Flats or clips: What's your poison

I have a set of each and I often switch back and forth.  Over the past few years of having flats in the mix, I can say I've come to some conclusions of what makes them better and what doesn't.  Sure, sure... this discussion is old and played out and I've read a number of things about it, but none really mention some of the stuff I've noticed.  Some of it is obvious but I'll put it there anyway.  Some of it is subjective, but I'll mention it too.

Flats:

Flats really teach you how to ride a bike.  There's no cheating.  You can't pull or push, especially when in the air.  You can scoop the bike by pointing your toes and stay on by dropping your heels when descending, but clips let you bypass this and perhaps create some bad habits.

The big thing I never hear mention of is this:  Flats force you to keep your pedals weighted.  Why is that a good thing?
 Because if you don't, you are likely putting too much weight on the bars putting yourself in a possible OTB situation, especially in rough stuff.  Learning when and when not to pressure the front wheel becomes a lot more obvious with flats.

Another huge advantage is you have a huge platform that your foot rests on.  This give you a lot of control when cornering or pumping the bike.  The disadvantage to this is rather obvious - you have a wide pedal to catch on stuff.  And yes, you will if you are sloppy.

One thing I don't hear talked about too much is getting your foot on the pedal with flats.  It gives you the advantage of putting your foot in different locations, but that's as much a disadvantage.  Especially with sticky rubber shoes and sharp pins, when you put your foot down, it's down, and you have to lift off of the pedal to reposition.

There's the obvious disadvatage of being bounced off of flats or slipping a pedal.  Modern pedals and shoes almost never slip, but hit something wrong that catches you off guard and you can easily bounce right off.

Climbing efficiency.  There's some disadvantage here as well, but it's not as big as some might think.  With good pedaling technique you can do well with both.  The issue sometimes becomes pedal timing and strikes on technical climbs.

And lastly, there's the obvious advantage of being able to put a foot down easily when you want and disconnecting from the bike in a crash.

Clips:

I covered most of the stuff above because what's perhaps a disadvantage on clips is reversed on flats.  Quick summary:

Pros:
- Your foot always goes in the same spot
- Easier to get a smooth pedal stroke for climbing
- Usually smaller package which means more clearance
- Hard to get bounced off the bike in tech
- Can use the pedals to "cheat" and pull up in the air
- Usually lighter weight

Cons:
- Harder to put a foot out or down and disconnect from the bike in a crash
- Can be hard to get clipped back in
- Smaller platform can cause pressure points in the foot, harder to control the bike in corners
- Can teach bad technique for hopping and weighting the pedals
- Requires special shoes


There are also wider, DH pedals which have a large platform and a binding mechanism.  This gives the advantage of being clipped in without the pressure points on the feet and the ability to control the bike better.

Flats!!!
I'm a shitty, reckless rider, I can't imagine going OTB with clips..

but plenty of people swear by clips...totally personal

I don't use flats.  Have but those little carbide pegs are just the devil.  My shins were bloody more times than not after a ride.  
I like being able to pull with the clip ins as well, they do become problematic when you are going up a techy steep section and peddle until you cant peddle any longer.  

Flats for me

I just know I'd tomahawk into a tree if I was locked it. I like the idea of being able to jump.

Flats. For me it's more about the comfort.

JasonWx wrote

Flats!!!
I'm a shitty, reckless rider, I can't imagine going OTB with clips..

Haha - yeah, I could see getting off the bike could be a plus for that style.  I try to be smooth and calculated, and when I get reckless I usually pull the reigns.

I don't go OTB much, and usually it's at slow speeds but with flats I just jump over the bars and can land on my feet.

tjf1967 wrote

I don't use flats.  Have but those little carbide pegs are just the devil.  My shins were bloody more times than not after a ride.  
I like being able to pull with the clip ins as well, they do become problematic when you are going up a techy steep section and peddle until you cant peddle any longer.

I've not had much issue with the pins.  A few times I've been bounced off they got me, but nothing too serious.  No worse that rock rash.  I think the sharper they are and the more gummy the shoes, the less likely this will happen.

campgottagopee wrote

Flats for me

I just know I'd tomahawk into a tree if I was locked it. I like the idea of being able to jump.

Hahaha!

raisingarizona wrote

Flats. For me it's more about the comfort.

Comfort of the foot or from getting away from the bike.

My feet definitely hurt with clips on long descents when I'm not pedaling.

Do you use a multi directional release?

JasonWx wrote

Do you use a multi directional release?

No, just straight up Shimano SPDs.

Maybe you read wrong, but when I have went OTB with these, the bike came with.  Flats I just jump off.

The flats I use are Spike Spanks.

yikes

use Raceface Chesters

100% clips for me.  Most of my riding is XC oriented.  I can't remember the last time I was on a bike without my feet attached to pedals.  My stroke is pretty efficient.  I'm not sure how my endurance would be effected without any upstroke assistance.

My wife has both.  She recently developed a passion for the park.  It was only a matter of time before she decided to free her feet.  Until recently, I was a skeptic.    I have been lovingly giving her shit for quite some time as I really don't enjoy park oriented riding.  That said, I now totally see the logic behind foot freedom while decending.  

We were out yesterday, and she chose to go with the flats.  We rode a familiar single-track loop with a couple medium sized non-technical climbs, coupled with moderately technical, well designed descents.  She struggled on the climbs (4k total over 12 miles) but smoked my ass on the descents.  For her, the advantages are quite evident.  The foot freedom has made her posture and position on the bike much more fluid.  Almost like a skater that positions their foot on the deck slightly different depending on the targeted feature and trick, I noticed she was able keep her upper body loose while making lower body adjustments effortlessly on the fly.  The progression is really cool to watch.  We've been riding together for about 10 years.  Until this year, on descents, I was the one waiting for her... now, I lead on the ascents, and take a backseat on the descents.

Cunningstunts wrote

raisingarizona wrote

Flats. For me it's more about the comfort.

Comfort of the foot or from getting away from the bike.

My feet definitely hurt with clips on long descents when I'm not pedaling.

I used spd's up until 02 or 03. I was an XC racer the first summer I lived in Jackson in 1998 and I've been mtb since 88 or so.

They didn't have great float and my knees would feel really messed up after a big ride. the shoes I always had felt more like a race fit ski boot or a pro soccer cleat. After years of skiing in race fit boots and being all about performance my feet are really unhappy with me. I like letting them breathe now and I love being in a shoe that feels more like a burly skate shoe than a pedal iron maiden. I also like it for getting away from the bike, I predominantly rode DH from 03 to 09 and had plenty of crashes. Those will wreck ya so I didn't take any chances.  Another thing I like about my 5.10's I found was while riding around 2013 or so I got kind of bored with just mountain biking and I started mixing rides with 3rd and 4th class scrambles in Sedona mid ride. 5.10's are really sweet for that.

If you ever want to try clipping in again, look at the DH shoes from 5.10.  I have a pair of Hellcats and they basically have the same last as a skate shoe - my flat shoe is the freerider which is a super soft skate shoe.  They have a stiffer sole to support your foot with the small pedal platform although I expect they'd do better with a real DH pedal.  The rubber is much stiffer than a flat pedal though, so they aren't really interchangeable or good for rock climbing.

I'm no expert on this, but if you had pain you probably need to adjust the cleat position.  I've tried the Crank Bros and Shimano pedals and Shimano has the perfect feel and amount of float for me.  The Crank Bros I feel like I'm not even clipped in.  YMMV.

Clips got me three times last night.  

Nope. No need. All I care about is comfort. My middle aged ski bum toes don't care about winning races. :D