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I’ve got the M324 pedals mentioned above on my pub bike. They are great for what they are, but you do have to watch it if you’re clipped in, as it’s very easy to catch the cage on the floor when cornering.

Nukeproof’s Horizon CS pedal is a solid and reliable clipless pedal providing more support than a lollipop cross-country pedal and is available in a range of fetching colours to complement your bike. It’s compatible with Shimano SPD cleats if you’re already familiar with, or using that system already, so switching is easy. If these are your first clipless pedals, they are easy to use and have a very shallow learning curve. Choosing these over a Shimano alternative won’t leave you wanting, they’re a good choice at a great price. 

With a footprint of 110mm x 105mm and a low profile, these pedals inspire confidence while barreling through the rockiest of trails.

It’s no great revelation that electronic shift systems are more expensive than mechanical equivalents but don’t forget that as well as the initial outlay you need to consider the cost of replacement parts.

Nobody in their right mind assumes that batteries last forever, so they would assume that the battery(ies) would drain during use and at some point they risk getting a flat battery on a ride. Wouldn’t this be one of the first things you looked into if contemplating getting electronic shifting? How long do batteries last, how do I tell what charge they have remaining, how far can I get if charge is running low and how long do they take to charge up? Oh, and what happens if I have a flat battery (is there a backup/ reserve?)

Shimano’s cheapest carbon-bodied pedals have an old-school steel spring for the retention plate, but are nevertheless reasonably light. The SPD-SL design provides tension adjustment so you can make it harder or easier to release, and like the Look Keo it has a large, broad contact patch with the cleat for stability.

Barney rediscovers the fact that riding bikes is totally ace, regardless of how techy the trails are. And how bad the weather is.

None of this is to say that I’m above putting on unsophisticated music in order to psyche myself up for a ride; in fact, I was listening to Carcass while wrangling myself into a pair of bib shorts as recently as two weeks ago. And while you may now not be able to unsee that horrendous image, at least I had the decency to do it in the privacy of my own home.

"I think many of us have seen those kids that were started on clipless pedals too young," said Dan Maier, QBP’s BMX product manager. "I don’t see it as much anymore but have seen more than a few younger racers fall at the track and still be completely stuck to their bikes. They were either not strong enough to unclip or their pedals were way too tight. Both are safety issues."

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Vaude Mid STX AM Like all Vaude products, these are environmentally friendly and fair-trade manufactured. Claimed weight 880g. €175.

They are quite wide though, and that’s particularly noticeable if you have narrower hips and run your feet closer to the crank arms. This leaves an exposed edge on the outside of each foot, which I’ve managed to catch (evident by the gouges in the photos) on the many ruts and rocks that line our rough and natural valley trails in Calderdale.