Hi Tom. Like you, I have been an urban bike for many years, and have some thoughts on the questions you posted.
The purpose of the toe clip or cleat is to get the work the leg does when it when it goes from 6 o'clock to twelve o'clock out to the back wheel. The goal here is to put as much of your work as possible into the back wheel, and use your work as efficiently as possible. The other benefits are keeping the foot correctly centered on the pedal and holding them in place when your caddice gets high. Modern cleat systems are well designed enough that people no longer "Pull Out" when they don't want to. Altogether a simple and good thing.
You also talked about a panic stop, and this really has me worried. A few years ago a friend of mine did this, and SHATTERED the calf bone in her lower leg. It turns out that the bone is no where near strong enough to stop the weight and forward momentum of an adult, and I would hate to read that this had happened to someone ellis. If you have to do this, do it a low speeds, and keep you knee bent. But best not to do it at all.
When I ride to work I use tennis shoes and toe clips. It's only a few miles to work, so this works fine. I don't have to deal with snow, so perhaps you want to use clips in the good weather, and go without in the snow. There aren't that many set rules for snow ridding, so feel free to try new things. Here's wishing you safe cycling in the midwest winter.
Tom Harriman San Francisco, Ca
>From: "Tom Sanders" <tsan7759142@sbcglobal.net>
>To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
>Subject: [CR]Goring a sacred cow...are pedal foot movement restraint
>systems really necessary?
>Date: Sun, 7 Jan 2007 13:11:09 -0500
>
>I have been talking with a few other folks who have serious doubts that any
>but a racer actually pulls up on the rearward pedal. I have heard enough
>tales of a racer accidentally pulling out of a pedal to think that they
>probably do. However, does the casual rider really need toe clips or
>cleats
>or clipless pedals? Especially for city riding it seems that the benefit
>of
>having your feet free for instant or panic stops far outweighs any benefit.
>I know for a fact that after having had a Winter bike set up for the last
>couple years, I really appreciate my platform pedals in snowy and icy
>conditions. I can wear just about any kind of foot wear to keep my feet
>warm and dry and the possibility of the bike suddenly squirting out from
>under you on a patch of ice is always there.
>In normal summer riding, it seems that such common problems as 'Hot Spots"
>on one's feet can be readily eliminated by wearing comfortable shoes...one
>can walk into a museum, library or coffee shop with a clear conscience ( to
>say nothing of a normal gait) while wearing one's comfy New Balance shoes.
>Is there any quantification of energy saved or anything like that in riding
>with and without the various pedal restraint systems? Is there really any
>objective evidence that such pedals are better? I am thinking the only
>benefit I really get from them is a feeling of being a part of the bike
>when
>I ride (I'll readily admit that I really enjoy that feeling). Of course,
>for display or show, I like to have the bike's original type pedals on, but
>I sure am questioning if all the business of more specialized pedals have
>not taken a side track away from a more comfortable style of riding.
>Tom Sanders
>Lansing, Mi USA