So been clipped in all my life (crank Bros for last 15 years) but got in with the wrong crowd recently and now have a pair of 5.10 free riders and some spiky pedals sitting in my kitchen.

Other than fitting them to my bike, what tips to ensure the steeper trails drops etc work with my new found feet out flat out lifestyle?

Heavy feet, light hands.
Move your foot further forwards on the pedal, so that the ball of your foot is over the inner front pin on the pedal.
Legs bent, drop your heels.
Ride bike like it’s a big BMX!

Just practice, don’t start with the steepest gnarliest trails, practice putting your weight in your feet rather than your bum/saddle.

I tried flats for the first time in 20 years last weekend (Nukeproof plastic thingies and Vans).

The grip level was so high I noticed very little difference to spuds bar more foot roll – I put that down to my Vans.

By no means a definnative test but nothing to loose sleep over.

Just becareful wheeling your bike about as pins to the shins hurts like hell 😳 😆

The combination of bruise and bite of a shin burger is indeed an excellent learning aid.

Less dignified however is the shame of the calfburger as the pins take up the back of your leg when you *really* get it wrong!

The pins do look vicious and the grip ‘horizontally’ is basically locked in. I hopened that vertically I can bail easily over the back wheel if things go Pete tong

Don’t try and pull up on the climbs because you will just lift your foot off the pedal . Be aware that flat pedals are physically bigger than SPDs so ruts can be problematic and it’s just easier to hit things with the pedals until you get used to the extra width .

I’ve dabbled on and off for years but committed this last winter to going flat only. Took a bit (lot) of trying but finally just as comfy on flats as I was clipped in.
Ryan Leech’s course really helped and is currently free.

https://learn.ryanleech.com/p/the-flat-pedal-challenge

Invest in shin pads and build up slowly.

You’re probably about to find out that your footwork technique sucks, and you’re pulling up rather than scooping/pumping etc! Don’t hit anything too big straight away, as you’d rather put your foot through the front wheel on a 2 foot jump rather than a 20 foot one….. 😉

This is so amusing. I have only ever used flat pedals and find clips terrifying every time I try them. Even though I have tested myself many times and found that I can do all my best trails without needing to dab, the fact that clips, for the untrained, are harder to dab makes my bum squeak. It is a shame as I feel like my feet come off in fast rock gardens and the odd crummy landing, so I would like to get the clips feeling.

And here you are OP a proficent clips user wishing you could be like me?

5-10’s are really grippy so foot stays where it’s put. This works two ways, great for when you need to get a foot off/back on quickly but also you have to “reset” sometimes as there is no sliding foot to correct position. Just get out and have some fun / practice, it took me a few rides to get used to the switch but now for me it’s the only way

Basically there’s 2 possible outcomes. One is that it turns out you have good footwork anyway, and you can pretty much just get on with it- there’s no extra skill needed, if you’re riding well on SPDs you shouldn’t have much of a learning curve

The other is it turns out that your SPDs are a crutch for you, and you depend on them to stay attached to the bike. This is way harder because you’ll basically have to relearn some basic stuff and it can feel pretty undermining and frustrating. But at the end of the day you’ve found a weakness and fixed it so even if you go back to SPDs you can take that back with you

(or actually, there’s option C, which is that it turns out that they’re a crutch, and you just don’t care, and carry on as you are, and just use the hardware fix for the software problem. It’s not ideal, because there’s still things you miss but it gets the job done)

Heels down, give yourself at least 4 to 6 weeks to get used, Flats are what Mtb is all about, clips and long stems should stick to the road where they belong 😉

Flats are what Mtb is all about, clips and long stems should stick to the road where they belong

It is just that all the fastest DH and enduro guys use clips…

It is just that all the fastest DH and enduro guys use clips…

When your livelihood depends on fractions of a second, then you may make a different choice, does yours?.

Explain Sam hill then?

No bickering please gents!

MTBing, I hardly notice and difference when I put flats on – grippy shoes make yer feet stick well enough. On the road would be a different saucepan of eels though.

Honestly the main thing I can say is drop your heels. Oh and you’ll quickly learn what happens if you don’t as all yours socks graduate to a lovely red/pink colour…

When your livelihood depends on fractions of a second, then you may make a different choice, does yours?.

No, but I can fantasise. Don’t ruin my dream…

Explain Sam hill then?

He’s a very good rider? I just wonder why Aaron Gwin rides clipped in?
Anyway it is moot as I can’t do it and probably never will..

If flat pedals don’t hold Sam Hill back then they won’t hold you back.
That’s what I tell my self if I’m thinking about SPD’s.

So the main issue is foot placement. you don’t have to have your foot in one place. typically arch of foot in middle for down and whatever works for climbing. Your feet will move but you get used to it.

Need to work out how to pedal nicely up hill rather than just stamping.

But one or two rides and youll be fine.

There is a Park tools vid on Pinkbike today which goes over foot placement, maybe have a look.