Should I buy toe clips for my bike?

[Jesda]

I went to REI and looked around. The girl said the cheap $7 toe clips and straps probably werent worth the trouble because of all the accidents I could have. She said its difficult to remove my feet from them.



The problem is, stepping up from there requires me to buy $50 pedals and $100 shoes just so I can have quick release from my pedals. Seems like there's not much in between spending $7 and spending $150.

I want to be able to apply force to the bike in downward, forward, and upward motions so I can climb hills without getting out to walk.

Thoughts?

[Razi]

I bought things like these from my local bike shop:
http://bikeisland.com/cgi-bin/BKTK_STOR ... ProdID=592

Easy to remove my feet, I had no problems slipping my feet out during emergencies.

I wouldn't buy ones without a strap though.
Even with my single strap ones, sometimes I wish I had double straps since they bend a bit when I apply a lot of upward force.

[AZ89two4Tsx]

I want to be able to apply force to the bike in downward, forward, and upward motions so I can climb hills without getting out to walk.

Thoughts?

Work out your quads first?

[krash]

Unfortunatley, shes right. The clip in system is a lot more convenient because you can get in and out without much of a hassle. I dunno if its $143 more convenient though.

[Kompresshun]

I did a lot of mountain biking for about 3yrs, everyone I knew hated the clip on system, including myself. It's really hard to deal with on trails, especially if you need to get your feet on the ground quickly. I rode all 3 yrs with the same toe clips and straps you pictured, never had a single problem and I normally was on some really though terrain. My uncle had the clips and he had accidents here and there, when I never had a single one.

I mean you tell me, is it easier to slide your foot back to remove them (cheaper ones) or have to twist your foot inward and pull outward (expensive ones).

Get the cheap ones, the girl is just trying to sell you crap you don't need.

[Red coupe]

I had toe clips, I kept them fairly tight and would even reach down and pull my foot into them deeper... Never had anything close to resembling trouble with them, way easier to get out of then clipless shoes pedals... not that they are hard either, but in a panic I find the toe clips more obvious, and more natural to slip out of.

If you have only flat pedals, GET TOE CLIPS AND STRAPS. Just much nicer.


But f*** that. Get shoes and pedals. Toe clips/straps are about 40% of the way between flats and clipless. Much nicer then flats, but really no substitute.

Clipless shoes/pedals are pretty damn nice.
Just do it. Your feet on pedals is a pretty huge part of biking, and it is a fairly sizable shift in the feeling of interacting with the bike.
My pedals were $95, my shoes were $125 (marked down from $175), and choosing again I definitely would chose $200 less bike with shoes then a nicer bike w/regular pedals (assuming I am still getting a decent bike)

Hell you have said before that <$200 for random electronics is a non-issue petty indulgence.... get the shoes/pedals instead. Its good for you, and its fun.

Unfortunatley, shes right. The clip in system is a lot more convenient because you can get in and out without much of a hassle. I dunno if its $143 more convenient though.

Not really what its about though... Maybe I should have bought speed plays, but I can tell you right now that getting clipped into my look road pedals is actually a bit of a pain. If it was about convenience toe clips would win hands down... by a huge margin. Clipping in makes me actually work pretty hard to avoid coming to a stop, and even slows me down on take off as I fumble to get my foot locked in as its carbon sole slips off the edge of the pedal.

Now that is looks, their cleat is not terrible friendly and Jesda will likely be on SPD which doesn't require you to hook the toe of the cleat into the pedals loop, which is the real problem...

But the point is the benefit is not the ease of getting in and out... its just the most direct way to tie your foot to the spindle. when I pedal it doesn't really feel much like pedaling.... It basically just feels like my feet are constrained to circles and I move faster as I swing them It just adds a very direct feel to pedaling.

[PEZi]

I like them.... i use them to lift the bike with my feet for mad tyte jumps

i'd love real clips, but these are cheap and just as effective for what i want

[downedzephyr]

I have a set of All City clips on my fixed gear. they're great, very easy to get your foot in and out of assuming you have a halfway decent set of pedals.

throw on a set of All City double toe straps to go with it and you're all set!


P.S. the images are hyperlinks to a shop you can get them at

[snwbrdr435]

i have both. Clipped in on my road bike and straps for mountain biking.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I used strap style toe clips for years on my mountain bike(s). One of the buckles failed or something like that and I haven't replaced them, but I liked them when I had them. I NEVER ONCE had trouble removing my foot, and people who mention the risk of that happening in serious tones make me giggle. If you can't get your foot out of a toe clip you probably shouldn't be anywhere near a bike in the first place.

I ride on and off road, including rough terrain that requires use of feet to avoid falling. Never had trouble getting my feet to the ground in time.

Actually, the biggest problem I had with toe clips was getting my toes INTO them. I have huge feet (13s) and most strap-style clips aren't deep enough for me to get my feet into them far enough to be useful. I end up with the forward third of my foot on the pedal which shifts too much load to my lower leg and ankle.

[Urabus GodofTraction]

I had no idea there were this many choices. I thought you got cages or those little spring-locking in pedals.

[Ace2cool]

I like the ones that you posted, Jesda. The specialized shoes and whatnot seem a bit much IMO. I've never had a problem with the loops, and don't know of many people who have.

[Eikon]

screw that.. get a motor.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

I'd go with the $7 cheapies. You wont have any trouble getting in and out of them. Most people we sold the expensive clipless pedals to found them awkward for quite some time. The only real benefit of the expensive clipless pedals is pedaling efficiency. You "become one with the bike".

Put it this way, I worked at a bike shop (father owned it), got a massive discount on things, biked a LOT, and I still didn't use the expensive clipless pedals/shoes.