There’s a huge difference, because I occasionally ride other bikes without them. My feet slip off the pedals without the cleats. I wouldn’t ride seriously without them.
I’ve been riding for 20+ years and never had this issue. I’ve tried cleats. Tried it for a year before I eventually switched back to a good set of pedals + a good set of shoes. Admittedly about half of my riding is mountain biking though, so that might be part of my bias.
How so?
Cleats are a solution in search of a problem. Nothing changes if you remove them.
Tell me you’ve never cycled seriously without telling me you’ve never cycled seriously.
I commute 14km to work every other day and can confirm there is no difference.
Although placebos have been confirmed to help even though you know you are using a placebo so ¯_(ツ)_/¯
There’s a huge difference, because I occasionally ride other bikes without them. My feet slip off the pedals without the cleats. I wouldn’t ride seriously without them.
I’ve been riding for 20+ years and never had this issue. I’ve tried cleats. Tried it for a year before I eventually switched back to a good set of pedals + a good set of shoes. Admittedly about half of my riding is mountain biking though, so that might be part of my bias.