I have been given an old bike. It needs a few things before it will be rideable, and t's not pretty, but it was free and it fits the bill as far as not being bike thief bait. I plan to use it for riding into town at a leisurely pace dressed in street clothes/shoes. It currently has platform pedals but I would like to add some kind of "foot-retention device." I am considering old fashioned toe clips of course, but I'm sort of leaning towards Power Grips because they look as though they would be compatible with many different shoe types, from running shoes to hiking boots to flip flops (am I wrong about that?).

I read a thread at Bikeforums in which someone who had just gotten Power Grips was falling a lot with them and having trouble getting out. It was suggested also that having an imperfectly placed strap could make this worse.

So I was hoping some you here who use Power Grips could give me the lowdown. Is it at all difficult to learn the getting out motion? Have you had moments when you've forgotten about it, and fallen as a consequence? Are you really in as tightly as with clipless pedals? Is it difficult to adjust the straps correctly? Did you buy one of the "pedal kits" or did you attach the straps to your existing pedals?

I have been riding with clipless pedals for a few years and I'm totally comfortable with them, but I was pretty clutzy when I first got them. I have ridden with traditional clips & straps before and from the beginning I didn't have any problems with that.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Thanks!!!