I am also new to road biking. Got my new Klein bike about 3 weeks ago, complete with those nasty little pedals and cleats. I sat in my yard and practiced, practiced, practiced before heading out on the road. Took about 30 minutes of working myself up into clipping in BOTH feet while on the road, but finally did it. Two days later, I jumped on and never looked back. I am still nervous riding in traffic, but thankfully, where I live, I don't have to deal with much traffic if I don't want to. I have Speedplay pedals, which I think are very easy to get in and out of, especially for a newbie.