>I use the regular stap in peddles that came with my bike and regular
> sneakers. They're not running shoes, pretty flat bottom and sturdy,
> but obvoiusly not cycling shoes. Do the shoes make much difference?
> Would I notice an increase in efficiency over an hour or two of riding?
The differences and improvements that come with clipless shoes & pedals seem
difficult for people to grasp until they actually try them. Then the
response is usually the same as seen for lycra cycling shorts... as in, why
didn't I talk someone into them sooner?
#1: With a basic SPD-style pedal/shoe system, you have your foot held where
it needs to be, without any effort on your part. Ever. No matter how tired
you are, no matter how steep the hill, you don't ever have to even think
about your pedals. But if you want to get out, you simply twist to the side
and step down. Simple as that.
#2: As you push down on the pedal, the pedal edges can be thought of pushing
up against your foot. A normal shoe isn't designed to take that sort of
load, and often delivers it with minimal spread across your foot. Thus, your
foot tries to bend itself around the pedal, which is generally not a good
thing. Think of climbing stairs in normal shoes, only not getting all of
your foot onto the next step each time, so you're placing all of the load
across the middle of your foot. Not very comfy. A good cycling shoe is
designed to distribute this load across a large area of your foot,
eliminating point-loading. Happier feet on longer rides. On shorter rides,
this isn't such a huge deal, but if you're out there riding more than half
an hour, I think you'll notice the improvement.
Notice that I haven't even brought up "efficiency." This isn't about going
faster, it's about feeling better when you're riding. There may be
efficiency improvements, but that's not the reason to get clipless shoes &
pedals (for most people anyway).
--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com