Having rode only with spd's [and having bad crash] I have spent past 3 months riding only with flat pedals. Went back to the spd's this week and it felt all wrong. In fact I feel faster on the flats. Anyone else experience this?

Complete opposite for me.. Allways ridden SPDs for the last 15 years.. got told flats where were it's at..

Couldn't get on with the fact my feet went everywhere even with decent flats and 5 10s..

Back on spds and feel far better for it..

I have a similar dilema .i rode spd's for years,but had a really bad crash,neck and nerve damage
when i was able to ride again i went to flatties.
Problem is is cant jump for shit without being clipped in,and i miss not being able to jump out of danger if needed
I keep looking at shoes and keep meaning to buy some.But the memory of the smash keeps coming back.

I find the key is to mix and match it up. Use both regularly, and you will reap the benefits of both.

I have Crank Bros Candy's on one bike, and Easton Flatboys on the other. Being clipped in helps you to learn a better pedalling technique, and to spin instead of just stomp on the pedals. Obviously it's more efficient too. Using flatties means you don't begin to rely on being able to pull up on the bike to get it airborne, and that you develop better bike handling skills.

I find that having 2 bikes, one with flatties and one with clipless really helps. I never swap the pedals over too, and that's on purpose. Cos that way I force myself to swap between types of pedal dependant on which bike I want to use, which stops the reliance on being on one type of pedal to some extent I find…

Still doesn't make me any good on a bike mind! 😉

spd for proper riding
flats for fooking around/going to the shops
works for me!

Interesting. I've been riding clipless pedals off road since before spd's were invented (I used road pedals as they came with the road bike I bought at that time). I've recently realised that it's the jumping type stuff that's holding my riding back so I got a set of Shimano MX30 pedals and a pair of 5:10 Impact lows. So far, pretty awful! Doesn't feel too different on the flats and smooth gentle climbs but technical climbing has become a 'mare as has any decent where my bike is likely to leave the ground! I'll stick with it a while longer as I'm sure there are advantages to learning, but I'm not having fun with it yet!

By the way, does the colective think it's better to have the flats on the 5" HT or the 6" bouncy toy?

Trying flatties (MX-30s here too) again at the moment (but only been out once so far).

Differences are:

1) I miss the feeling of the foot being anchored, in the right place, on the pedal. Getting heel strike on the stays…

2) Getting foot buzz as 5.10 aren't as stiff soled as my spd shimanos…

3) I like the easy demount…

Will see how I get on this morning, see if they are staying.

Okay, starting to get into the swing of things with these. Downhill today didn't seem to make any difference but technical climbs are still a 'mare. How long before I can get my foot in the right place? Seems to take me a minute to find the sweet spot each time.

use spd on the hardtail and flats on my 8" big drop/downhill bike. It just feels comfortable that way, and I like the fact that I have more control of the hardtail when I'm clipped in instead of losing my feet every time I hit the really rough stuff.
Climbing with flats isn't really an issue with me, I just sit and spin the lowest gear I have and when I run out of steam I get off and push. Techical climbs with 8" of travel are a no no at any time 😆