Ok, now remind me why I should go clipless?

[Fuji Girl]

It's normal to have to adjust your saddle a little bit when you first go clipless, but make sure that your feet are as parallel to the ground as possible, and that when your leg is fully extended your knee is just slightly bent. I see a lot of people peddling with their ankles (extending their ankles at the bottom of the stroke) or with their hips (swaying from side to side with each stroke because their seat is too high).

*edited because I forgot to type in vital info*

[uforgot]

fujigirl,

Thanks so much for the tips. Next time I climb on, I'm going to watch my leg action. I didn't know to keep my foot parallel, and I'm probably the only person in a 25 mile radius that doesn't ride a Wal Mart bike, so your input is invaluable to me!

[Fuji Girl]

No problem! If you have any questions at all, ask! That's the only way you'll learn, right? This forum is a great resource; you can ask anything you want without feeling stupid.

A few other tips: turn down the tension on your pedals. There's a little hole on both sides of your pedal, and stick a little hex wrench in there and turn one way or another to increase/decrease the tension. The lower the tension, the easier to unclip. The instructions that came with your pedals should show you how to do this.

Also, when you're approaching a stop sign or something, unclip one shoe first, before you get to the sign. It's a little insurance that you'll have at least one foot free. When you're slowing down and about to stop, turn AWAY just slightly from the unclipped foot. For example, if your right foot is unclipped and ready to be put on the ground, turn the front wheel to the left ever so slightly. That way, you'll lean to the right a little, towards your free foot. Practice this a little on a quiet street. Before I figured this out, it was a crap shoot which side I'd fall on, and it always gave me so much anxiety.

[allabouteva]

Hey uforgot

Yep, I agree with fujigirl re the tension on the pedals. Have the clips on the easiest and loosiest setting. That makes a huge psychological difference in that you'll know it's a lot easier to get out of them. Then when you get better and more confident you can tighten them up, because if the tension is too loose, you might accidently unclip when you're cycling, and that can be a little disconcerting.

But for me, I always lean my bike on the side of my unclipped foot, it's closer to the ground then for the unclipped foot to rest on. (opposite to fujigirl!) But do what works. And I always unclip my left foot, I think it's because in Australia where I live, you drive on the left hand side of the road, and when there's a stop sign or red light, I always like to go right up to the kerb and rest my foot on the little ledge thing that sticks up so that I can keep my bike upright.

And don't worry about falling. EVERYONE does that. It just takes time to adjust, so don't be too hard on yourself.

[Jen]

It has a hard learning curve. Ouch!!! What I did was loosen the screw that holds the tension on the clip so my shoe came out easier. Good idea but I loosened it too much so now I will have to play with it till I get it right. There is a screw on the side of the pedal that controls the tension.

[liksani]

somewhat off topic, but I managed to fall off my bike not even with clipless pedals but toe clips. Was standing, had a foot still in toe clip, forgot I had toe clip, and slowly I fell over with everyone watching. It was err... a great experience...

[allabouteva]

somewhat off topic, but I managed to fall off my bike not even with clipless pedals but toe clips. Was standing, had a foot still in toe clip, forgot I had toe clip, and slowly I fell over with everyone watching. It was err... a great experience...

Yep! Been there too liksani!!!

My DH doesn't understand my lack of planning!! I blame it on being a newbie, who didn't really master the art of bicycling when a kid!

[MelC]

I'm new to the forum but had to chime in on this thread... I remember the learning curve well. My first (and so far only) tumble due to clipless was also a slo mo - I had just got the pedals (and the bike) and was out for my first long ride. I was slowly navigating around some cow gates on a bridge and failed to remember that there was a steep uphill right after the gates. I didn't have enough momentum to get up the hill and I could feel the bike getting slower and slower and mentally resigning myself to the fact that I was going to go over. Fortunately I mostly hit the grass and suffered little more than a scraped knee and a persistent and annoying chirp on my bike.

The only thing that will make the pedals easier and alleviate that trapped feeling is practice, practice, practice. I solved the issue by sticking SPDs on my commuter too so I had no choice but to use them all the time and since I commute on my bike in an urban environment I did a lot of stopping and starting. At first I unclipped ages before the corner and coasted in but eventually my confidence increased and I now unclip only when necessary.

Just bought my first mountain bike so I expect the learning curve is going to start all over again now

Mel

[betagirl]

I definitely agree with what everyone has said. The difference between clips/clipless is huge. You may even notice that you're working different muscles (aka they'll be sore) in the beginning.

I agree with Fujigirl about unclipping as you approach somewhere you're most likely going to have to stop. I unclip and rest my foot on top of the pedal and coast up to stops. That way I don't slow down too much and then have to try to clip out before I tip over. It's getting down the quick stop/clip out that takes a bit of time. You'll get it eventually. It'll become like a reflex for you. Just keep practicing.

[uforgot]

Well, its been several days, and you guys are right. Thanks to Fuji Girl, I checked that my feet were parallel, and adjusted my seat accordingly, and now its not a problem. I had already loosened the tension per the Shimano directions, and now I'm comfortable with them. I'm a clipless convert!