Clipless injury

[lesley_x]

Hope this is the correct forum...

I tried clipless for the first time last night. Absolutely loved it. The power I could get through my wheels was great.

However, when practising clipping in and out, I fell over. Fair enough. It's like a rite of passage for clipless, yeah? I ended up doing the splits the wrong way (the way you shouldn't supposed to be able to do it!) with my foot caught under the front wheel and my knee and hip completely overextended. I am very sore. It hurts to walk up stairs, get in and out the car etc.

Has anyone else done this or had a similar injury? How long did it take to heal? I'm desperate to get back out there but it's just too painful.

I'm wondering whether or not to give up on clipless now. My head (and fiance) say yes I should give up, my heart just wants to keep trying. One major issue was that the pedals kept facing the wrong way up so it was difficult to get my second foot clipped in as I had to flip it over. Any way to fix this?

Cheers!

 

[Banjo]

Hi i nearly gave up on clipless after several falls but was lucky to not do any real injury.

After buying some mountainbike spd shoes I got back into it much easier ,The rubber soles on the mtb shoes will allow you enough grip on the pedal to ride a short way not clipped in so if you dont succeed in clipping in first go you can ride away from the junction and try again without cars revving engines behind you etc.

Now I have got used to it I wear road shoes or mtb ones quite happily.

Hope your aches and pains dont last long and good luck .

 

[HLaB]

I'm wondering whether or not to give up on clipless now. My head (and fiance) say yes I should give up, my heart just wants to keep trying. One major issue was that the pedals kept facing the wrong way up so it was difficult to get my second foot clipped in as I had to flip it over. Any way to fix this?

Cheers!

Unlucky, I'd say keep at it though. I used to get more injuries with toe clips and normal pedals where the 2nd foot would slip off in the wet the crank would then do a 360 into my shin , with titanium pedals that certainly made a mess/hurt.

My single sided pedals are weighted so they always fall the same side up and I soon got used to bringing them up with my toes and clipping in one action. If I miss I just take that foot off the pedal and let it return to the same spot and repeat the toe flick/ clip in. I assume your pedals will be weighted too.

 

[ventoux50]

stick with it, it makes pedalling so much more efficient !

Agree with HLaB practice nudging the tip of the pedal forwards with your toe, the cleat should then line up with it as it moves horizontal . . . try practicing while stationary preferably supprting yourself against a solid object !!

It will come with practice - - before long you'll be a dab hand (foot ! sic)

Next comes the second stage of the initiation - arriving at a junction / red light, I guarantee that at some early stage of the process this will happen and you will completely forget you're clipped in - until its too late and you gracefully keel over and land in a heap on your side - still clipped in, and always in front of a line of traffic / and/ or pedestrians (pray it's not a bunch of school kids !)

stick at it !!

 

[guitarpete247]

I learned the knack of flipping the pedal over with clips and straps. They can be downright dangerous if you don't get them over the right way pretty sharpish.
I'm touching my head firmly and typing with one hand. Only one minor moment so far in 3 months of spuds. Enjoying the security of being attached firmly to the pedals. After reading lots of others clipless moments I'm going to start practicing track stands.

 

[heliphil]

keep going - you just need the confidence ( and some forethought about what going to happen)

 

[e-rider]

there is no need to fall off when trying out clipless pedals for the first time - just use common sense.

make sure you have plenty of space, don't cycle at very low speed while still clipped in and make sure the cleat is tightened properly.

be aware of what you are doing and after 60 minutes you should be competent enough to go for a normal cycle ride without any problems.

Just make sure you are not cycling slowly and still clipped in and remove one foot well before junctions etc. As you get better you can leave your feet in longer

 

[lesley_x]

Thanks very much everyone. I have decided not to give up but might wait until I use the pedals on the turbo trainer over winter. I loved them when I was using them, felt so natural. It really is just a matter of getting that muscle memory.

My biggest issue was trying to get the pedal to face the wrong way for long enough. They are proper road shoes and pedals so the bottom of the pedals are slippy and I find it difficult. They always face the wrong way and I wonder if it's something to do with the way I installed them?

I'm wondering whether or not to give up on clipless now. My head (and fiance) say yes I should give up, my heart just wants to keep trying. One major issue was that the pedals kept facing the wrong way up so it was difficult to get my second foot clipped in as I had to flip it over. Any way to fix this?

Cheers!

Unlucky, I'd say keep at it though. I used to get more injuries with toe clips and normal pedals where the 2nd foot would slip off in the wet the crank would then do a 360 into my shin , with titanium pedals that certainly made a mess/hurt.

My single sided pedals are weighted so they always fall the same side up and I soon got used to bringing them up with my toes and clipping in one action. If I miss I just take that foot off the pedal and let it return to the same spot and repeat the toe flick/ clip in. I assume your pedals will be weighted too.

 

[tiswas-steve]

Hope this is the correct forum...

I tried clipless for the first time last night. Absolutely loved it. The power I could get through my wheels was great.

However, when practising clipping in and out, I fell over. Fair enough. It's like a rite of passage for clipless, yeah? I ended up doing the splits the wrong way (the way you shouldn't supposed to be able to do it!) with my foot caught under the front wheel and my knee and hip completely overextended. I am very sore. It hurts to walk up stairs, get in and out the car etc.

Has anyone else done this or had a similar injury? How long did it take to heal? I'm desperate to get back out there but it's just too painful.

I'm wondering whether or not to give up on clipless now. My head (and fiance) say yes I should give up, my heart just wants to keep trying. One major issue was that the pedals kept facing the wrong way up so it was difficult to get my second foot clipped in as I had to flip it over. Any way to fix this?

Cheers!

I had only been commuting for about a month before I brought a pair of clipless shoes and pedals .......... biggggggggg mistake !! I wasnt really ready for the joys of a London commute and I had a couple of falling on my ass moments, so they went in the back of the wardrobe along with the rest of my spur of the moment buys.

Now I feel im ready to go back to clipless, feeling more confident this Friday I went back to my LBS and got the blighters put back on. Not only did they feel great but I felt clipping in and out came a lot easier owning to the fact that im a bit more streetwise now ( white van man, peds walking out as if i was the invisible man, lights that seem to kick into " im gonna get you on that tarmac if it kills me " mode )

So I would say stick with it when your injury feels better.

Why not try double sided pedals with MTB shoes ?................... worked for me !!

Get well soon ...

 

[HLaB]

My biggest issue was trying to get the pedal to face the wrong way for long enough. They are proper road shoes and pedals so the bottom of the pedals are slippy and I find it difficult. They always face the wrong way and I wonder if it's something to do with the way I installed them?

I wouldn't have thought you've installed them wrong, there nothing much to it and if they were wrong they always be falling of; they sound like they are weighted so that the one side comes up all the time (they are designed that way) , you'll soon get use to that. Try lowering the tension of the retention system that could make it easier to clip in and out.