Not falling with clipless pedals
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Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby fras67 » Sat Oct 23, 2010 8:23 pm
Aged 42, when commuting to work, the notion of falling in traffic wouldnt' be fun and when you are 40 and solid things tend to break.
I asked around for hints not too fall on my daily commute with clip in pedals. Alas these tips worked:
*when your pedals are first fitted, I made the pedals a lot looser by undoing them about 3 notches.
* I got mountain bike pedals where you can clip in on one side and they are flat on the other side. This means in traffic you can have your left leg clipped out and you are ready to stop easily.
* I put a drop of oil on my cleats in the mornings so they would come out more easily.
In essence, if you follow these tips you should be ok. I would initially always clip out in traffic with your left leg and leave your right clipped in. Its very easy to stop in a hurry. I found out the hard way that if you dont do that, a car suddenly gets in your way and you panic and nearly fall.
After about 6 months of riding clip in pedals it becomes pretty much intuitive.
So the moral of the story is you don't have to fall if you get clip in pedals.
By the way for lazy people like me clip in pedals really do make a drastic difference to your daily commute.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby MattyK » Sat Oct 23, 2010 11:05 pm
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby elStado » Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:49 am
I'm light and young, but that doesn't mean crap if you stuff up at an intersection and get hit by a truck doing 70kmph.
Thanks for the tips. If I ever take the plunge into clipless I'll keep your advice in mind.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby gdt » Mon Oct 25, 2010 6:27 pm
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby il padrone » Mon Oct 25, 2010 9:54 pm
Everybody has a clip-stack at least once, but usually then not much more . But it won't happen like this - if you're stopping at the intersection the truck won't be doing 70.elStado wrote:I'm light and young, but that doesn't mean crap if you stuff up at an intersection and get hit by a truck doing 70kmph.
Most likely it will be a tumble, 'insect-on-back' style in front of peak period commuting motorists at the intersection. Or a roll on the grass as you pull up at the cafe in front of your riding mates. Or a stack on the garage floor while trying out your new pedals to check the release is OK (Don't laugh - this was one of mine and it hurt! ).
Virtually everyone I know, after trying out clipless has never gone back to regular pedals for longer rides.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Crittski » Mon Oct 25, 2010 10:11 pm
You would have to be pretty careless to fall off on the road with clipless, mind you I am sure that plenty reading this have been careless enough to fall off...
The advantages in the extra power are significant, and the way that it evens out your pedal stroke has to be felt to be believed. Not many people go back to non-clipless...
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Downhill » Mon Oct 25, 2010 11:35 pm
You only need to be careful of a clip stack at very low speeds. Make sure that you're in the right gear, especially when tackling a steep hill or negotiating obstacles (e.g. pedestrians). Watch out for those right-angle traffic barriers on the cycle ways too. They're easy enough to cycle through if you slow right down, but at low speeds you should always have at least one foot out of the clips.
Don't worry too much about not being able to clip in quickly when getting under way again either (that will come with practice). If you have one foot clipped in it's much easier to get the pedals into the "power" position before starting. You can still pedal well enough to pick up speed with only one foot clipped in if need be (and it's good training too)!
Unclip early as you're slowing down and you shouldn't have too many problems. Just before you come to a complete rest, try looking towards the "free" side (usually the kerb side). This will naturally tip you towards towards your free foot.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby grimbo » Tue Oct 26, 2010 9:57 am
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby PortableDave » Wed Oct 27, 2010 7:07 pm
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby othy » Wed Oct 27, 2010 7:31 pm
Perhaps you should tell everyone how long its been since your last puncture too.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Dastirum » Thu Oct 28, 2010 5:21 pm
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby fras67 » Thu Oct 28, 2010 7:23 pm
Been doing it for a year.
I was simply trying to offer some suggestions on how to get used to clipless pedals for commuting.
Basically they are fantastic.
Its much more comfortable as you are connected to the bicycle in a firm fashion and your speed is much better.
I'm simply encouraging people to use clipless and you don't have to fall
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby sagara0510 » Fri Oct 29, 2010 2:04 am
i've only just bought a road bike and opted for the clipless pedals right away under several recommendations. i've been practicing with them in a stationary position at home and then for a few laps up and down the driveway practicing clipping in and out. still need to look down to get the first foot in but trying to 'feel' my way into the second foot. i seem to have most trouble clipping the 2nd foot in without looking as sometimes the pedal is upside down >.<
i've already fallen once in the stationary position as leaned the wrong way and fell over >.<
its reassuring to know that most have been through it and that it will eventually become second nature. also thanks for the advice on loosening the pedals to make it easier to clip in and out
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby il padrone » Fri Oct 29, 2010 8:21 am
Try to avoid looking down and learn the correct placement to clip in.sagara0510 wrote:still need to look down to get the first foot in but trying to 'feel' my way into the second foot. i seem to have most trouble clipping the 2nd foot in without looking as sometimes the pedal is upside down >.<
If you have SPD-SL road pedals they tend to hang horizontally so the trick is to swipe your foot across them from behind to catch the lip on the front. If you're still having problems you could consider SPD or Time mtb pedals as they are double-sided - much easier to use. They are a totally different cleat (and maybe shoes) however.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Uncle Just » Fri Oct 29, 2010 9:22 am
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby sagara0510 » Fri Oct 29, 2010 7:12 pm
i'm trying to get into the habit of clipping out with the left foot when i apply brakes. will be taking the bike out for a first go around the neighbourhood tonight. will update on any stacks (if any
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby mikedufty » Fri Oct 29, 2010 8:15 pm
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby il padrone » Fri Oct 29, 2010 10:53 pm
My two worst injury falls have happened on MTB cleats - one at 25-30kmh and one at 0kmh.
"An unjustified and unethical imposition on a healthy activity."
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby sagara0510 » Fri Oct 29, 2010 11:08 pm
totally different experience from a mtb as you feel every single dip and bump in the road. was a bit worried about the clipless pedals at first but i took a route that didn't require too many stops. gota admit cycling with the clipless pedals felt great and smooth but had to make a conscious effort to remember to clip out while slowing at round abouts or when cars start reversing out of driveways as a precaution.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Downhill » Fri Nov 05, 2010 1:55 am
Remember to check the alignment of the cleats now and then also. Repeated unclipping can cause them to twist off-center if the screws aren't tightened firmly. This can make one side or the other more difficult to clip in. Normally it happens to foot that you unclip most frequently.sagara0510 wrote: i seem to have most trouble clipping the 2nd foot in without looking as sometimes the pedal is upside down.
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Postby Quinns Rocks Roadie » Fri Nov 05, 2010 3:22 am
I have since fitted clips and straps to them - Mtb shoes for road riding/commuting/shopping, and sandshoes/thongs for trips to the local beach cafe.
With the clips and straps there is NO WAY of accidentally pulling an SPD shoe out, in fact a foot will come out of a shoe before pulling a shoe out of a pedal.
I find this combo gives the best of both worlds.
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby sagara0510 » Tue Dec 07, 2010 4:30 pm
went for a group ride and at one set of lights i was too busy talking to another rider and i fell over!
what happened was as we were slowing for the red light, i unclipped the left foot, came to a complete stop, turned my head to the right to talk to another rider, lost balance and fell over to the right.... didn't get the right foot out in time. a bit embarrassing but the other riders were sympathetic and many said they've all been there before.
lesson learned i guess is to look to the side you unclip or unclip both feet!
a bit of scuff damage to the shifter and i tore a small gash into the side of the saddle as well as skinning one knee a bit but other than that, its all good.
looking back, i'd probably would have laughed at myself if i saw it on video or something
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Ares81 » Wed Dec 22, 2010 9:35 am
"Ok, couch on my left and bed on my right...let's clip the right foot...it works! Let's clip the left one as well...good!" at this point I slightly lost my balance and I gently tried to put the right foot on the ground...clipped...fell on the bed. I tried once again, still failed to unclip, fell on the couch and bounced on the ground, ouch xP
I'm still in the "unclip 30 seconds earlier that it's actually needed" phase xD
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby ALAN Roadie » Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:22 am
I have Wellgo pedals and cleats and dont usually have too many problems clipping out, even though sometimes they catch at the front but I am sure that is probably something I am doing. I do however have some issues clipping back in from lights and have almost stacked twice. This seems to be more issue when I am taking off up hill. Anyone got any suggestions to help out on this?
Cheers
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Re: Not falling with clipless pedals
Postby Downhill » Tue Jan 11, 2011 10:05 pm
ALAN Roadie wrote:Hi
I have Wellgo pedals and cleats and dont usually have too many problems clipping out, even though sometimes they catch at the front but I am sure that is probably something I am doing. I do however have some issues clipping back in from lights and have almost stacked twice. This seems to be more issue when I am taking off up hill. Anyone got any suggestions to help out on this?
Cheers
Kane
I'm not familiar with Wellgo cleats, but shifting my cleats back a little helped me. It left more room for the cleats to engage with the pedals. Making sure they were properly centered also helped.
I assume that you're already in the lowest gear before pulling up. If not, change down before stopping. It will make it easier to get rolling again, especially when facing uphill or if you're forced to pedal with only one foot clipped in. It's a lot easier to clip in once you're moving.
If you're already moving and you still can't clip in, just place the front of your ankle very lightly against the pedal. This helps to orientate it. You don't even need to look down (you can usually tell if it's upside down). After that, it's just a matter of bringing the foot up 'n' over.
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