More on Clipless Pedals

Riders Speak!

Compiled by Lynn Kutner 1/21/99

A new Rider asked:
What's the big increase in performance between toe clips and those snap-on shoes/pedal things? I just don't see how it could make that big a difference ...?

Pedals Explained

Both clips and clipless help maintain a smooth pedaling circle. The perceived benefit is that you can "pull up" on the back half of the circle. Sports scientists have studied this question by attaching force plates onto pedals and measuring the upward and downward forces that a rider places while pedaling.

And it appears that riders can upstroke... but only at slow cadences. Turns out that at "normal" riding speeds (more than 80 rpm), the great majority of (elite) cyclists do not pull up, though many perceive they do. Which seems to question the benefit of either clips or clipless. Read about it in Edmund Burke's book, Science of Cycling.

Basically, by locking the shoe onto the pedal, there is a more efficient transfer of power from the leg to the crank. Not only do you get the benefit of the up-stroke as well as the down stroke, but your foot is generally better positioned and less energy is wasted by your foot straining against the cage of the toe clip. Good clipless pedals also allow the foot to float and twist slightly while maintaining contact with the pedal. This allows a smoother stroke and thus more power.

Generally, toe clips are better than no toe clips, toe clips with cycling shoes are better than toe clips and sneakers, and clipless pedals and cycling shoes are the best.

With neither clips nor clipless pedals, your foot will slip off the pedal from time to time, causing painful bumps on your shins and lost pedal strokes, and people avoid the slipping off problem by actually pushing down lightly on the up stroke and "fighting yourself".

Special shoes are not necessary to do the Ride, but you often see people with toe clips & cycling shoes. Cycling shoes have a very stiff sole that helps transfer more of your pedaling force into moving the bike forward and people often say that their feet are less tired (better support?). You can often buy cycling shoes at clearance sales at low cost. If you later decide to change to clipless pedals it's easy to add the cleats.

Thoughts on Types of Pedals

There are several different types of clipless pedals - including SPD, Look, Speedplay. One of the biggest differences is whether or not the cleat on the bottom of the shoe is recessed into the sole, which affects one's ability to walk while wearing cycling shoes. Again - there is no "best" pedal type and it comes down to personal preference.

"I used to have Looks, they worked fine but I found the cleats were very hard to walk in at the pit stops ... so last year, got some dual-entry/sided SPDs made for mountain bikes and put them on my road bike. Main differences I noticed:

  • The dual sided SPDs were extremely easy to get into/out of. Sure the mountain bike pedals look "heavy" on a road bike, but who cares if they make up for it with ease of entry?
  • The smaller size of the SPDs may lead to localized foot numbness. I've ridden 3 AIDS Rides now with the SPDs and foot numbness rarely happens to me. But I know others who have this problem and have had to switch back to pedals that have a larger platform. Perhaps a good, hard-soled riding shoe helps prevent this too."
  • "If you have Look pedals and cleats, try getting the cleat covers... they make it a lot easier to walk, and your cleats will last a lot longer... just don't forget to take them off before you get back on your bike, or you, too, will have to master removing them while riding (unless you're willing to stop again... )"

Personal Comments

In any case, it probably comes down to preference.

"Personally, I have a much harder time getting into clips than I do into clipless. Though when I first started riding clipless, I too had my share of "Artie Johnsons". For myself, I not only feel the upstroke at slow cadences, but clipless pedals allow me to feel a back stroke (foot moving from the front/3 o'clock to back/9 o'clock) position. I don't ever feel a backstroke with clips."

"With clips, it felt as though most of the pedaling was done with the front of my foot. Clipless was able to move it more to the center. Especially on the upstrokes (which I seem to use more as a way of giving my legs a change rather than the constant circular motion that I should)."

"While I cannot quantify the level of improvement between clipless pedals and toe clips, I can only confirm from personal experience that there is a definite improvement ... I can generally ride farther and faster with clipless pedals than with toe clips. Clipless pedals also have the advantage of being easier to get in and out of than toe clips."

"I started w/ neither, added clips and found my average speed immediately went up, switched to clipless and it went up again. Yes, some of the benefit was no doubt from the increases in amount of riding I was doing, but I'm convinced there was more ... so I started to pay closer attention to how I was riding and how it changed ... I find there are two benefits:

  • When I am really whipped, I can use a different set of muscles to pedal for a short period of time, giving the normal set a brief rest. This is a pretty marginal benefit though. ;-)
  • By moving to either clips or clipless pedals ... my feet stay put and I can at least not "fight myself" on my up strokes. I believe that this is what most perceive as the act of "pulling up" (actually just the act of not pushing down on the up stroke!) ... and that this is really where most of the benefits come from... you are no longer putting effort into fighting your other leg's down stroke, which means (a) your up stroke leg is no longer "working" as hard on that up stroke and (b) the effort from your down stroke leg is now going to the bike's forward movement rather than "fighting your up stroke leg"."

"To speak up for toe clips, I used toe clips all through last year's training and Ride, and had no problems. If you don't want to spend the money for clipless pedals, they are a very good (and cheap) alternative. This year I plan to buy clipless pedals, but only because I can now afford that add-on. Last year, my first year on the Ride, I chose to spend my money on other, much more important things -- good bike shorts, bike tops, spare tires, air pump, and more."

"If you're just starting out and haven't ridden much, you may want to start by focusing on learning your bike and shifting and handling skills ... and then add toe clips or clipless pedals later. As a training ride lead / sweep - I've seen people get frustrated by trying to master too many new skills at the same time and also seen people have much more fun while tackling one challenge at a time."

"Once you get the hang of clipless pedals (and that's an important premise!), they're safer than using toe clips with tightened straps. Why? You can disengage your foot much more quickly from clipless pedals than from toe clips with the straps tightened (which require that you reach down with your arm and loosen the straps). Also, if you should fall without disengaging manually, the clipless pedals will almost always "give" and disengage as you fall. They work a lot like ski bindings - the force of the fall makes the pedal give, rather than your leg. At least this has always been true of the "Look" style cleats I've used for years."

Safety Tips

Before you start riding with either new toe clips or clipless pedals - go to a safe place (empty parking lot, quiet street) to practice starting and stopping.

If you've never used clipless pedals or toe clips before - you can start with the pedal tension or straps really loose to practice getting your feet in and out. Keep pedals clean - it's harder to clip in /out through layers of mud.

Choose one foot that you will always disengage first for stopping. (Despite much debate it really doesn't matter which foot you choose.)

You need to decide to disconnect your foot before you decide to stop!

Practice getting your foot back on the pedal without looking. If you're looking at your foot / pedal -- you won't see cars and other road hazards. If you need to - you can always ride through an intersection with one foot resting on the pedal and then get connected correctly on the other side.

The first few times you use the new pedals, you might want to wear a set of pads (elbow / knee) normally used for roller blading. They will help you relax and protect your body until you learn to use those new pedals with confidence. Be careful, though -- wrist pads might interfere with your ability to shift and brake.

Maintain a good sense of humor - just about everybody forgets to take a foot out and falls over at least once ... in front of a large audience.

Final Thoughts

"All this having been said, clipless pedals and shoes are expensive and are not needed to do the Ride. I do not recommend them unless you plan on doing a fair amount of riding in addition to the ride. Spend your money first on making sure your bike is in the best possible condition, and then on good padded riding shorts, shirts and gloves."

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