Why do “switching pedal” threads pop up so often on here?
Pedal fashion is an odd quirk of MTBing. When I first got into MTBs in the 80/90s clips were supposed to be the ‘pro’s/expert’s’ choice, I resisted (didn’t have the money for an extra pair of shoes just to ride a bike).
Then as the 90’s progressed, better flats (borrowed from BMX) became more fashionable on MTBs, and I merrily adopted them and happily rode all sorts of MTBs like that for a good long time…
About 25 odd years after first getting into MTBs I bought a road bike, and not wanting to seem like a plum bought some basic spds to use with it. That was about six or seven years ago and now all my bikes have clips, and I have no desire to go back to flats, there nothing wrong with them, I know I can ride flats, I am just happier clipped in now.
There is an awful lot of bolleux written about either option, the simple fact is that both work and it’s simply a personal choice, I have ridden both and neither is a particularly dark art to use, one relies more on friction the other on a simple mechanism. But people do like to validate their choices by rubbishing the alternative.
Ride whatever feels right OP, anyone with an “opinion” on pedals, is wrong by default…