Keep coming off my road bike!

[vickster]

Of course, but I would say that her having 4 clipless falls in a couple of months (not 18k miles) is a lot if not due to some other reason like ice or slimy leaves. I don't get the impression these happened on steep hills as you describe but simply not having got the hang of the bike and/or the pedals (yet). A broken wrist would certainly put me off using them! She needs to get the hang of the technique and get the muscle memory in place. Ride 100 might be on closed roads but it's 24000 odd riders, many of whom who will be on new bikes, new pedals, inexperienced or never having ridden around so many other cyclists (me included and I have commuted in central London, I would not do it clipless).

I'd say right now her using clipless pedals without having far more experience and confidence will make her a potential liability to herself and others especially in the crowded hilly bits like Richmond park and box and leith hills. As above, get used to the bike, get the miles in on skinny tyres, then worry about the pedals. Just my opinion

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Of course, but I would say that her having 4 clipless falls in a couple of months (not 18k miles) is a lot if not due to some other reason like ice or slimy leaves. I don't get the impression these happened on steep hills as you describe but simply not having got the hang of the bike and/or the pedals (yet). A broken wrist would certainly put me off using them! She needs to get the hang of the technique and get the muscle memory in place. Ride 100 might be on closed roads but it's 24000 odd riders, many of whom who will be on new bikes, new pedals, inexperienced or never having ridden around so many other cyclists (me included and I have commuted in central London, I would not do it clipless).

I'd say right now her using clipless pedals without having far more experience and confidence will make her a potential liability to herself and others especially in the crowded hilly bits like Richmond park and box and leith hills. As above, get used to the bike, get the miles in on skinny tyres, then worry about the pedals. Just my opinion

The clipless moments I had all apart from one in Dec where I slid on some wets leaves and then the wheel sunk into a little gully you sometimes get at the side of the roads, happened with in the first couple of months of using them, and yea I agree a fracture would be off putting.
I have never ridden in such large numbers, the largest would have been the W.N.B.R. in London in 2008, the York one only attracts about 120 riders, even that as you say is tricky, however the ride is over all sorts of roads cycle paths ect.... tight turns through gate posts not ideal for clip-ins and trust me some of the riding is very bad, however these rides are more a demonstration than any serious riding.

 

[mjr]

SPD are best for performance riding if you can work them under stress.

What's the hard evidence for that? Bonus if it outweighs the loss of performance from injuring oneself crashing by failing to unclip!

 

[Dogtrousers]

I've never had any issues with clipless, and I wonder if that's due to the years I spent riding with toeclips. Perhaps you could experiment with half toe clips? A kind of half way house?

 

[Doobiesis]

I appreciate everyone's input. I have fallen off 4 times due to not u clipping in time they were more hurt pride and a few bruises. A couple of rides after those falls I had really good rides, was getting the hang of it, looking ahead and unclipping in time.

Last time I went out 2weeks ago, I took off for my commute and noticed I had a flat tyre as I turned round to check I lost my balance and crashed, went over to the right where I nornally go left and have used my hand to stop my fall.

I have six months until the London 100 and believe I will be used to them by then - going back to a normal pedals until I get my confidence back.

 

[Nigelnaturist]

I appreciate everyone's input. I have fallen off 4 times due to not u clipping in time they were more hurt pride and a few bruises. A couple of rides after those falls I had really good rides, was getting the hang of it, looking ahead and unclipping in time.

Last time I went out 2weeks ago, I took off for my commute and noticed I had a flat tyre as I turned round to check I lost my balance and crashed, went over to the right where I nornally go left and have used my hand to stop my fall.

I have six months until the London 100 and believe I will be used to them by then - going back to a normal pedals until I get my confidence back.

Gatorskins would most likely have avoided this, my front has 10,000 miles on it without a puncture.

 

[Doobiesis]

That's great thanks I'll get some of them!

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Gatorskins would most likely have avoided this, my front has 10,000 miles on it without a puncture.

Having said that, both front and rear slip on a junction today, not sure if t was mud or an oil/diesel thing, pretty sure it wasn't mud, but a lot of farm machinery use it

 

[Nigelnaturist]

That's great thanks I'll get some of them!

The rear I fitted at the same time didn't fair so well with two pinch punctures from hitting stones pretty hard (one dented the rim of the wheel), having said that it did over 6,000 miles in total and the rear replacement 700x25c is currently on 3,500 without incident.

 

[Debade]

My wife uses Power Grips, mainly for our tours, and loves them. I liked them OK but decided to use the clip-ons. If your biking is for recreation (not income producing) find what is most comfortable. In my opinion, that goes for your cloths, bike etc. Here is a pic. They may not be available there but you can see what they are.
Power Grips Sport Pre-Assembled Strap/Pedal Kit

 

[david k]

i have been into cycling for little over a year now, I recently swapped my trusty hybrid for a super slick Specialized Dolce Sport road bike. I have had this for two months and have managed to come off it 5 times in that time.

It's knocked my confidence somewhat. My last crash was spectacular and I fractured my wrist and tore a tendon in my thumb. I'm too scared to go back out now, and the fact I'd rather do a 40 mile road route on my hybrid sort of tells you something.

I've just put my roadie in for a service and to fix the problems from my last accident and have told them to put the original pedals back on and take the SPD pedals off for a bit. 4/5 of my accidents were due to not clipping out in time. And I'm hoping to be a bit more confident to venture out and get used to the massive difference between a sturdy hybrid and a lightweight road bike.

Is this normal? I was so eager to get out on my road bike I didn't think for a minute I'd have so many problems with the transition. Has anyone else had these problems? If so, will it ever get better!

I've just got a place in the London 100 and obviously need to train using all my gear.

My spds are very slack so unclip easily

 

[axwj29]

Doobiesis, I'm in a similar boat to you.. I hadn't cycled at all for yeasr, couple of rides on hybrids and decided I wanted to get a bike of my own. I chose a cyclo cross and, as recommended by the LBS, opted for clipless peddles. I was fine at first, until the day I got things wrong going up quite a steep hill and lost momentum.. then my confidence went and I would get off and walk up a steep hill. My confidence has slowly come back, despite a few more 'moments' (latest one being stopping because a dog was about to leap at me and not unclipping in time). I'm loads better at remembering to unclip as I approach junctions etc. I do struggle to unclip going uphill, so probably need to see if they can be loosened a bit. I was in half a mind to try flats but think I'll persevere.

 

[Ian H]

My impression is that the problems are more about bike-handling skills and road skills. There is probably a group nearby that offers practical cycle training.

 

[mjr]

Yes, if you are a good bike-handler who can predict what's coming on the road more than some then you can mitigate the effect of sticky feet, but surely the most practical is not to stick your feet to the pedals?

 

[Nigelnaturist]

Yes, if you are a good bike-handler who can predict what's coming on the road more than some then you can mitigate the effect of sticky feet, but surely the most practical is not to stick your feet to the pedals?

If we all did this there would be no accidents, no need to stop as we would all time things right ect......