ThermionicScott 

We learned pretty quickly when kids that overfilling the balloons meant they were harder to handle and much more prone to popping before they could be thrown.

Ed.

You guys actually THROW water balloons...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvYNjtwJScs

davester

Hallelujah! I for one am really happy that this thread came along. At long last we have the definitive answer to the age old question of clipless, toe clips and straps or platforms.

Velognome 

Never tried riding in platforms, walking was hard enough. Drove a manual shift Subaru in ski boots once.

Fahrenheit531 

Better to underfill them. Then they bounce off without exploding and you can relentlessly pummel your enemy with a single projectile.

squirtdad

like this ??

himespau 

Gotta get the goldfish ones.

crank_addict

Mr. Rocky Gravol vs. Mr. Chip Seal

desconhecido 

Looks like a good recipe, not too different from what we do.

For the sausage, we typically use andouille. It does make a difference in the flavor -- maybe you'd like it and maybe not. Smells kind of nasty when you cut it up, but it tastes great.

I think that traditional N.O. style would be to use tasso instead of ham but it might require a bit of searching to find a good source outside of Louisiana (the other LA). Often we'll use heavily peppered bacon, chopped fine.

As for spiciness, we like it a bit hotter. A couple jalapanos, finely diced, added with the onions and then one or two serranos (or more, if you like it hot). The jalapenos add nice flavor without really much heat and the serranos will kick it up a bit. We core the peppers -- like it hot, but not too hot.

Any way you do it, though, it's a fine and tasty dish.

Velognome 

kinda wanna see the lady who used them....maybe just a leg shot anyway.

crank_addict

dedhed

What does Grant Peterson think about grilled cheese and tomato soup?

Road Fan

How you fit a bike for a woman wearing high heels?

Spaghetti Legs 

Keos on all my bikes except for a couple with Crank Bros. My feet feel better on clipless and back in the days when I used to ride -real- hard, I think clipless would hold my feet better, but I had already converted over by that point.

Ease of foot disengagement is not an issue because I can track stand.

tmh657

Senor Gravol has not made an appearance for a while it seems. Or perhaps he is French and has the emphasis on the second syllable is his name. Maybe he's from the French Quarter and heads up the Mardi Gras committe to ban clipless pedals except for the clowns riding mini bicycles. He's a hard one to pin down. Pin, hmmm. Maybe he draws Zippy..

Rocky Gravol

The past few weeks I've been experimenting with these MTB straps.

I do like the secure feeling of my feet strapped to the pedals.

RobbieTunes

Have you ever tried Power Grips? They are pretty cool. They'd be my commuter choice, hands down.
That, and you have some kind of waffling happening on your shin, Rocky!

RobbieTunes

Ask BianchiGirll.

Rocky Gravol

I had just pushed my socks down for the photo.
You can't ride 70's vintage look without tube socks that go up to your knees.

There is one other freak in my ride group,
that uses the Power Grips.

I like them better than my Origin 8's.

vascoboy

i know this is a dinosaur thread...I finally broke down after everyone has explained to me "you should get clipless pedals". So, got a set of SPD pedals, and shoes and gave them a go. It's been a couple of months now, and I gotta say, they are not all that great. It's difficult to clip in, harder to clip out of when coming to a stop, but most importantly, on long rides, having your foot locked in the same place is not comfortable. Not sure why I took everyone's advice in retrospect. Here is what I like about toe cages/straps. More flexibility moving forward/back & side/side relative to the axis on the pedal. This may not seem like a bid deal, but different situations (climb, descent, accelaration,...) calls for different placement relative to the pedal. I also like to have a little flexibility on the sole (just a little) whereas many of the clipless shoes have bottoms that are hard, molded, plastic. I also don't like the sensation of being locked in with pedal/crankset. You need to "breath" when riding: stand up, sit down, lean forwards, lean back, etc.

Also, I like to able to stop and get coffee, run an errand,...

noglider 

I love, love, love my SPD pedals, but they are not for everyone. I've stopped recommending them except to people I think will love them, which aren't many. Plain pedals with no foot retention are ideal for most people. Toe clips are ideal for another niche.

Salamandrine 

They were developed for cyclists who were already using toe clips and straps with slot cleated shoes. If that's what you were used to, like me, clipless were a nice improvment, particularly SPD.

They have some performance advantages. There's a reason you don't see TDF pros riding platforms. If you don't care about that they may or may not be worth bothering with. They are also more comfortable for many people, but I guess not for you.

himespau 

I used to use flat pedals with cages. My feet came out one time while going down a hill next to traffic at 40+ mph on a busy road. Scared me crapless, and I haven't ridden without clipless (except when going less than 10 mph in the subdivision with my kids) in the decade plus since then.

79pmooney

I ride with retention on all my bikes. 5 bikes, 3 systems.

My good road bike has LOOK Delta compatible pedals and black cleats. (My knees insist on no float and some forced toe-in.) I use LoolKovers for walking around.

All my fix gears use toeclips and straps and I ride those with traditional slotted cleats. (I never, ever want out pull a foot of out of the pedal going 40 MPH downhill. Any system can un-cleat. I've un-cleated the slotted cleats a few times but being in toestraps means I only have to re-swallow my heart, touch the brakes and re-cleat.) I had a cobbler build up the soles to make one pair quite walkable, safe on any surface and kind to quality flooring.

My gravel/around town/truck bike has SPD set to very firm. Fine on pavement, I've fallen a few times not being able to get my foot out and struggled to start on rough roads a few times but my knees have first say. I wish I knew of a no-float SPD. I ride and walk around in mountain bike shoes and in winter, the 45North next to warmest boot.

Ben

steve sumner

my first cleated/cycling shoes circa 1970 had nailed on slotted cleats. I thought they were great for pedaling in circles ( no more pedaling squares for me)
I soon learned that I didn't like the sideplay movement ( they felt ineffecient) I soon switched to Cinelli 2000 cleats. they snapped around the barrels of Campy pedals
and elminated any movement I felt like I got much more power throughout my stroke. I then switched to Cinelli M71 clipless pedals and having my leg become an extension of my crank arm felt like even more power to the pedal plus no pressure from on top of the shoes. Unfornutately my Marressi shoes couldn't handle the stress
and I had to go with the less quality Sidi shoes. later I tried the Look and Time clipless pedals for less knee strain. I felt completely out of control.that solid locked in feeling is the best for performance. Somebody said that modern clipless pedals are best for saftety. I feel just the opposite! being attactached to the pedals is were you want to be in a crash situation. less sliding means less road rash plus loose legs leads to broken legs!
my favorite amp is my Kustom 150 circa 1967 with the spring reverb it's bascally a Fender Twin Reverb with cool "tuck n roll" cover. don't know why it's called a 150
as the amperage is 50