Going to give clipless another try.

[Banjo]

After a fairly disasterous first attempt involving some "moments" I decided they wewrent worth the bother but now that the bruises are healed Im going to try again.

This time I have got some Lidls shoes with trainer type soles and recessed cleats.With the road shoes last time I couldnt get confident ,if I couldnt clip in instantly I would be faffing around trying again at lights etc.with these the soles are grippy enough to ride ok not clipped in then clip in when I feel safe to .I cant believe how much easier it is clipping in and out now with these.

With the Shimano 530 clipless one side flat the other pedals I can unclip both and ride on the flat sides in heavy traffic or other dodgy situations.

Have done a couple of miles in them now and feel much more confident than in the road shoes plus I can walk like a normal human being in cafes etc

PS I am using the back pair of holes to attatch the SPD cleats.Feels good riding and clipping in and out,are there any pros and cons of which pair of holes you use or is it just personal preference?

 

[Mark_Robson]

I bought the Lidl shoes last year as a cheap introduction to going clipless. For the money they are a fantastic buy, my only gripe is that they are quite heavy. I put the cleats onto the rear holes as I wanted them as close to the ball of my foot as possible.
When I bought a road bike last autumn I bought a pair of these http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bontrager/rl-mtb-shoe-ec022381 and now I use the Lidl shoes for my MTB and the Bontrager shoes for my road bikes. But to be honest, for the price the Lidl shoes are certainly easier to walk in and are far more functional.

 

[HLaB]

PS I am using the back pair of holes to attatch the SPD cleats.Feels good riding and clipping in and out,are there any pros and cons of which pair of holes you use or is it just personal preference?

I thin ideally for greatest efficiency the cleat should be just under the ball of your foot, to do this you may need to use the front holes but its not necessary. There also another theory that placing the cleat slightly behind is more comfortable. So its down to personal preference as to what you feel is best, use the front or the rear holes to get what you feel best.

 

[Chrisc]

I reckon it's worth the effort, I love being able to pull up going uphill, big difference and I like the security of not slipping off pedals as well. As you say, if they don't go in straight away you can still pedal ok till you feel you have chance to try again but nowadays they always seem to drop right in. I put the 520's on the Bianchi so I have two sides to aim at! My Shimano shoes are the mtb type and I'm in the middle holes , just behind the ball of my foot.

 

[HJ]

Good luck

 

[catalan chris]

Position of Cleats

Don't make the mistake I made when I put the cleats too far back - when my feet were engaged in the pedals the toes of my shoes actually came into contact with the front wheel when it was turned. Fortunately I found this out only 30 yrds from the house and thus avoided a high speed cornering incident!

The other tip I'd offer (for what it's worth) is that when starting out with clipless choose shoes where the cleats are recessed. Not only does this make the shoes easier to walk in but they seemingly locate easier into the pedal mechanism. Also I preferred double sided pedals so you don't fall into the trap of looking down to orientate the pedal with your feet as you're trying to pull away. It's worth setting the release tension to the most relaxed so your feet come away from the pedal with a mere outward flick of the heel. When you're comfortable with the movement you can slightly increase the tension. Without getting too technical (and I guess this is only an issue if you go for the more road bike orientated pedals) remember that 'float' will for most people mitigate any strain on the knee.

Finally, persevere. Your confidence will grow and the benefits in efficiency are quite dramatic

 

[Willo]

Some new tyres to fix on the bike this weekend, then i'm gonna brave clipless again myself after some initial teething probs and an embrassing fall on the patio first time out. I've changed to multi-directional release cleats which seem a bit easier from a practice leaning against the wall. have got used to using them on the spin bike, but with the weather getting warmer, gonna give them a proper go now. Fingers crossed

 

[Tim Bennet.]

the toes of my shoes actually came into contact with the front wheel when it was turned. Fortunately I found this out only 30 yrds from the house and thus avoided a high speed cornering incident!

Even with the cleats are in the right position, there are lots of bikes where the toes could catch on the front wheel (toe overlap).

It seems like a really undesirable feature, but it only seems to be a problem in theory. It's certainly never a problem 'at high speed' as the wheel never turns that far. And even when slow speed manoeuvring, it rarely seems to give anyone a problem.

 

[catalan chris]

Good luck. I'm sure you'll take to it like a duck to water.

 

[psmiffy]

clipping in and out with spds just becomes second nature after a while - the odd clipless moment generally only happens at extremly slow speed when the front derailler overshifts when looking for an easier gear on a steep hill - easily solved after the first time by making sure the movement scewsare properly adjusted

clipping out is just a matter of having a good stopping technique - brakes on -out of saddle weight on fixed pedal -unclip -foot on ground - i rarely unclip before I have stopped moving forward

you do not need luck just a good technique

 

[Pinky2872]

I am about to take the plung and go clipless next week hopefully, thinking of getting the m520's and some mountain type shoes, cos I need to walk up hills !
I wasn't really worried about going clipless ignorance is bliss sometimes, now I'm worried having done the research, but heyho let's have ago.

 

[Banjo]

I find the MTB type shoes i have now much easier to clip in and out with.Cant understand why as it is the same cleats but it is.The walking bit is a bonus as well.I dont walk up many hills but its nice to be able to walk into a shop etc without skating round like bambi on ice getting black looks from the shopkeeper for scratching his nice floor :-)

Some of my clipless moments occured when I was understress to get clipped in quickly ie pulling away at lights etc with cars close behind (not a good time to end up on the tarmac with a bike on top of you ).

The bottom of mtb clipless shoes are grippy enough to allow you to pedal a short distance unclipped if you need to then clip in as soon as you can.With hard soled roadshoes your feet just slip off the pedal if your not cleated in then the bike grinds to a stop and inevitably falls on the side you did manage to clip in :-)

 

[davidg]

what Chrisc said about going up hills so true...esp steeper ones where cadence slows (at the speed I am able to go anyway!

 

[Chrisc]

what Chrisc said about going up hills so true...esp steeper ones where cadence slows (at the speed I am able to go anyway!

Cadence only slows? With me you sometimes need time lapse shots to see evidence of motion going uphill...

 

[mickle]

Can we call them 'clip-in' pedals please people?

Using front or rear cleat holes? It's about how long your toes are since the ball of your foot should always be directly over the pedal spindle: Long toes = rearmost cleat holes, short toes = foremost holes.