Re: SPD newbie needs help

On Mon, 17 Apr 2006 19:47:36 +0000, Mark Thompson wrote:
Two schools of thought:

1) Tighten them up just enough that they won't come out when cycling. Then
when you stop and realise you're still clipped in, it's a lot easier to
wrench your foot off the pedal.

2) Tighten them up so that there's no way they'll ever come out cycling but
you can still unclip okay.

I suggest 1) and then moving up to 2) if you need to and you've got used to
unclipping.

An inadvertant but preventable school 1 (I knew that the cleats were worn,
and that I didn't have the tension anywhere near where it should be) lead
to my pitching over the handlebars of the fixie while mid-sprint. While
possibly classifiable as a "prat-fall", it did earn me a nice scar on my
chin. I would personally suggest moving towards 2 as soon as is humanly
possible. The occasional fall while stationary due to an inability to
unclip (Only happened to me once in 8+ years of riding clipless) is likely
to result in less injury than an inadvertant unclip at speed.

YMMV.

Jon
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Mars bar syndrome
    ... As far as I know, from reading other's experiences, there does seem to be at least one obligatory fall. ... The key is to remember to unclip a foot *before* the bike comes to a halt.... ... padding for the obligatory fall :-) For a short while I kept to quiet roads and could be seen cycling with a teenager cycling along behind me crying out "Unclip! ... Feeble attempt at humour aside, and back to straightforwardness, clipping in and out *quickly* became second nature and I haven't regretted the change to clipless pedals for a second. ...
    (uk.rec.cycling)
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