Review: The New Shimano AM901 Top Shelf Gravity Shoes Promise… and Deliver | Carbon Fahrrad Umwerfer Installationssatz

The twin sided pedals mean clipping in is easy, and the cleat is recessed into the shoe which allows for easy walking off the bike. Being made of metal and away from contact with the ground, the cleats can last for years.

Apart from the slight squeaking I experienced they performed well – comfortable and secure yet still allowing your joints some freedom thanks to the float.

Bournemouth University student becomes fourth fastest woman – and the youngest – to cycle round the world

Only problems I’ve had are with springs breaking – probably due to me not lubing the cleats enough. As for clipping in – my first couple were a nightmare, since then I’ve never had a problem with a fresh set and I weigh around 63kg

Tell us what the product is for and who it’s aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Really I’d only recommend them to riders who will find that learning curve worth the touch of extra speed off the lights or side of the road. To me it was.

The speed I can clip in now off the lights is wicked. Actually feels a bit show-offy it’s that smooth and fast. I also rub a little lube on the cleat spring every weekend, that makes it super smooth to clip in too now.

Then, on the way back home, her bus driver "had to stop the bus for a couple of minutes to take a restroom break at a Burger King in front of a stop."

The inevitable 30-something MAMIL transition saw him shift to skinny tyres and these days he lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.

I’ve found platform clip-in pedals ruin my knees. They can effectively remove the free rotation in the clip-in pedal because the sole is in contact with the platform. How good a grip the pedal has on the shoe depends on the combination. I learnt to avoid them many years ago… YMMV

This is why so many mistakes happen. "Clipless are designed to keep your foot engaged when pulling up even if you rotate your ankle a bit so as not to mistakenly unclip when sprinting, climbing a hill, or jumping a log," Compton explains. So how can you improve your release skills? "Make sure to push down on the pedal and rotate your ankle to unclip," Compton says. "If you pull up as you’re trying to unclip, the cleat won’t release and you’ll get stuck."

In case you’re wondering why they’re called clipless pedals, it’s because pedals used to have metal cages, called toe clips, and leather straps to hold the show in place. Racing shoes had cleats that were slotted to fit the cage of the pedal. To get out, you had to loosen the strap. Falling over at traffic lights behind a busload of schoolkids was not unknown.