Clipless Pedals? Recommendations Appreciated!

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Hi Catikin, I too have recently gotten into road biking. I purchased the Shimano A530 because I liked its option of having one side as a platform (to wear regular shoes) and other side as clipless if/when I decide to move into that arena. Right now I am using the platform part and it suits my beginner's needs very well. One downside is that because they are different on each side, there is the tendency for the platform side to face down after you take your foot off so it takes a bit of nudging while riding to get back on the platform side.

My friend, another beginner, has the same pedals but he already purchased clipless shoes so he is using the other side of the pedals. He says he still has a learning curve with using clipless but he likes the A530 as well.

Note that the A530 is different from the M530, which is clipless on both sides but has the overall platform design. I believe both accommodate mountain bike shoes which are easier to walk around in vs. road shoes, but maybe someone else with more experience can chime in there.