I went back to toe clips straps and cleated shoes after using Look pedals for 17 or so years-and not just on vintage bikes, but with Ergo style modern stuff. I had all these wonderful Campy and Zeus pedals gathering dust and got sick of the constant squaking of any alloy bodied, alloy jawed Look pedals, so why not? I have no plans to go back. Mind boggling or not, I don't miss my old mini ski boot Carnacs at all, and I don't notice a great difference in comfort. I also don't always cinch the straps down untill my circulation gets cut off- Toshi straps and buckle pads, plus proper location of the strap and buckle help both comfort and security. Another thing I don't miss is the unintended releases I sometimes experienced when riding fixed gear with Looks. Kinda scary. I have no big axe to grind in terms of clipless vs. old style- clipless obviously offers many advantages. I just like clips + straps and I don't consider myself a masochist, nor do I live blindly in the past for it's own sake (I won't bother riding a bike with a Nuovo/Super Record- all my bikes have modern Sun Tour style Campy, even in friction).Live and let live!
Best regards,
Wes Gadd
Unionville,CT