Clips or flats?

[Natch]

Flats when it's muddy and snowy out (because clips get gunked up).

Clips most of the time, especially if I want to go as fast as possible.

 

[El Grifo]

Flats for Men !
Clips for Boys !
The Clips come with free stabilisers which you fit until you learn to ride

 

[RustyMTB]

Back on the weed, son?

 

[charleyc]

Try Old Bones Compression Shin Guards. I love them.

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Thanks for the tip! I just got a new pair of knee + shin pads (Ion K-Pact Select pads) that seem promising; if they don't work out, these are on my list.

 

[B-man]

I cant tell you how many times I've pedaled with one foot in the rough sections and dabbed with the other foot. I think clips are a HUGE benefit on ebikes.

 

[Amber Valley Guy]

Flats. Mud, rocky impossible climbs ( at least for me) and gates, always bloody gates, on the bridleways in this part of Derbyshire.

 

[Natch]

This is a Coke/Pepsi or a Sprite/7Up discussion. To each their own. I am definitely in the clip zone as it keeps the feet planted when riding the rough stuff (think tree roots everywhere...Vancouver Island).

Or, it's like the ski or snowboard question. I say, "why choose?" There's no law that says we have to pledge allegiance to one or the other.

 

[Plummet]

Well if Id known it was the same as gnar..I could have saved myself some major embarrassment

To clarify, jank can be gnarly but not all gnar is janky! Also not all jank is gnar!

 

[KrisL]

Always rode clips on my Hardtail so thought I’d try on my Levo.
Fell off twice once being clipped by a gate closing and the other time going uphill and my front wheel got stuck in a gully both very slow speeds so I’m still in two minds about having them on my emtb

 

[Plummet]

The clipless/flats debate will never be resolved as its personal preference.......

Here's some conditions i was riding in today where flats were the way and the light.

And yes, We rode back down there too.
We call this waterfall conditions.

 

[Bman]

Clips all day on all of my bikes including my DH bike. I still don't understand this idea of people developing "bad habits" with clips. Using you clips to move your bike around is not a bad habit. It allows me to have a level of control that just doesn't exist with flats. The only reason you see your "bad habits" is that with flats you can't do some of the things that you can on clips. This forces you to jump and move your bike a different way not a better or proper way. The same argument is used about FS bikes when compared to hardtails. Racers of all disciplines use clipless with very little outliers. It's not really an efficiency issue for me it's the additional security and control that gives me confidence and confidence=proper send!

YES! This all day long. Just like riding a HT makes you a better HT rider (screw that learning how to pick better lines garbage on a HT) and riding a FS makes you a better FS rider, riding flats teaches/forces you to be a better flats rider, not a "better" rider with "proper" technique. That's such BS. Riding clipless teaches you how to ride better with clipless pedals. "Proper" or "better" is dependent on the tool you're using. To each their own. Ride your damn bike on whatever pedals/suspension or lack thereof you have/prefer and enjoy it. The best riders in the world ride both, it's preference only.

 

[B-man]

I ride year around and clips work just fine. I hit my shoes on my pedal and clip right in no matter the conditions. Ive only not been able to clip in a handful of times in really bad conditions.

 

[ozzybmx]

Time Atac fan-bois. Been on Time Atac pedals for nearly 20yrs, even raised 2 boys who raced XC/Enduro/DH on them and you all know how quick those $30 sets of brass cleats wear out. In the heyday when the 3 of us raced, I was going through 6 sets a year. Now not so bad, down to 1 or maybe 2 for myself.

Aliexpress are now ripping off Time-Sram with stainless steel versions for $10 a set. Had 2 rides on them and they are identical in performance to the brass ones. Just make a louder click when you clip in.

Now, they probably make them from brass for a reason and I'm pretty sure its because the cleat will wear before the pedal, so I'll keep an eye on the cleat retaining spring over the next few months.

Back when my boys rode these would have been a mega cash saver as they smashed pedal bodies regularly, so the Ali-Atac cleats would have easily outlasted the pedal springs

 

[Pizzman]

Flats, and sharp

 

[Bontee]

I can return this statement by saying i dont understand how your not capable of riding off road on flats and you need to be clipped in to make it happen

Completely agree Paul,If you can;t ride offroad on flats then your technique needs some serious work.

 

[ozzybmx]

Completely agree Paul,If you can;t ride offroad on flats then your technique needs some serious work.

Ahhhh that old worm can.

Some choose to ride clips over flats, you could even argue that the clipped in riders are more confident all round riders as the flat pedal riders are noobs and need the ability to dab a foot

Top 10-20 World Cup riders in every MTB discipline are on clips, maybe 1 or 2 on flats on a certain track.

Its a choice for a lot, not an issue of technique. Consistent foot placement and arguably the ability to put down more power... and pull up with the upstroke foot. Then we have the shin stripes.
The ability to dab a foot on tech or bail on the bike is definitely an upside of flats but the platform size is also more prone to pedal strikes.

I rode flats first time I rode MTB back in the early 90's, then on BMX for years. When I got back into MTB in 2006-7, I bought the bike, Shimano DX shoes and pedals from day #1. Never looked back or thought about flats again.

 

[Pizzman]

Clipless go more better with spandex. You need that tap shoe sound when you walk around, in that sweet, curve hugging matching short/shirt combo.

On an EMTB clipless would be very exciting if you go fast on steep. I would be frightened.

In the end ride…
No matter how attached to your bike your are…. I mean how you are attached to your bike

 

[Zero cool]

Completely agree Paul,If you can;t ride offroad on flats then your technique needs some serious work.

My wife clips in on everything because she found that even with good pedals, good shoes and good technique she just kept getting her feet bounced off the pedals on really rough terrain. Switched to clips and it was night and day different.

It might well be because she’s much lighter than I am. Personally I prefer flats, but can switch between both with no problems (apart from the first run). I actually swapped solely to clips for a year and did lots of timing and testing and found on a 45 minute loop that I knew very well made up of climbing and descending there was about 10 seconds difference depending on weather.

But I have always been a foot up and drift rider on flats and rarely dab anyway.

So now I stick with flats because the shoes are more comfy