emergency, you will react before your conscious brain has time to sort things out. So your best defense is to practice, practice, practice until unclipping without falling is completely second nature. Then when you have to stop short, your body will do the right thing. Other than this, try to anticipate hazards well in advance whenever possible, and if you are worried about your ability to clip out in an emergency, clip out "just in case" when you see a potential tight spot up ahead.

Hope that's helpful! Good luck! I was terrified of my pedals when I first got them.
Thanks for info. You know, what freaks me out the most is the thought of being clipped in on a steep incline. I imagine I can clip out easily enough, but I can't usually clip in right away, it takes me a few pedal strokes. Sometimes quite a few. How do you all clip in if you have to start on an incline? I've actually turned around and gone back downhill to find a flat section.

(Sorry for the slight hijack.)