First time on clipless pedals was eye opening!

Being a trials rider, the thought of being attached to my bike is terrifying...I'm so used to instantly being able to take my feet off as soon as things start to go wrong and I've never been interested in taking away that safety net...until now.
The last time I took my Bird hardtail off-road I noticed the lack of rear suspension gave my feet more work to do and also felt like my feet were more likely to be bounced off the pedals, I was curious as to whether clipless pedals would improve things.
This video is my first introduction to clipless pedals off-road so I didn't want to go anywhere too hardcore, the North Third loop in Stirling seemed like the perfect place, next time I might take it back to the boarders and send it down some steeper rougher stuff!
Thanks so much for watching!
Ali
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[@Ali_Clarkson]

Had a couple of technical issues in this video, the audio was a bit off at times and I had my chest GoPro in narrow mode so I scrapped its footage, hopefully you hadn’t noticed…you might now I’ve mentioned it haha

[@outlawbillionairez9780]

Clips remind me of the no foot down skills I learned as a kid in the 50's, and use everyday now. Folks get a kick out of seeing a 73 year old, stopped on a bike without putting a foot down!🚴

[@haroldochiquito]

I find very amusing when people decide to live comment about me balancing at the stop light 😂

[@kasperfriis462]

I relate to your struggle! I used to mostly do freeride stuff hitting jumps. rode flats all the time. But I started doing a lot of dh and enduro racing so started seriously learning clipless last year. got injured and had to pretty much start over. Now after spending pretty much all my time on clipless this year Im finally at a point where I feel confident switching between the two. Cliped in for racing and longer rides. flats for party time

[@clearbluelou]

Great video, as usual. Thanks for sharing it. I always recommend that people new to clipless turn the spring tension all the way to the lowest setting. This allows them to more easily unclip without needing the full rotation of the heel. Based on the sound of you clipping in and out, it seems like your spring tension was high but I'm just guessing really. Depending on the pedal, some also have float, which gives you some freedom to rotate without clipping out. This can help some when you want to roll your foot a little.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Thank you :) I just ran the pedals as they came, it’s quite possible they were too tight for me!

[@georgeforeman89]

I’ve found that it depends on the pedals. Shimano clipless are way too loose (in my opinion) all the way loose but way too tight all the way. There’s a happy medium in there somewhere- even for beginners.

[@ColinSmith2001]

@@georgeforeman89 There's Shimano "M" multi-release cleats too, then you can run the pedals tighter but still have a less controlled unclip movement that still gets your foot out.

[@A-lifeMTB]

It was brilliant meeting you a north third! It was great riding with you! That train was mega fast!

[@A-lifeMTB]

Epic video!

[@talldarkrandom3170]

What a beautiful area. Very reminiscent of west Yorkshire I can see why you're comfortable up there.

[@joppek77]

Always love these kind of videos! The trails look like a blast as well. 😀 My thinking has been that ppl who feel flats are just as good as clipless are probably on full-sus. I personally feel scared riding my hardtail if I'm _not_ clipped in. If you're bombing ahead on a trail that you're not intimately familiar with, there's always the risk that you'll come up on a rough section way too fast. You can cling on to your bars for dear life, but if you fail to gap or unweight the rear over the rough stuff, you'll be straight up _ejected_ from the bike unless you're clipped in. That is scary!

[@maxatrillionfatstacks]

Totally agree, getting your feet bounced around on flats from coming too hot into thw rough stuff on an HT os terrifying but with clips I can know exactly what my back end is doing and move it wherever i want

[@dorothyclarkson772]

I posted this on Al’s Patreon site so forgive me if you’ve already seen it but it might be worth considering for newbie clipped-in riders, or old folk like me. I only clip my right foot in and I really like the control this gives and the ease of pulling up the pedal to start riding from a stop. (I don’t have a cleat in the left shoe.) I have a left knee replacement and often couldn’t twist fast enough to de-cleat, or I forgot to do it in time. As a road cyclist it was pretty embarrassing to topple over at the traffic lights in the middle of town! One clip, problem solved.

[@NoBrakes23]

I rode clips for 6 months on MTB and another year on road. I quit because I could not find any cleated shoes that weren't excruciatingly painful after 15-20 miles. But the time on clips improved my pedal stroke even on flats. I now pedal in a more circular fashion, (years of BMX Freestyle and Singlespeeding had me "pedaling squares," prior to the clips.) I'll probably get around to trying them again at some point, but I do love the flats.

[@Emz_Jhaye]

Nice place to ride! 😎🚴 For me, flat pedals for life! 😅✌️

[@martinschwartz7342]

I like the feeling of being attached to the bike but clipless pedals are tricky to get out of if you are falling. Instead, I purchased Hustle Bike Labs Remtech magnetic pedals. To release from the magnetic pedals you just have to twist your foot in any direction or tilt your foot. If you lift your foot straight up that you stay attached and can lift your bike. You get most of the benefits of clipless and the safety of flat pedals.

[@DoubleNation]

I just started using clipless pedals a month ago after riding flats for years. I had a very hard time in the beginning and felt very unsecure and the riding was sketchy. Everything changed when I replaced my Shimano SH51 Cleats with the SH56 version with greater release angel and my 5ten Hellcat with Shimano AM9 shoes. Before it sometimes felt like ice skating on the pedal but no everything is as good as on flats but with the benefit of the tight connection and always the same foot position on the pedel.

[@adammoonface]

I switched to clips at the age of 39 after 25 years of flat pedal riding. Been on them for almost 2 years and I feel silly for not doing it sooner. Particularly good on my hardtail! I tried riding on flats recently after my son had borrowed my bike, and it just felt wrong now! P.S. Can't wait for Bird to supply you a Forge! Steel just hits different. Especially with a more compliant wheelset. Sooooo comfy. P.S.P.S. It you can find some Nukeproof cleats online, they have a ramped front edge on them and clip in far easier than the shimano ones. They also work fine with Shimano pedals.

[@TrailBikeMike]

Good job! I started on SPDs in 1991 and used to ride street trials. I went the other way - I had to relearn how to ride trials with flats, I took about 2 months to surpass where I was on SPDs, but just got much better more quickly. I still love SPDs for riding, but I’m happy on flats too.

[@garrettpace2701]

SPD / Clipless Pedals since they first came out and I have never even considered going without. 30+ years and I have no idea how you could ride without them? If I'm not connected to the bike it just feels wrong.

[@maxatrillionfatstacks]

Hpw did you make the attachment for the 360 cam to the pedal? That angle looks sick and I've been wanting an angle to film myself trying to long distance wheelie and it looks like the perfect angle for that. Once you get used to clips your feet come out when you need them to, I have been able to bail wheelies when I'm looping out or bail midair if I need to and I run mine with the tension cranked to maximum cause I like my feet locked in on a hard tail for tech riding and it lets me hop my back end around more accurately and consistently. It does make wheelies different not being able to move your feet and sometimes mine cramp from arching my feet inside my shoes to move them rather than moving on the pedal but my wheelie skills improved a ton from riding clipped in because I wasn't able to remove my foot from the pedal for side to side balance and it forced me to start to use my hips which allowed me to become a wheelie master. I do run flats on my DH bike mostly cause being clipped on big jumps makes it a little more intimidating to bail but its always hard to get used to my feet moving again. I do also like having the flats for the DH bike cause a lot of times I'm dropping straight into a gnarly section with it and i don't want to fiddle with getting clipped in which even after riding clips for like 10+ years still doesn't always go smoothly

[@Ali_Clarkson]

So I drilled and tapped a hole in the end of the pedal and then cut a small section of alloy plate and drilled and tapped a hole for a 1/4 tripod mount and then used a 1/4 to 1/4 adaptor to fit the 360 camera, I’ll post a picture on my insta 👍🏻

[@qualm43]

Flat pedals forever..... Even on my road bike! "Omg! But you'll lose a tenth of a mile per hour!" Lol.

[@boramutludogan3539]

It not about efficiency for mtb when you going gnarly trails it helps to keep your foot on pedals

[@YanDoroshenko]

​@@boramutludogan3539If you can't keep your feet on the pedals, you should learn proper riding technique before you get hurt.

[@Lee-fn6en]

@@YanDoroshenkoyou’ve never tried to pedal a hardtail

[@YanDoroshenko]

​@@Lee-fn6enOf course not. I've never tried pedalling any bike. I don't even exist.

[@boramutludogan3539]

@@YanDoroshenko Whatever tactic you have you can't do better than clipless

[@derekbaker8791]

Flats for full squish and DJ bikes, clips for my hardtail and skinnier tired contraptions works best for me…

[@Spongeblunt]

I'd recommend giving the Hope clipless system a go if you can, they give you more feedback before unclipping if you tend to move your feet about on the pedal. I found them much more natural to use than the SPDs

[@PainfullyAverageMTB]

Plenty of trail naps to be had when using clipless mate lol

[@Clive-z3u]

❤😂😂😂😂 I nearly spat my beer out and I dont drink 🎉🎉🎉 An anticlimax for you, hilarious for me😂

[@eloiii_14]

try crankbrothers mallet pedals, trust me there perfect in float, stability and ease of clipping in/out.

[@rents1977]

So Ali - how high can you jump clipped in? When you do the high jump at the shows with Clan/Drop and Roll you are about the 1m mark aren't you? Think you could gain a few centimetres?

[@Ali_Clarkson]

So my record is 125cm…I honestly think I would be considerably lower clipped in. With the right technique on flat pedals there’s zero disadvantage with not being attached to the bike and I think I’d be too nervous if I was

[@rents1977]

@Ali_Clarkson wow, I really undersold your jump height! I wasn't sure if you might be able to swing the bike a little flatter, but, it's still some kind of dark magic to me, no matter how many times I watch your how-to video 🤣

[@czelendzerii3985]

>clipless pedals >looks inside >clips

[@RC-fp1tl]

thanks for making me chuckle! I understood that

[@howardjones8629]

Looks like a bit of North Third, watching with interest as considering going back to clips for golfie enduro stuff

[@Rudi-de6xo]

Be careful, I'd been riding clipped, crashed once, forgot to unclip in time and twisted my knee and tore the meniscus, had to undergo surgery and a 4-month recovery + physiotherapy.

[@chrisfontaine6221]

Nice hard tail, my 2018 V10 is the same color frame/decals. I love it. My new Nomad Frame is basically the color of your decals w pastel pink decals, built she's 34 pds Ha only a few pounds lighter than the V10 lol

[@chrisfontaine6221]

I've been on Crankbros since the early 2000's, a little easier to get out of, and have a lil bit of heel "float" side to side

[@antdod1]

@Ali_Clarkson what spd cleat are u using 51 or 56 def go with 56 the 6 means 6 release positions makes life so much easier

[@Ali_Clarkson]

No idea haha, I’ll have to check!

[@antdod1]

@@Ali_Clarkson they're probably 51's mate the 1 stands for one position release so u turn ur heels in or out to release ...56 u can pull straight up sideways or pull back i use 56 and theyre so much easier

[@Thatoddonein]

I have been riding clipless for a while now and my only concern now is crashing and not being able to get my feet out when I am on the ground. I had a race recently where I fell probably 5 meters down a hill into a tree still clipped in XD.

[@budycelyn]

i bought a gravel bike in 2018 had never ridden drop bars and didn't really know how to ride them, and the same with the pedals, my first ever ride on a gravel bike with clip pedals was a mountain bike trail, scared the life out of me.

[@michaelsteffensimonsen5573]

Once you get more comfortable and more confident with the clipless, you can absolutly do your trial thing 😄 Once you get into a prober crash (going fast or slow) your feet will automatically unclip (spd at least)

[@markevans5596]

Not for me. Saw a guy smash his face many years ago because of a small crash going slow, just didn't get his foot off in time. I'm sure they're 'better' in many situations but after 27 years riding flats I don't think I'll be trying SPD's

[@komoonkh]

I am just doing it at 34 years now

[@markevans5596]

@komoonkh braver than me 👍

[@benlukkie]

Rode real toeclips 35yrs back and switched to flats when spd came out. Tried spd last year, crashed when my front washed out, dislocated my pinky and was out for 6 months. Back to flats immediately. 😅

[@Shopsmith10er]

​@@komoonkhMe too, immediately when Shimano 737 became available. Then a year later, swapped out to aftermarket titanium spindles (SRP or Sampson??). Always used the cleats offering the most degree of float. Never crashed due inability to release. These days it's dual flat / SPD.

[@komoonkh]

I think Crankbrothers Mallet E might be the answer. They feel like flats but it will hold your feet in the chatter

[@mitchellmtb7202]

Let’s get a clip less street trials bike video!!!!

[@ToddNZMTB]

Funnily enough there's a Baerskin jacket advert below 🧥🙄

[@Sunesha]

Very nice mudguard, what is it?

[@Sunesha]

also nice go at crazy mushroom trails, it even looked fast on camera

[@awesomeguy.cow1]

18:20 you just *had* to show up the lads' manuals!

[@tybaltlobenstein9426]

❤

[@acedotcom]

FUCK...i love muddy wet trails

[@aXionXero]

"if it weren't for those pesky kids" 🤣 I ride decently hard trails (as hard as it gets in southeast Michigan - in "freedomland" 😉) on my 29 plus... Unicycle. 😁 And clipless is the ONLY way to go. 😎

[@YanDoroshenko]

Do comp trials riders ride clips?

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Absolutely not

[@YanDoroshenko]

@@Ali_Clarkson Why not? Seems like a good idea. Or it's not allowed?

[@sapinva]

I think they are pointless unless two tenths of a percent in climbing efficiency is going to ruin your day. There is nothing you can do on them that you can't do on flats. I've been putting mtb flat pedals on my road bikes lately, because that is pretty much all I have where I can ride in sandals, and its almost as good as steel toe clips and straps for pedaling efficiency. But some people like them (and some rely on them). What ever makes you happy.

[@stephenlord599]

Nothing except climbing ? What about being able to pedal over roots ?

[@sapinva]

@@stephenlord599 Wheels are just as round with flats.

[@stephenlord599]

@@sapinva I’ll tell you what go and race an real enduro on a HT and then explain how you kept your feet on over the fast downhill pedal sections You can’t because the back of the bike is bouncing in all directions and when you lift a foot to pedal the bike moves under you and it won’t be in the same place It’s nothing to do with round wheels or pedal efficiency, it’s got everything to do with hardtail rear triangles bouncing all over on fast uneven ground when you need to pedal and the pedal be under your foot

[@sapinva]

@@stephenlord599 So why would you ride a hard tail in a downhill race? Anyway... I've never had a problem with my feet coming off because of rough trails. And if a foot ever does come off, the pins in my pedals have a proven 100% track record of saving me by attaching securely to my shin :)

[@stephenlord599]

"So why would you ride a hard tail in a downhill race? " Same reason you'd ride an aggressive HT at all. That's why they have HT categories. It doesn't need to be a race it's the same going out with mates riding FS Enduro bikes. Obviously not for everyone but it's fun. "Anyway... I've never had a problem with my feet coming off because of rough trails." I suspect either your rough trails are different to mine or you aren't pedalling to keep up with mates on a FS who are pedalling... or maybe both? It didn't really occur to me until I started riding the HT on gnar at speed.. and trying to pedal where I'd pedal on the FS.

[@tonkshred]

Vroooo

[@stevehall2305]

Clipless? what the F is on your peddle? Cleet on your shoe "clips" into what? FH

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Don’t shoot the messenger! 🫣

[@JK-dv3qe]

clipless > flats. we all know that

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I need more time until I can agree with you!

[@notpablo8369]

JK is the guy who uses cleat shoes on BMX freestyle😭

[@ciclibetinha]

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