Giving up on SPDs

[laura*]

DId you practice?

I've had the SPD pedals (Shimano M324) on the bike for more than a year. The situation has not been improving. As I wrote, in normal conditions I can unclip just fine. But if I'm already falling, I don't have time for two motions (unclip and then sticking a leg out). In the second incident there was no way of unclipping - my foot was trapped.

As for clipping in, sometimes my shoe will click right in. At other times, I just can't find the right spot.

And SPDs can be adjusted so the tension is really loose.

Oddly enough, I found it easier to clip in with the tension turned up quite a ways. And this higher tension doesn't seem detrimental to clipping out.

For the riding I do, I'd almost say I need "downhill" (platform) pedals, except I'm more often than not going uphill.