Using Cages. Any tips for beginners?

[james_from_stoke]

After my first ride on my new cages (thanks graham!), I realised that they are a little more of a challenge than I thought.
I have a few questions, and i thought maybe a thread might be useful for other people as well if they're moving to cages from clipless (really shouldn't they be called strapless? they dispensed with the strap, not the clip...)
So - my first ride today was on my fixed gear commuter - bad idea. Getting my foot in was difficult, and getting it back out again was even worse - I'm not doing that again in a hurry. But I realised, I don't know which way around the straps are meant to run. Should the buckle mechanism come up from the pedal body, or dangle from the cage? I had been running them coming up from the pedal, but I've just tried them dangling from the cage and it feels much better, although they're not attached to the bike at the moment, so maybe its just because I can see what i'm doing...
Also, do leather straps offer any advantage over cheap seatbelt-material straps?
Any tips for getting out in a hurry? Of course I won't have such problems on a bike with a freewheel where I can get my fingers round the buckle, but it still seems somewhat risky...

I've bodged some shoe plates from old SPD-SL metal oblong thingies, so I can't just yank them out of the back, like i used to when I first started riding, on crappy plastic cages with trainers.

Thanks for any tips! I'll be taking them for a spin on my geared rourke tomorrow, so it will be nice to feel a little safer.
Happy riding

James

 

[Midlife]

Running good old fashioned toe clips / straps with shoe plates needs careful planning on stopping as you cannot get your foot out until you bend down and undo the strap. Sad to say i either use SPD's or toe clips with trainers nowadays.

Do you *really* need to be so authentic?

Yep, you have to follow the pedal round with your hand when riding fixed to deal with the toe straps lol

Buckle comes up from the pedal with the strap twisted to stop it pulling through.

Shaun

 

[james_from_stoke]

Cheers for that Shaun
This isn't for authenticity - i'm a cheapskate and have been doing quite a few casual rides recently, and I'd rather not wear out my rather nice shoes and pedals, so I thought cages would be perfect. My fixed gear in particular seems to be wreaking havoc on my pedals - it doesn't wear the cleats much, but its eating through the metal like crazy, so cages offer a nice value alternative while still looking half decent.

Cheers

 

[mattr]

TBH when i started riding the straps were left loose except for climbs, sprints and proper speed work. General riding you just left them loose
Loose enough that you didn't need to do anything to them to get the cleat unhooked and off the pedal.

Stuck with that for 3 or 4 years, until i went clipless.

 

[torqueless]

Re:

It is certainly getting to be late days for me to entertain any hope of mastering the duration track-stand. I never moved to clipless. I never had any cleats either. Other than that my experience pretty much echoes mattr's. You instinctively tighten the straps at the foot of an incline, and loosen them at the top. I'd never bother to contest a sprint on level ground anyway. In the 'normal' (i.e. insane) everyday situation, in which you have metal boxes speeding towards the next red light a foot from your right shoulder, at most a 'snug' right strap and a loose left. And yes, even without attempting a track-stand, I have over-balanced at the traffic lights! The beauty of clips/straps is that the system is intuitively micro-adjustable in terms of tightness. Personally I've never had trouble flipping the left pedal and getting the left foot back in from stationary straight after 'push-off'. That too becomes intuitive after a while. I'd guess the manoeuvre is effected roughly between 'five o-clock' and 'two o-clock' (viewed from non-drive side, with the 'hands'/cranks moving counter-clockwise.)

 

[Jonny69]

You're going to find it difficult with cleats and fixed gear. I'd say with today's traffic it's potentially going to get you in trouble too, because there's no way to get your feet out in a hurry. I'd recommend ditching the cleats and just ride in flat shoes, then you can yank your foot out the back if you need to.

Edit: strap hangs out the clip, so you pull up on the strap to tighten. I prefer leather straps (matron). Bend metal toeclips to fit the front of your shoe. You'll find some pedals are easier to flick over than others - quills aren't the easiest. I find it nice to use a pedal with a flat bottom when riding fixed because it gives you something stable to stand on when you push off, then flick the pedal over and slip your foot in on the second revolution. Just takes a bit of practice with fixed gear!

 

[mattr]

Buckle hangs out the clip, so you pull down on the strap to tighten.

??????

 

[Midlife]

Pull up to tighten and flick the top of the buckle with your thumb side downwards to loosen

Shaun

 

[mattr]

Exactly the opposite to what jonny69 posted.

Must be a nightmare to do on the road, pulling down to tighten.

 

[Jonny69]

Jet lagged and no images loading in the airport. Indeed, pull UP on the straps to tighten and the straps go the way round as in that pic ^ above. SO TIRED AND CONFUSED!