Advice re Clipless Pedals?

[cyberknight]

what about magnetic pedals ? there are a few about
eg
https://www.magped.com/?lang=en

 

[PaulSB]

@Saracenlad I've ridden clipless for 20+ years and wouldn't go back but I would advise against making the change.

I'm 10 years younger than you but very aware things take longer to heal these days. Initially you will fall off and I'd respectfully suggest at 77 the risk of breaking bones is too great to attempt the change. A break could mean what? Six months off the bike?

 

[MichaelW2]

@Saracenlad I've ridden clipless for 20+ years and wouldn't go back but I would advise against making the change.

I'm 10 years younger than you but very aware things take longer to heal these days. Initially you will fall off and I'd respectfully suggest at 77 the risk of breaking bones is too great to attempt the change. A break could mean what? Six months off the bike?

At 77 a clipless moment could be much worse. My dad fell over in ice and finished his cycling career. Risk vs reward is a personal calculation.

 

[PaulSB]

At 77 a clipless moment could be much worse. My dad fell over in ice and finished his cycling career. Risk vs reward is a personal calculation.

I agree entirely. We hear too often of older people falling at home and breaking a hip, leg etc. To go clipless at 77 is frankly asking for trouble.

Myself and my regular cycling buddies are 62, 65, 67 (me) and 71. We wouldn't consider riding when there was a danger of ice or risk of a fall.

 

[Mo1959]

Don’t listen to those that say you will fall off….some of us don’t. Famous last words!

Definitely recommend the multi-release cleats (SH56 if I remember correctly?) and set the pedals to their lowest tension to start and I find even a hard yank in a panic will free them.

 

[Alex321]

to be pernickety they are called single sided as one side is clipped with a flat on the other , double sided means it clips in both sides only raising it just in case the OP goes and buys the wrong sort due to confusion

What you have stated is what you might expect.

But it is not what you get in reality. The previous poster was quite correct. If they are described as "double sided" it means clips one side, flat the other.

I've never quite understood why they are described that way, they should be as you say, but they aren't.

 

[Rusty Nails]

At 74 I decided this year to try clipless, mainly because I thought they would look better on my modern bike. Practised first of all on a bike on a turbo trainer to get used to clipping in and out, then tried it on a road bike for a few weeks. No falls, although a couple of hairy moments.
Tbh I didn't really find them any better than the toe clips I have always used, although I am not really a performance oriented rider and have never had issues with feet slipping off toeclip pedals whether climbing or longer distances.
After a while I reverted to toeclips.

 

[PaulSB]

What you have stated is what you might expect.

But it is not what you get in reality. The previous poster was quite correct. If they are described as "double sided" it means clips one side, flat the other.

I've never quite understood why they are described that way, they should be as you say, but they aren't.

My experience is the opposite. I have been riding "double sided" SPDs for 20+ years and they are that. Double sided with the same fittings on both sides. I see this as one of the major advantages of riding SPDs on a road bike.

 

[Alex321]

My experience is the opposite. I have been riding "double sided" SPDs for 20+ years and they are that. Double sided with the same fittings on both sides. I see this as one of the major advantages of riding SPDs on a road bike.

It isn't what I am seeing advertised that way.

If I put "double sided clipless pedals" into Google, these are the first 4 results( the boardman ones being what I currently use) .

https://www.halfords.com/cycling/pe...O-fdCYr8ldSDbYBQel6XnnpvfgVYN-kxoCpR0QAvD_BwE
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/PEJOB...RCzlsTVlDarZdDKdtK_mTRoCmfYQAvD_BwE#PEJOBDMTB
https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Shimano-PD...-viIluYC0vnNUWpZqjFJthYSoq9ZKoBoCdk4QAvD_BwE#
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/100-d...h0sm8YASTvPm14zYZ3RoCeeQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Sharky]

My interpretation of "double sided", is that you can use either side for pedalling, as opposed to the old Lyotard platform pedals

or the modern look keo pedals.

Perhaps pedals with different fastenings on each side should be called "double sided/dual function"

 

[PaulSB]

It isn't what I am seeing advertised that way.

If I put "double sided clipless pedals" into Google, these are the first 4 results( the boardman ones being what I currently use) .

https://www.halfords.com/cycling/pe...O-fdCYr8ldSDbYBQel6XnnpvfgVYN-kxoCpR0QAvD_BwE
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/PEJOB...RCzlsTVlDarZdDKdtK_mTRoCmfYQAvD_BwE#PEJOBDMTB
https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Shimano-PD...-viIluYC0vnNUWpZqjFJthYSoq9ZKoBoCdk4QAvD_BwE#
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/100-d...h0sm8YASTvPm14zYZ3RoCeeQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

I don't disagree with the ads obviously but if I walk in to my LBS and ask for double-sided SPDs they will have the same fittings on each side. Shimano.

 

[cyberknight]

What you have stated is what you might expect.

But it is not what you get in reality. The previous poster was quite correct. If they are described as "double sided" it means clips one side, flat the other.

I've never quite understood why they are described that way, they should be as you say, but they aren't.

i think your confusing double sided and duel sided

 

[Alex321]

My interpretation of "double sided", is that you can use either side for pedalling, as opposed to the old Lyotard platform pedals
View attachment 624268

or the modern look keo pedals.

Perhaps pedals with different fastenings on each side should be called "double sided/dual function"

Agreed. They should.

And some do, or something else again - Shimano for instance call their M324 pedal a "Combination pedal".

I don't disagree with the ads obviously but if I walk in to my LBS and ask for double-sided SPDs they will have the same fittings on each side. Shimano.

It is very confusing. Another example of the English Language being too open to interpretation.

I fully agree BTW, I would have expected "double sided clipless pedals" to mean clips both sides (even that will doubtless be confusing to some people who don't know about old style toeclips ). But AIUI, clips both sides is the norm for SPD, so they don't bother calling them double sided normally.

 

[Alex321]

i think your confusing double sided and duel sided

I'm not confusing anything.

I was in fact quite confused by it myself when I first started looking for that type of pedal. I kept seeing "double sided" and was thinking "no, I want one side clips". It was only when I looked closer at what was coming back that I realised they were what I was after.

 

[cyberknight]

I'm not confusing anything.

I was in fact quite confused by it myself when I first started looking for that type of pedal. I kept seeing "double sided" and was thinking "no, I want one side clips". It was only when I looked closer at what was coming back that I realised they were what I was after.

you know what im not going to argue its not worth the hassle