Clipping out up a steep hill?

[tulip]

You are psyching yourself out. You are letting your fear control you, not the other way around. Don't try 4 or 5 times. Try 100 times. Ride your bike with clipless pedals for 100 days and then make a decision.

Relax, keep your rides short, and get used to it before you go out on longer rides. And for goodness' sake, STOP focusing on these images of people crashing! There are 1000, maybe 10,000, more examples of people NOT crashing while clipped in.

All I hear you talking about is your fear, your falls, your witness to someone else crashing. How is this helping? What about the times you are not falling, what about your successes?

[ny biker]

Relax, keep your rides short, and get used to it before you go out on longer rides. And for goodness' sake, STOP focusing on these images of people crashing! There are 1000, maybe 10,000, more examples of people NOT crashing while clipped in.

I was thinking this, too. Picture yourself riding along, enjoying yourself, smiling, everything going well. Imagine yourself successfully clipping out and putting your foot down with no problems. Focus on that.

[withm]

You are psyching yourself out. You are letting your fear control you, not the other way around. Don't try 4 or 5 times. Try 100 times. Ride your bike with clipless pedals for 100 days and then make a decision.

Relax, keep your rides short, and get used to it before you go out on longer rides. And for goodness' sake, STOP focusing on these images of people crashing! There are 1000, maybe 10,000, more examples of people NOT crashing while clipped in.

All I hear you talking about is your fear, your falls, your witness to someone else crashing. How is this helping? What about the times you are not falling, what about your successes?

This is excellent advice.

When I was learning - I rode around the block for a couple miles (it was only 1/4 mile for the loop) seemingly endlessly, coming to a full stop, unclipping, and putting my foot down even though it wasn't required at every corner. Going through that entire drill some 20-30 times in a single afternoon was boring but was all I needed to develop that muscle memory. The key is to practice, practice, untill you are comfortable. It does not take long.

No pole vaulter ever cleared 10' on the first try. And every attempt ends up in a fall. Yet they continue to practice until they get it right. As cyclists we don't have near that kind of challenge. Clipping in/out is so ingrained that most of us never give it a second thought.

It's not rocket science. It's learning a little coordination in order to become a skilled rider. If it were really as hard as some people make it out to be, nobody would be riding clipless.

[Bike Chick]

Don't overthink it! Just practice and it will become second nature.