Fear, fear, fear, plain old fear to clip and unclip. Advice please!

[Maye]

It DOES get better with practice and time. My first attempt to learn how to clip in (SPD) failed miserably and I moved to BMX pedals for a year or so. Last spring I moved to Speedplay Frogs. I liked them much better but I still had to clip out well in advance, etc. So far I've only fallen twice with these pedals and both were due to user silliness.

These days I still like to anticipate clipping out if I can - I don't like to wait for the last second but I can as my recent experiments riding in our downtown area have proved. Yesterday I realized that my foot hadn't unclipped for some reason, probably distraction on my behalf, but I was somewhere that I could turn the wheel away from the road and go a couple of more feet which gave me time to unclip and stop without falling over. Whewww!

I'm still in the learning process. Like you, I anticipate when I have to clip out by remembering: "hey you are clipped, remember to clip out the right foot".

[Catrin]

I'm still in the learning process. Like you, I anticipate when I have to clip out by remembering: "hey you are clipped, remember to clip out the right foot".

It isn't so much that, but it is simply part of my stopping process. I don't generally slow down enough if I don't unclip a little early. Don't ask me why, but there you go. I can still stop, it just isn't very graceful & I then get tire marks on my leg

[TigerMom]

Currently I unclip left foot first (which is my natural tendency). But I have been reading a lot of forums and don't know whether I should practice unclipping right foot first instead.

Pros about unclipping right foot first is falling away from traffic and on to the curb (in the United States, not Britain/Australia) and being able to stick my right foot on the curb to rest.

Pros about unclipping left foot first is being less likely to damage my crankset if I fall left and less likely to have a chain link/crankset "tattoo" on my leg. Also, someone had mentioned about cars more likely to push you out of the way if you have your right foot on the curb.

I think that I am still new enough at unclipping to try to train my body to unclip right foot first. What should I do??
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2012 Specialized Amira Elite, upgraded carbon handle bars, Jett saddle 143mm switched to 145mm 2012 Selle Italia Max SLR Gel Flow saddle

2011 Specialized Ariel Sport,suspension post,Serfas Rx Women's Microfiber saddle

[ny biker]

I unclip first with my right foot because I instinctively put my right foot down first when I stop.

When I fall due to being clipped in, I fall on my left. Because that's the foot that I can't put on the ground.

Anyway I personally would not try to learn to unclip first with the other foot, because I would fall way too often in the process of trying to change habits.

[Catrin]

I think most of us have a preferred foot for stopping, and for me it is my right foot. My body's preference is so strong for unclipping/stopping with my right foot on the road that I am quite sure I would fall if I tried to reverse that - and I am not about to take that risk on the road. Almost every cyclist I know also uses her/his right foot to stop so I am not in a minority. What I really need to learn is how to use my left foot as my power/starting foot at lights. Right now I both start and stop with my right foot.

On the mountain bike trail I will stop with whichever foot is on the uphill side/away from the edge if there is one but that is different but so far am stuck with starting with my right foot there as well.

[tctrek]

I wish I could unclip on the right... but seems I am left footed and too late to change it!

[goldfinch]

I wish I could unclip on the right... but seems I am left footed and too late to change it!

Me too. Even before I had clipless my left foot would go to the ground first. And I would always push off with my right.