Pedal Dexterity

Sub titled: Monkey Toes
Sub sub titled: Dwight Schrute and Jens Voigt Have Nothing on Me!

Riding with Chris is always a fun experience because at some point we usually end up in a fit of giggles. Christmas Eve was no exception.

Chris and I decided to head out to the Knight’s Ferry area to ride to Robert’s Ferry and back. It was going to be about 30-miles of rolling hills and little traffic. My drive to our meeting place worried me because the valley appeared to be covered in the dense tule fog that so often plagues this area. To my surprise and pleasure, the fog started to clear before I arrived in Knight’s Ferry and shortly after we began riding, the fog lifted completely. It was turning out to be a gorgeous day for a ride with perfect weather and fun company.

Due to a lack of riding (not to mention a lack of hill training), Chris and I tired quickly. I can’t speak for her, but eventually I warmed up and was feeling better. Of course, we stopped occasionally to take photos of the landscape, converse with cows, and strip off our various layers because of the surprisingly warm weather.

We eventually decided on a turn around point and made a brief stop to take some more photos. With a momentary lapse of judgment (hello? Rain + dirt = mud), I stepped off the road to get a better angle for my shot. Once I stepped back onto the road, I realized my mistake. The result: Mud in the cleats. I cleaned them out a bit before getting back on the bike and didn’t give it further thought until a while later when I decided to stop again. I was unable to unclip from the left side.

Herein lies the problem – despite being right handed, I always unclip from the left and put that foot down. I’ve had more than one cyclist comment on this so apparently the majority of people do it the other way around. With no other choice, I unclipped from the right and slowed down while repeating in my head Go right, go right. Unfortunately, my body didn’t listen. The moment I realized I was going to fall I thought Don’t put your hand down, it’s not that far. Better to fall to the left and not land on my derailleur and break a bone on my left than the right, correct? This time my body listened. Once on the ground I was able to pull my cleat from the pedal and get up with only damaged pride.

Now what? Like any normal cyclist with another 10 miles to ride, I checked my pedals, checked my cleats, and then got back on the bike. Silly me.

When I realized that I was unable to unclip from either side, Chris and I started to derive a plan so I could stop safely. We decided that the best bet would be for me to remove my foot from my shoe so I started to play with them to see if I could undo the shoe while riding. This proved to be more difficult than I originally imagined.

On to Plan B. Chris ended up riding ahead of me so she could catch me when I stopped. While she held onto me, I was able to remove my feet from the shoes. Once I was safely off the bike, but not out of danger due to an unusual number of bees, it was time to figure out how I’d ride the remaining 8 or so miles. Eventually, we decided that forcing my shoes off my pedals (it took the two of us putting a good amount of force on them) and riding back with no shoes would be the only option, regardless of how stupid I’d look or unsafe it’d be.

So that’s what I did. I curled my toes around the small surface of the pedals like a monkey and continued to ride in significant discomfort unable to get out of the saddle to pedal. I walked up hills, rode the flats, and coasted downhill. Not exactly the perfect ending to the ride.

It's as uncomfortable as it looks.  Photo by Chris.

A slight feeling of horror washes over me when I realize that this could have been any of my rides when I’m normally alone. What then? Surely, I’m not the only cyclist who has quite literally been unable to unclip from the pedals.  If it wasn't for Chris being there, I pretty much would have been out of luck.

Needless to say, this is one reason I always wear a helmet.