Clipless pedals. A tale of hope, love, and redemption.

extremedave

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
It all started with Utah. He looked down at my bike and said "oh, you've got flat pedals. You aren't climbing anything." At the time, I begged to differ. I had been riding flat pedals and 5-10 shoes for years and never felt a disadvantage. I had done ok at a couple races and held my own riding with friends, but the seed had been planted. Although I was a loud n' proud flat pedal advocate, would clipless be better? What was I missing here?

Fast forward a few. I built the Ghettospeed, a racy, rigid singlespeed 29er. All throughout the build I was debating what to use for pedals. Klunky flats didn't feel right for something so Whippet-like. Via a nearly ridiculous chain of events including multiple board members, I wound up with a near-new pair of Giro shoes (thx Jumpa + Jmanic) for virtually nothing out of pocket. Clipless it was. Is. Help me out with tense here...

Enough story, buttmunch. What's the deal? Well, they are faster, like quite a bit. I've been setting uphill PR's regularly, which was NOT a strong point before. I thought that was due to an increase in overall fitness, which I'm sure it partly was. But there's such a marked difference it has to be pedals too. I have clips on the road bike and being able to switch muscle groups while climbing really spreads the load out while maintaining pace. They make all the difference on the single speed, that bike almost requires them. You can churn some torque. During the Short Track Pudding Bowl race, I was going maybe .002 mph yet still was able to grind along and stay upright.

Another advantage is less pedal strikes. Although I use a fairly low profile flat pedal they are still taller and obviously much wider than the clips. It's a very big difference on the trails and it's not like I'm bashing my feet up now. The entrance to Stevens takes you on an angled concrete underpass. I almost never rode it as I'd grind the uphill pedal and had to ratchet to keep moving.

The biggest surprise is churning through rock gardens. It's actually kind of nuts how much momentum you can keep while still in a low gear. There's a gnarly rock section on Blue at Wildcat, (ok, the whole place is a rock section) it's man made but tough and it's kicked my ass every time. I made it for the first time last week. I've had some Tiger Blood, Karate Kid-montage style training recently, but the pedals definitely helped. Which leads me to...

The downside. Aside from the fact I suck at clipping in, and probably always will suck at clipping in, they are Pretty. Damn. Scary. The very places they excel, like technical climbs, tricky rock moves and rock gardens are where they scare the whee out of me. It's as much mental as actual but when some moves require just as much confidence as skill, that's a fairly big deal.

The other issue is not just clipping in, but re-clipping on an obstacle. With flats you can generate an awful lot of power just by jumping on the pedal hard and it's mostly hard to miss it. It may sound like hair splitting but there were plenty of times I made a move because I could just dab then smash pedal again. Again, some of this comes down to confidence.

Lastly, my cornering slightly sucks now. I'd adopted a foot forward/pivot around it MX corner style that I was very comfortable with. Yes, lots of DH and Enduro racers run clips now, but those guys are awesome. I'm not. I have to focus and concentrate on where and what I'm doing mid-corner now, which is a distraction I could do without.

Side note: I've read articles regarding flats being better for your knees as you can move around on them but I've found the built-in float sufficient. And I've got crappy knees.

Overall? Clipless. Wait, can we call the Industry and switch nomenclature from clipless to clip-in, or snap in, or something less dumb than the term clipless on pedals that you absolutely 100% do clip into? Sorry, tangent. At least for now, the power advantage outweighs the confidence issues. I've had a few bad crashes of late so I'm ok with going more fasterer instead of more hucky-er. And that's my experience.
Fin.
 
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UtahJoe

Team Workhorse
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Did I really say that? What an asshole.

Glad to hear you are having a good experience, keep at it and you will be so comfortable with them, you will wonder how you ever lived without them. Few things I have gotten better at over the years with practice....

By doing 1 legged drills in the winter on the trainer...When I get a foot knocked out by a rock, etc, I now have no issue continuing to pedal with the other foot....I can now do this pretty seamlessly. Same with reclipping...Its like I know the spot on my foot where I will have enough pedal grip to keep going until I can get clipped in again.

I used to think my cornering was slower bc I couldnt ride MX style...but then after I got down clipped in better...I realized, the whole act of the turn from start to finish is now smoother and at a more consistent speed that requires me to use less energy on the exit.

Btw, are you using spds? if so did you try the multi release cleats to start?
 

JimN

Captain Wildcat
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I got into actual mountain biking in 2009 and the first thing I did was put toe clips on my bike (yes, actual toe clips). I don't remember how long I rode with them, but it was only at Lewis Morris. It couldn't have been more than a few weeks or months before I bought "clipless" pedals and shoes. I had the typical rookie "clipless moments" but took to them pretty well. I rode them exclusively for at least three years, buying clipless pedals for my eventual singlespeed and road bikes.

A few years ago, someone that is a much better technical rider than me suggested I try five tens and flat pedals. My first ride on them was at Ramapo, starting from the soccer fields on Barbara Drive. My feet came off the pedals three times just trying to get up the first hill, because I kept pulling up with my rear foot. After a few rides, this stopped happening. In the last few years, I've been riding increasingly more technical trails, and I'm a huge fan of the ability to throw my foot off the pedal and onto a tree/rock. I was pretty good at getting out of my clipless pedals, but I'm just more confident in the rocks with flats.

That said, my singlespeed (which I rarely ride) and my road bike (which I even more rarely ride) still have clipless, and I have no problem switching back and forth between them. The only problem that I have is that I don't know how to lift the rear of my bike without them. I understand the concept and have watched plenty of videos, but when it comes down to getting over a big log, I just have issues. The same log is no problem on the singlespeed, partly because it is almost ten pounds lighter, but mostly because I can cheat to lift the rear end onto the log. That is really the only thing I miss about having clipless pedals on my full suspension/AM bikes. Maybe I'll get confident enough at some point to switch back to clipless for the technical riding, but I just am loving the flats for it now. Although, once in a while I do have the bike in too easy a gear and pedal too fast and throw a foot off the pedal.
 

extremedave

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Jim, there's definitely times I've saved it with a quick touch...and there's times I can recall where nothing could help me. ;) The clipless are another level of commitment to a move. I've read riders talk about flats allowing you to bail before you've really tried something. I dunno about that but it's a thought. I personally feel that they make me think about clipping out and looking for an exit before I'm in trouble. Maybe that's not such a bad thing.

Utah, you did in fact say that, although it was more kidding around! I think it was in the snow with Rob one day. I'm using 520's and 530's. I need to play with the tension some but I've inadvertently unclipped enough times that I don't think it's a worry. I will look into the multi's, are they harder to get clipped into?

I'll just have to practice some and maybe adjust the cleat position to where it feels natural. Right now I'm happy enough to get clipped I'm in no hurry to pop out! But practice makes perfect I guess.
Cornering-you just made me think of roadracing. There you keep the ball of your foot tucked onto the pegs and shift weight towards the inside of the corner. Maybe I'll try fooling about with a modified version of that. Still new to the clipless so figuring out all of this. Thanks for the tips to work on, will practice!
 

jumpa

Well-Known Member
At this point I'm fairly dedicated to running this entire season single speed on my 60lb (exagurated) steel hardtail. I agree with all your points. I could see my self switching to flats but not while I'm churning ss. There are points when I'm climbing that all pedaling form I have acquired goes out the window and I'm doing whatever needs to be done to keep my pedals moving.

I started with multi release but quickly realised they release at the worst moments for me.

As far as cliping im and out on obstacles. People would be surprised how often I actually ride unclipped just cause the obstacles and my lack of skill to quickly reattach myself stop me from doing so. I find that pedaling mid foot even unclipped slightly behind my cleat provides adequate power to get me through a tight spot.

( Happy the shoes are doing you justice, @kichibot Is using the n/w we traded for and I'm sure she appreciates not smashing a 42t on logs anymore. )
 

JimN

Captain Wildcat
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I've read riders talk about flats allowing you to bail before you've really tried something. I dunno about that but it's a thought. I personally feel that they make me think about clipping out and looking for an exit before I'm in trouble.

Yeah in my experience, I would bail before really trying something with clipless, because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to bail at the last minute. With flats I just try anything and if I fail then I bail out at the last possible second. I will eventually try clipless again on my full suspension to see how I feel about it.
 

Magic

Formerly 1sh0t1b33r
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Although sometimes I still wish I stayed flats for longer to practice proper bunny hop technique, I don't think I'd ever go back now. I even brought my pedals with me to Mountain Creek for a rental rig.

My biggest thing back then was slipping off the pedals after stepping off into or walking the bike in wet spots. I never tried 5-10's, but my pedals were pretty grippy regardless. My feet also sometimes came off due to sudden jolts from roots or rocks on the hard tail.

At first I tried multi-release cleats and I still unclipped in some rougher sections, once with a cheaty bunny hop which made me land painfully on the lower region. All of my problems were solved with some proper cleats and now it's just second nature. I now have SPD's on all of my bikes at just about the tightest setting and wouldn't want it any other way.

Regarding what Jim replied to, i can attest to doing that as well. I would start off into a section and just step off before really trying it because I'd have that mindset that my feet might come off the pedals and send me flying, or at the very least end up with velociraptor shin scrapes. I tried many more features clipless than not. Just keep cranking!
 

UtahJoe

Team Workhorse
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I will look into the multi's, are they harder to get clipped into?

The multi release I think were the same with regards to clipping in, they just popped out easier...kind of a nice way to get used to SPDs at first....after you are comfortable with the spds, I found them annoying as you pop out too easily...
 

Arwen's Mom

Mother of Dragons, Breaker of Chains
Ride around the block just clip in clip out over and over and over. Not riding on the trails. Just pedaling up and down a smooth easy spot. clipping in and out over and over till you think you will puke. Do this for DAYS.

You will teach yourself an "automated muscle response" and will never forget to unclip ever again and will be able to unclip even in the middle of a fall.

Also set your pedals on an easier setting making them unclip easier.

BTW, I call mine clip ins now. Dont care what the industry calls them.

Love my clip ins, even while doing DH...especially then.
 
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Supermoto

Well-Known Member
I have been riding clipless since they came out, I recently tried flats. They both have their benefits and draw backs. I feel I can corner more aggressively on flats since I can get my foot down if the front end washes. With clipless, it is difficult to clip out quick enough. Same on technical stuff if you endo. Problem for me with flats is my foot never feels like it is the right position and I have become lazy with bunnyhops, so sometimes I just jump straight off the pedals. Pedal strikes are definitely a bigger issues, especially if you pedal through corners.
 

jumpa

Well-Known Member
Yeah in my experience, I would bail before really trying something with clipless, because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to bail at the last minute. With flats I just try anything and if I fail then I bail out at the last possible second. I will eventually try clipless again on my full suspension to see how I feel about it.

I tell e eryone who asked me about rding clioplless that you probably bail out on flats way sooner than you think you need to. So the clipless pedals help exagurate the save ...or the fail.
 

extremedave

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
I dunno if I'm going to spend a day clipping in/out but I will try to practice more. You should see me on the road bike, it's pretty pathetic. At least with SPD's I've got a 50% higher chance of getting in! Utah, As 1-shot says, I see the "downside" of an unscheduled unclip as being a far bigger problem! Stick with the SPD's I think, plus less to go wrong probably?

I'm still in the camp that the advantages of clipless outweigh the disadvantages. Having ridden flats for so long (and being pretty leery of clips all along) I'm pretty surprised at how I've taken to clipless. We shall see how it progresses.
Thanks for all the tips and ideas.
 

The Heckler

You bring new meaning to the term SUCK
My first fall from not unclipping was rolling up to my car before Lewis Morris I believe 4 years ago now. Someone offered me pedals and shoes to try out before my first XC race which was actually on campus at UMass. His shoes were too small but everything was so much better. Climbing and descending.

I went right to the bikeshop and for carbon sole Specialized hightops on closeout for $60, and some 520's. Never turned back.

I found pretty quick that I would start to fall over and panic then all of a sudden when I was expecting to fall completely over my foot would be out and planted on the ground. I still surprise myself with saves.
 

jumpa

Well-Known Member
2020 shimano di2 spd and spd-sl pedals with built in gyroscope/accelerometer with shoe auto-eject . xtr version will have auto engaging alignment magnets for cleats. Game changer..
 

kichibot

Member
Been going on flats for ~5 years. This is the first year I've tried clipless (joining the dark side). Started off with single release and I've been cow-tipped and fallen way more times in one ride than I have ever done in my biking career. The amount of cuts and bruises on my legs was ridiculous. Forget summer dresses. I look battered. Hated it. Give it some time I said...

Then I tried multi-release and my life's gotten better. It definitely has its pros - a lot less pedal smacks and if it does smack, it's not like an angry shark chomp to the shins. Can deliver more power on the climbs and it's fucking amazing going over roots and rocks. (Plus on the weird occasions when my bad knee likes to give out, I unclip and have my good leg do all the work. I fear the day that leg is substantially more brolic than the other lol)

I'd say I swing both ways (bi-pedalist?). I haven't switched to flats yet but mostly because too lazy to change back.

Relevant: First clipless fall. Had to be on concrete. Oh the memories... :oops:
6gEJ0R8.jpg
 

Norm

Mayor McCheese
Team MTBNJ Halter's
Like Heckler says, you'd be surprised how fast you unclip when the excrement hits the air conditioner. Just use them all the time and you'll never think about it. It just becomes natural, like picking your nose in public.

Fear of not being able to unclip is not something I've felt in a long long time.
 

ADoug

Active Member
Relevant: First clipless fall. Had to be on concrete. Oh the memories... :oops:

The general rule of thumb seems to be you fall when it is least, uhh...impressive? - either a bunch of people are watching or on a nice unforgiving surface, sometimes both.

We've all been there.
 

extremedave

Well-Known Member
Team MTBNJ Halter's
The general rule of thumb seems to be you fall when it is least, uhh...impressive? - either a bunch of people are watching or on a nice unforgiving surface, sometimes both.

We've all been there.

Year or so back errybody went to Allaire the first good spring day. Dude rolls back into the lot and stacks it spectacularly because he forgot to unclip. Stuck under the bike turtle style, and all that. Not at all embarrassing!
 
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