First of all, I didn’t fall off the cliff or even off the bike, but it was still scary.
Yesterday I did my first proper hill climb near Okutama Lake in Japan, about 1150 m of elevation. Near the top, there was one corner I can’t stop thinking about.
I was already tired and couldn’t keep pedaling, so I decided to stop near the guardrail (not my smartest decision). As soon as I decided to stop, I started trying to unclip—but my shoes wouldn’t come out. I’m using SPD-SL cleats set fairly loose, and I normally don’t have any issues, so I think fatigue played a role.
I had already come to a full stop, but I was still clipped in. Luckily I managed to unclip just before falling, but it took much longer than it should have. If I had fallen, I probably would’ve gone over the guardrail since it was only about knee height, with a drop right behind it.
Has anyone else experienced not being able to unclip on a steep climb? Any advice would be appreciated.
by spykeh
14 Comments
That’s one of my favorite bike related fears, buy a lottery ticket you are in good luck mode.
Scary stuff. I recently had an incident where i was cornering a tight hairpin, still clipped in, and a pedestrian comes walking up the other way. I was in the middle of my turn and for some reason she decides to step right in front of me before getting our of the way and laughing as if it was a harmless faux pas. Somehow pedestrians always know exactly how to do the most dangerous things when they see a bike.
The worst almost accident I got in…was simply turning off the atlantic city boardwalk onto literally the only block off ramp without a ramp but stairs. Somehow I managed to clip out in time and not crash…but i still just barely got out in time
Mt Zefal “Christophe” Half Clips and Giro MTB shoes are my solution.
I was stopped on the side of the road taking a picture once. I started to tip over into the street right in front of an oncoming car. Thankfully my shoe didn’t clip in, otherwise I would have fallen with my head in the path of the car. I stopped riding clipless after that.
How was that road? Which way did you take from the city? Was that any good? I want to spend more time cycling up there but I hate getting to/from.
Yes, in my case I had stashed my sunglasses in my helmet vents, but not securely enough as they fell out. I went to stop in order to pick them up but was already going quite slowly and didn’t leave myself enough time to clip out so I keeled over, ended up with a skinned knee and a scratched shifter but no other damage.
Look at the bright side: when they chopper lift you out of the gorge, you don’t have to go back and get your bike!
Gotta get those cliffless pedals, pal.
Go find a post or wall somewhere out of the way and practice clipping in and out.
Then find a quiet place to ride and practice while riding (including while just moving and stopping starting).
Clip out *before* you intend to stop in most situations. Learn how you shoes grip the pedal (or don’t) when not clipped so you can deal with the unexpected.
Also, when you are coming to a stop, turn your front wheel very slightly (think barely perceptibly, but more will exaggerate the effect) AWAY from the side you are unclipping. This will cause the bike to tip to the side you are unclipping on.
The secret to clipping in is to anticipate. Never had a problem by clipping out early.
After fifty years I gave up on clips and moved to flat pedals. Should have done it decades ago.
A little chain lube on the pedals/cleats makes it significantly easier to clip in/out
Lucky you had clipless pedals and not toeclips.