Clipless Pedals - Tips

[markclkoy]

Mga sirs,

Just decided to use clipless pedals..
I already tried it on the road.. and sobrang ok talaga..

Medyo hesitant pa ko to use it on trails..

I would really appreciate if you guys can post tips..

kahit simple tips lang..
like, do you unclip it on technical single tracks?
or do you unclip it before approaching fast downhill sections?

Thanks mga chief.. ;D

[marcs]

my experience, it's usually better to stay clipped even if it gets nasty. it's tougher to control your bike especially if you don't have a cage on your clipless pedals.

just make sure
1.) it's set at the right tension for you. not necesarrily the lightest, but whatever's comfortable. sometimes if the tension is too light you unclip unecessarily
2.) lube it
3.) practice practice practice until it becomes second nature to clip/unclip
4.) check your cleats every now and then. sometimes they might get loose, which will make it tough to unclip (I had to take my shoes off onetime)
5.) oh, and accept the fact that you will take one or two falls while learning to use it

[markclkoy]

Sir thank you very much for the info..

I'll try to use it next week! I just hope i won't be too hesitant and stay clipped.. hehehe.. ;d

[whoopi]

you know, i've observed a clipped rider i ride with regularly, and he usually falls when he's not riding, i.e., he forgets to unclip when he stops. but he always rides clipped no matter the terrain, even in technical downhills, and i've never seen him fall then. so i guess you should ride clipped. good luck!

[Jan Atienza]

Urban Jungle

try also practicing clipped while the bike is almost at a standstill, it'll get you through those times when jeeps and pedestrians are in your way. try also watching roadies how they control the handlebars, how they can "pina" buses, and how they negotiate 2-3 lane jeeps side-by-side with passengers disembarking and stay clipped the whole time. saved my life a couple of times during my road days.

it's common knowledge that mtbikers have a tendency to be "malikot" with the handlebars (its the vastness and freedom of the trails, i think). it doesnt mean that mtbikers have no control, some just fall into a habit of riding with a minute zigzag motion especially the slope style bikes. learning how to control the bars lessens panic tendencies while being clipped (especially when that pesky jeepney driver suddenly makes a left when you are about to overtake him because it was taking him sooo long to move).

also, make a habit of unclipping always from one shoe, say the left (IMO) and leaning the bike in the same direction as the unclipped foot (automatic). seen a lot of riders fall because they unclipped from the left but the bike was leaning towards the clipped foot.

[Taba®]

whoopi said:

you know, i've observed a clipped rider i ride with regularly, and he usually falls when he's not riding, i.e., he forgets to unclip when he stops. but he always rides clipped no matter the terrain, even in technical downhills, and i've never seen him fall then. so i guess you should ride clipped. good luck!

Whoopi,

It happened to me several times and it's still happening to me until now. I fall off my bike not because of the terrain but because I was unable to unclip when I stop. My toes are already full of "peklats" because of this.

When I am on a rugged and very "technical" terrain, I immediately unclip on my left foot as I am used to go down a bike with my left foot first. I do this immediately when I feel I am uncertain about how I'll be able to handle it. Worst comes to worst, I always balance myself and anything wrong happens, I stop with my left foot first on the ground.

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[/b]multi-release cleats[/b]

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markclkoy said:

Sir thank you very much for the info..

I'll try to use it next week! I just hope i won't be too hesitant and stay clipped.. hehehe.. ;d

you definitely will fall a couple of times .. just practice around trails .. it aint that bad.ü it would probably be better if you start with a looser tension then tighten it as you get used to clipping in and out..

if it helps, first time i used clipless pedals i fell in less than 2 mins.ü
just keep in mind that you have to clip out before going off your bike. ü

[hyperion]

Always clip off when the bike is already slowing down to a halt or when you are in a tight situation where balancing the bike is difficult and always unclip both shoes. Remember, you are not exactly racing so safety is your priority and unwanted risks should be minimized. Being clipped in a tight situation is very dangerous unless you are already a very experienced biker who have done a lot of technical stuff while clipped.

You will probably forget unclipping the first few times though. In that case, don't panic. Keep your hands on the handle bar. Tuck your elbows and move your hands closer to the stem. Tuck your knees closer to the frame. Lean your upper body upwards and your lower body downwards as you begin to fall so your butt will break the fall together with the handle bar and the pedal which are very tough parts.

[crazyjeys]

i have my fair shares on falling due to forgetting to unclip! hehe! i unclip whenever i feel that the trail is unsafe for me. guess it's a case to case basis. i trust my instincts! it's really a big help using clipless pedals. just dont forget to unclip before going down!

[pitbiker]

Tips... anticipation and presence of mind. I recently started using the amazing clips way back febuary. And by the way sir if you are able to use clips in the urban setup then the more you would be more capable of using them in the trails

[markclkoy]

mga sirs thanks for all the tips!
thanks for sharing all your experience with clipless pedals..
appreciate it..

i'm currently using the multi release and i've set the pedals to
the weakest tension.. para easy bail out.. ;D

thanks again! ride safe!

[wcoastbo]

good advice from everyone. I especially like marcs advice and would like to emphasize his 3rd point.

muscle memory is the key. disengaging from your pedals should be instinctual and you shouldn't have to think about it. if you have to think about it, then it's already too late in an emergency situation. practice the exact motion it takes to quickly disengage and repeat it many times, hundreds of times if necessary to build the muscle memory needed for the motion to become automatic. practice with both feet. if you're proficient with only one side you might favor that side in an emergency situation. this rider seems to favor his left side (see video link at the bottom of page)... mountainbikebill.com/MilesCrash.htm

you don't think about which lever is front brake or rear brake, correct? you just brake when you want to slow down and apply the right amount of force on each lever. disengaging from the pedal should be just as instinctual.

as jcatienza mentioned, riding very slow until you stop or doing trackstands until you're forced to disengage helps a lot. of course, do this in the grass or soft ground.

you have to commit to clipless pedals. if you switch between flat and clipless, then you'll never establish the muscle memory to be 100% confident on technical terrain.

[warlock^_^]

hmm.... nice tips from everyone.

For my case, I installed M540 pedals with its plastic platforms when I built my bike, anticipating I might upgrade to clipless later. But using one side of my pedal (where the platform was installed) thought me not to lose my footing there even on technical sections of the trail which was essentially like having yourself clipped on.

After 3 months...decided to go clipless, bought my shoe(sess) from Ross, got my multi-directional release cleats from Paulina's, installed it..got rid of the platform. Adjust the tension.

I was apprehensive on the 1st day i tried it. Did lots of trails on that day, and regularly ride about 14km to the trail head. and surprisingly no semplang. My only complain is my shoes (LG), tend to get real tight on long rides... I'm one of those with wide feet

[Ben Dover]

you dont and cant ride "clipped" because its clipless hehe! ;D (joke!)

cheers to clipless pedals!

[anthrax76]

same advice given by our bros above. initially i was apprehensive using clipless also, but a lot of practice kept my apprehension away. it becomes automatic when you get used to clipping and unclipping.

i normally ride in the urban jungle, when my cleat plate broke and i was forced to remove the cleats on my shoes, i found it even more difficult to pedal. i'm more confident riding clipped even with a rushing jeep beside me.

as for when to unclip, experience will tell you....and if you master the trackstand, it will help you even more

[mrkamot]

go for the clipless you won't regret it

had my first trail in maarat yesterday using clipless and its a big help as you won't have to worry about your foot coming off the pedal when you're going thru taktak

only downside is that you have to keep your cleats clean on the trails because when it gets gooked up with mud it makes for a harder "clip-in" and "clip-out"

good luck!

[markclkoy]

sirs! thanks for all the inputs.. great tips po!

practice and presence of mind! ;d

[xero]

Greate tips! Really considering this as my next upgrades.

[arcireyes]

mga sirs: for someone who is transitioning from flatforms to clipless this thread is really invaluable.........hehehe after 3 "not-unclipping-on-time" semplangs, your tips are real eye-openers.

but as the posts had said: anticipation, practice and patience makes going clipless total-ly l enjoyable.

clipless is still the way to go!

[mountguitars]

crazyjeys said:

i have my fair shares on falling due to forgetting to unclip! hehe! i unclip whenever i feel that the trail is unsafe for me. guess it's a case to case basis. i trust my instincts! it's really a big help using clipless pedals. just dont forget to unclip before going down!

not necessarily a good suggestion. it might build confidence over time but unclipping going downhill (to some extent) actually defeats the purpose of using clipless pedals.

for one thing, everybody can ride bikes without clipless pedals right? clipless pedals help you improve on pedalling but not only that, it helps you to focus and control your bike over rough sections.

take for example our brothers who ride DH rigs. what's the point in wearing clipless pedals if they're gonna lose control becoz their feet is unclipped?

the only time you need to unclip is when you're getting off your bike. period. dont uncleat if you're not dipping your foot on the ground.

also, i would like to say that you need not anticipate crashing or trouble spots. it shouldnt be like that. you need to concentrate on other things like over coming obstacles and not thinking about unclipping or crashing. the key words here is "SECOND NATURE".

your feet should be trained as if using clipless pedals is like a eating a piece of pie. so ride your bike. uncleat as many times as possible as you can on a slow pace till you get the hang of it. start with a light tension and as you progress, slightly tighten the tension until you get to your desired tension.

hope this shows you a better picture.

[arcireyes]

and there's a 1-2 second window you have there between unclipping and dipping ;D

mountguitars said:

the only time you need to unclip is when you're getting off your bike. period. dont uncleat if you're not dipping your foot on the ground.

hope this shows you a better picture.

[<:jun®:>]

there's really no problem about unclipping, i'm sure you'll unclip after you fall... ;D

[Ben Dover]

markclcoy, to give you an idea what the pros can do with their shoes engaged...watch the 24hr race movie (chris etough/gordon)...logs, huge rocks, jumps etc..they ride them cleats engaged.

nice movie by the way...thanks you know who u are.

[enzo]

mountguitars said:

crazyjeys said:

i have my fair shares on falling due to forgetting to unclip! hehe! i unclip whenever i feel that the trail is unsafe for me. guess it's a case to case basis. i trust my instincts! it's really a big help using clipless pedals. just dont forget to unclip before going down!

not necessarily a good suggestion. it might build confidence over time but unclipping going downhill (to some extent) actually defeats the purpose of using clipless pedals.

for one thing, everybody can ride bikes without clipless pedals right? clipless pedals help you improve on pedalling but not only that, it helps you to focus and control your bike over rough sections.

take for example our brothers who ride DH rigs. what's the point in wearing clipless pedals if they're gonna lose control becoz their feet is unclipped?

the only time you need to unclip is when you're getting off your bike. period. dont uncleat if you're not dipping your foot on the ground.

also, i would like to say that you need not anticipate crashing or trouble spots. it shouldnt be like that. you need to concentrate on other things like over coming obstacles and not thinking about unclipping or crashing. the key words here is "SECOND NATURE".

your feet should be trained as if using clipless pedals is like a eating a piece of pie. so ride your bike. uncleat as many times as possible as you can on a slow pace till you get the hang of it. start with a light tension and as you progress, slightly tighten the tension until you get to your desired tension.

hope this shows you a better picture.

PICTURE PERFECT!!!

For the longest time, I have been telling newbies here in our place to concentrate on the trail, not in unclipping.
They are putting themselves in a more dangerous situation.

[markclkoy]

sir thanks for all the tips..

had my first fall with the cleats last sat.. when i forgot to unclip before stopping.. ahihihi..

but its worth it.. really a big help!!

and yes.. it auto unclipped after.. hahahahaha! ;D

[radskiee]

i just tried my clipless pedals today! and after falling for the first time, i finally got the hang of it.. and one usefull tip that my wife suggested: "why not unclip in advance before stopping?"
well that sure worked for me and going clipless does work wonders on your pedalling! still practice and more practice is the key!

[ed]

Practice doing your trackstands....

[bakalboy]

been using clipless pedals for almost 3 yrs. and IMO it helped a lot in my climbing and helped me better in my downhilling skills. i'm just a joe blow xc rider but it scares the hell out of me when i'm unclipped going down, even on technical sections. some of my "semplang" downhill happened when i accidentally unclip out of my pedals. and don't worry about not clipping out on a high speed spill, you will disengage automatically.

about stopping, when you're new to clipless pedals, say to yourself that "i have to unclip" before you stop. after 3 rides or so, it will be in your nature to disengage out of the pedals even when you do a panic stop. oh, and practice unclipping with both feet simultaneously, in my first year on these pedals, i favor my left leg and disengage with it first, problem is if you accidentally lean on the right, and there's a good chance of this happening on the trails, you will fall. so practice disengaging with both feet at the same time.

[kikoy]

if your using shimano buy the multi-release cleats so that it would be easier to unclip in emergency situations.