Ahh, my flat pedals, how wonderful they are. Simple, effective, no special skills required to operate. But.....when you think about a nice road bike these pedals NEVER come to mind. When I bought my Tarmac almost a year ago, it came with basic resin flat pedals (seen on the floor). This was for test rides only, but that was fine as it was all I knew about how to pedal a bike anyway. I was told that I would want to get pedals for the bike after the purchase. What???? I just rode it around the parking lot and I was pretty sure that it had pedals! Actually, I knew that they were talking about clipless pedals. I had heard about them, and understood the basics of them...enough to know that I should probably fear them.
I bought the bike and decided with the staff's help that I would get used to riding the bike, and then in a month or two come in for some "real" pedals. I could live with that because I am a procrastinator by default. The months went by, and I thought about getting pedals....but winter was upon us. The last thing I wanted to do was put on new pedals that I would have to learn how to use at a time when I might not be riding too much. I felt that the best decision was to hold off till spring (procrastination is a wonderful thing).
Well, I rode the bike regularly through the winter and when Spring came, I was able to ride even more. The thought of clipless pedals occurred to me yet again. But my speeds were getting faster, and my distances longer....I'm not really seeing the need to get clipless pedals right now. I could put it off a little longer...maybe in the summer.
In May, I hit 2900 miles on my flat pedals with no complaints at all, other than the right one was squeaking like a trapped mouse. It was time for new pedals....why not go with clipless? I've got to get new pedals anyway. Well, I decided that it was much cheaper to get some platform pedals (I'm kind of cheap too), and I wouldn't have to learn how to clip in and clip out of pedals. Done!! New flat pedals it was. The picture up above shows the new Eleven 81 pedals which I really liked. They were beefier than the previous ones and promised much longer service life. I was happy, and went with the motto, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And so, I was happy for about 1300 miles when the right pedal started to develop a click. It was toast!
A quick trip to Paul's confirmed that, and I was treated to a barrage of comments like: "I don't think I've ever seen any other Tarmacs in here with flat pedals", "You have to have put more miles on those flat pedals than anyone else has", and "you will be more powerful with clipless pedals." This is not to say that anyone was putting me down. It is a running joke that I'm all for, and enjoy the banter. I like being a little different than everyone else...but the fact of the matter remained. I was in a very small minority in my choice for flat pedals. That minority might actually only include me. There has to be something to that statistic, so I figured that I would have to make the jump to clipless pedals....or what my wife refers to as "clippy shoe things".
I had done the research....you know, since I was going to go clipless shortly after buying the bike a year ago. I'm a procrastinator, but I do plan for the eventualities where I can. My choice was going to be Speedplay...it seemed like the best choice as they are very strong pedals, and allow a large range of motion which is very important for my poor knees. That was the easy part, I also had to decide on shoes. Honestly, that was a very difficult part since I wear anything from a 14 to a 16 depending on shoe maker. I have really big feet, and you know what they say about guys with really big feet?
They wear really big shoes! Get your mind out of the gutter!!
I did lots of asking around and found a few different types of shoes that would work well for me. The only problem was I had never paid that much for a pair of shoes....ever! The bad part was I couldn't even walk in the shoes...they were specific in purpose....transfer power from your leg to the pedal, to the drive train of the bike. Their beauty was not in comfort (although they actually are), it was in efficiency...something that I was losing with every stroke wearing my running shoes on flat pedals. Thanks to one of Toni's coworkers, I was able to find a pair of Shimano shoes along with the Speedplay Cro-Moly Zero pedals that would surgically attach me to my bike for a reasonable price. Its kind of like paying the jailer to lock the door on you. The logic escapes me, but this is what the cool kids are all doing.
I should have been feeling like an official cyclist now, but I was really worried about what this was going to mean to my rides. Everyone is pretty much in agreeance on this. "You will fall, and you will do it at least once, but probably more." I had read articles in magazines that detailed how cyclists will come up to a stop sign, and be unable to unclip. When the bike comes to stop, they simply fall over like cane that's been let go. It is a low speed fall, so chances are you will live...unless there is a car passing you and they run over your head, but I digress. After getting up, that same article states that when you start out, you might miss clipping in, and the bike loses momentum. Again, you fall over because you won't fall in the direction of the loose leg....oh no, you will fall on the trapped side. This is a rather daunting thought since you will be in an intersection when this happens.
You know, come to think of it, clipless pedals is kind of like going to lunch with your best buddy who orders something strange on the menu. He takes the first bite and you can see the disgust on his face as he spits it out exclaiming...."That is horrible!! How can they expect anyone to eat that!" You are all prepared to take his word for it and join in on the hatred of said dish...but oh no.....he promptly adds "Here, taste it!!! Its terrible!" Uh.....I think I have all the information needed to make my decision without the practical experience. Yeah, that is just like clipless pedals. So why on earth did I decide to take a bite and taste it for myself? Honestly, I don't know, other than the fact that in this situation, I'm going to jump off the bridge cause everyone else is (don't tell mom, she warned me about that as a kid).
OK, I have all that I need, except for the cast and bandages, but I'm sure the hospital has those ready for me. Now comes the fun part....shoes, some assembly required. I'm used to lacing up shoes, but I've never had to put a total of 14 screws in a pair of shoes before. There was measuring, and lining up, and figuring out a lot of instructions before I had my shoes built. These same shoes that I couldn't walk in before....well, they became near impossible to walk in with the addition of a half inch of cleat attached under the ball of the foot. But again, they were not for walking, they were for pedaling.
The pedal installation went smoothly on the bike. Off with the flats, and on with the Speedplays. I have to admit, this is what a road bike should look like. It was instantly sleeker, and more stylish....and instantly more intimidating to me.
The time had come to put the shoes on and clip in. Just getting my leg across the bike was an experience. I just knew I was going to fall over since the shoes were like ice skates on the concrete floor. After I got my leg hoisted over the seat I went to clip in. Ahhhh, it all made sense to me now. I know why they are called "clipless" pedals now. There was no click, and no clipping in. No matter how much I tried, I could not get the cleat to attach to the pedal. I even over powered the brakes and started to spin the rear wheel with the force I was exerting. This can't be right...not at all. I politely let the pedals know how I felt about them. I spoke in a very calm voice, and said warm reassuring things....so it was an R Rated dialog, big deal!
I gave up and went inside. I was not a happy camper, but I refused to let the pedals win. I pulled everything apart and lined things up differently, to reduce some of the angles. I had some great telephone assistance from Zac Gavin (The Wrenchman) who walked me through some possible solutions. He also told me that they were going to need a great deal of pressure to clip in. So, after getting everything back together it was time to see if I could get it to work. Since I had had a shower, I didn't want to get hot and sweaty in the garage, so Toni let me bring the bike in the house. She said it was cleaner than I was so no big deal about it being on the carpet.
Somehow, I managed to get it right, and got both sides to clip in. It took some doing, but that was what I was told to expect. The shoes, cleats, and pedals now worked together. It was time to go for a ride, aka go for a fall. I kept thinking to myself that I have cycled for over 4000 miles without falling down. I've been pushed off the road a couple of times, but still managed to stay upright. The thought of falling over all alone at a stop sign was a little hard for me to accept, but I was told it was part of it. If I'm to be a cyclist, its part of dues. The plan was to leave out early the next morning to go for a ride. The amount of falls would determine when the ride was over, not the distance.
Morning rolled around, and as luck would have it....RAIN! It was a mixed blessing because I was happy not to ride. However, I knew that the next ride would eventually happen. The procrastinator in me was in full swing, but I decided to just go for it and get it over with. When the rain stopped and the roads began to show signs of drying I suited up and got the bike ready.
To really understand the humor here, you have to picture our driveway. It is quite steep...so steep in fact, I will walk the bike down to the road to keep from burning up the brakes. I saw no need to stray from this custom. I had the cleat protectors to keep them from getting damaged while walking so I put the shoes on and started to walk the bike down. It was awkward, but I was not having any problems with it. My speed started to increase, and I could feel my heels losing contact with the concrete, and there was very little grip on the balls of my feet. The bike was getting faster, and I was about to do a face plant right there in the driveway...not even half way to the street. By some miracle, I managed to slow the bike, and myself, regain my composure, and walk ever so cautiously down to the road. Now, I was able to take off the protectors and start to get on the bike. No easy task for me as of yet, but I got on. Granted, I looked like a wobbly toddler doing it. All the while one of my neighbors was watching the spectacle while on his morning walk. He made the comment "you look a little stiff this morning." Being the quick witted individual I am, I replied "I'm not stiff at all, its these new shoes, the heel is on the wrong end." Humor aside, it was time to put up or shut up, the pavement awaited.
Awkward only barely describes me getting out of the neighborhood. I was able to clip in and out of the pedals, but what had once been a graceful experience was replaced by a want for training wheels again. I quickly decided that I would never again give grief to a cyclist who did not stop for a stop sign. It is a lot safer to run them which does not require unclipping and then finding the pedal again. Of course, I was still yielding, and slowing down to the point of stopping just in case. The fact was, I didn't want to unclip at all. I was actually quite happy with the concept of just riding for the rest of my life without stopping...but that wasn't possible. I had to make several stops, and get rolling again just as many times.
What I learned was coming to stop was not that big of a deal at all. I could anticipate the stop, and could get unclipped with relative ease. The worst part was hearing the hard parts of the shoe grinding on the pavement. I kind of like my things to always look new, but that wasn't going to be a possibility. The hardest part for me was getting going again. With one foot clipped in, and the other on the ground the routine went like this. Push down on the active pedal, and look to the opposite side for the other pedal to come up. Then try and plant the shoe in the right position on the pedal and push down which continued my acceleration and usually resulted in a very pleasing "click" to let me know that I was now a prisoner once again of my bike.
This routine played out many times, sometimes smoothly, sometimes not so much. There were a couple of times I missed the pedal and my foot slid right off. This was easy enough to recover from unless I was climbing a hill. That was when things got dicey. When I missed the pedal, I lost momentum. When that happened, I could feel myself going over....on the clipped in side every time. Fortunately, I remember some great advice I had heard....if you miss the pedal, you can pull up with the other foot. I was able to do this and get the bike going again, staying upright, and giving myself another chance to play Whack-a-Mole with the empty pedal.
My route went as normal, and I ended up doing a base ride of 50 miles for my first time using clipless pedals. I don't know how...but I didn't fall a single time. I'm sure I got laughed at by motorists when I was fighting to capture the pedal with my cleat. It did look funny, even from my end. I had a few close calls, but I think I managed to avoid anything bad because I do have a lot of miles under my belt and I have learned a lot of bike handling tricks along the way. Every time I should have gone over, I was able to think quickly, evaluate the situation, and react in a proper manner. Does this mean that I will never fall? I hope so, but I seriously doubt that will be the case. I can say that I have 50 miles on clipless pedals and no falls so far, and for that I am proud.
I have learned some new things on this ride though. The first is that these pedals do allow you to use different muscles than flat pedals do. It has been a very long time since my legs have ached on a ride...even when I ride centuries. I found that my hamstrings were screaming at around the 30 mile mark. This makes sense because up until now, I used that muscle group very little on the bike. But with being a prisoner of my bike, I am now able to pull up on my pedals instead of just pushing down. The benefit is clear here....more power output once I get used to using everything in unison. I did notice higher speeds on some of my climbs which was very nice.
I learned that with clipless pedals it is more important than ever to anticipate what is going to happen. Being a cyclist will make you a defensive rider by nature, but being locked into your steed will change the importance of that like nothing else will. It goes without saying that if you see a stop sign, you plan the slowdown, and the unclipping. You think about which side you are going to lean over to so your foot can catch you. But, you also have to keep in mind that the bike might flop the other way and you need to be ready for that eventuality. You also have to judge the speed of vehicles more accurately than with flat pedals. You need to be prepared for the eventuality that you miss a pedal, and you are in the lane of travel. Give yourself more room before you jump out in traffic. The biggest thing I can say about anticipation is anticipate that other drivers will change your plans for you in mid stream.
An example happened at a difficult intersection in Walnut Cove. There was a stop sign where I made a right turn, to go over railroad tracks, and then come to a stop on a steep decline. Yeah, I forgot about this or I would have avoided it today. I negotiated the first turn with no problem. I didn't even clip in with the left foot since I had enough momentum to carry me over the tracks and get ready for a quick stop at the white line. However, a driver turning left, made a very shallow turn, and essentially turned into my lane, right where I had planned to stop. Just coming off of the tracks, I was not very stable, and had to grab my brakes. I was planning on leaning to the left, but the bike was already going to the right. I had to stop, so I was going over in that direction. I had considered that possibility prior to the turn, so I was able to unclip the right side and plant the foot where I needed it to stop the fall, and the collision. I considered myself lucky, and clipped in again....by the way, clipping in while stopped, pointing downhill, when shaken up is not very easy to do.
While I made it home unscathed, the shoes weren't quite a fortunate. You can see some of the carnage from what happens when you miss the pedal. I found that sometimes you have to just push with what you have in contact to get into traffic and fix the positioning later. I hate that I have scarred the shoe up like this, but I'm sure with time, there will be no new marks added. They did well, and I had no mechanical issues on the ride. All of my issues were operator error, and that is easy enough to work on. Am I happy that I've switched to clipless over flats? Not really. Did it improve my ride experience? Not really. Will I ride clipless on my next ride? Yes, I will. Can I see the possibility for benefits to my ride? Yes, I can.
There is a learning curve to everything in cycling. Even getting on a kids bike with training wheels, there are issues that have to be worked out. Every stage requires a new set of skills to be added. It was daunting learning to shift my integrated shifters when I first rode the Tarmac. Now its second nature. In time, I have very little doubt that I will see the reason that so many others have gone over to clipless pedals. And even if I don't realize the full potential of them, I am now one of the cool kids!
Just a quick update....4 rides later and over 200 miles in these pedals and no falls. I consider myself very fortunate or lucky.....just don't know which one.
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