Clipless Pedals

First, a brief history:

Back in the late 1800s the “safety” bicycle was first put on the market.  This is the first of the “modern” bicycles, with a diamond frame, pedals, and a chain drive.  Note it had pedals.

At first, pedals were just a platform on which the feet rested.  The rider pushed down on them to make the bike go.

At some early point in history, some genius figured out that if the ride could pull up as well as push down, more power and speed could be developed.  So, for racing and performance riding, the rider had an assistant tie his (he was almost always a male in those days) feet to the pedals.  This had some fairly obvious drawbacks.  The most obvious was that the assistant had to be around when the rider wanted to dismount.

Further brilliant engineering ensued.  New pedals were introduced with a strap.  The strap had a buckle.  This allowed the rider to tighten his/her own pedals, and to a limited degree, to get out of them without assistance.  Still, this was a somewhat clumsy arrangement.

That led to the introduction of the “Toe Clip.”  Originally, the toe clip was a spring steel cage that held the strap open.  The new arrangement greatly eased the act of getting into and out of the strap.  For a long long time, that was as good as it got.

Along about 1971, the Cinelli folks invented the first modern “clipless” pedal.  The Look company introduced the first commercially viable varient of this idea in 1984.  These pedals engaged a cleat on the sole of a riding shoe.  This was a very positive engagement, and allowed the rider to push down, pull back, pull up, and push forward.  In other words, to make power all the way around the pedal stroke.  Because these devices did their job without a “toe clip” they were called “clipless pedals.”

Just to make it a bit more confusing, riders and bicycle people all, almost universally refer to the act of engaging a clipless pedal as “clipping in” or “clipping out.”

Why should I want to use these things?

Clipless pedals were developed for racing, but we mere mortals can benefit greatly from their use.  Having the foot, firmly attached to the pedal increases efficiency.  More different muscle groups are used to achieve a smoother, more even application of power.  The benefit is immediate, and only gets better with training.  In addition, having the foot solidly connected to the bike increases the rider’s ability to control the bike.  The solid engagement of the cleat and pedal almost completely eliminate the chance of a foot slipping from the pedal during maneuvering.

The one thing that is most surprising to new users, clipless pedals are safer.  Of course, that statement presupposes that the user has taken the time to practice with them, and has built new habits.

The Downside:

Cost.  An entry level set of pedals will set you back anywhere from $60 to $85, and the shoes can be had for about that again.

 Clipless pedals require training.  The motions, both for engaging them, and for disengaging, are not habitual.  One has to learn the techniques, and then one must practice them.  The best plan is to practice and drill with them, repeatedly, for the first several months, and then constantly revisit that practice.  Such work is, at first, time consuming, but it is well worth the effort.  The goal is to be able to release from the pedals, with either foot, at any point in the crankstroke, at any time, without thinking about it.  That sounds daunting, but you can accomplish this.  Please consider…  Once upon a time tying your shoes was a major challenge.  Yes?  I’m willing to bet you haven’t thought about it in years.

Conclusion:  If you race, or wish to race, learning clipless pedals is a must.  If you are a recreational cyclist, and wish to ride longer, better, and more efficiently, this technology is a tremendous benefit.  The cost is not prohibitive.  There are risks in the initial learning curve, but the long-term gain is great.