Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - 29er for a short guy?

are 29er's only for tall dudes?

i'm thinking about setting up a surly karate monkey (w/rigid fork) as a single speed mtb/urban rig. i'm 5'8" with a 30" inseam, and i do not want toe overlap, especially if i ever decide to run it fixed. can anyone out there recommend a karate monkey frame size for someone my size?

any short ppl out there riding 29ers? is it practical, or stupid? maybe i'm better off with the 1x1?
if possible i'd like to stick with the karate monkey so i can swap in some 700c cross wheels should the need arise...

:) Your questions are confusing, hence the 40 hits with no replies yet. There are 5'4" and shorter women riding 29ers, so why do you think 5'8" is too short? A 29er is simply a mtb/hybrid frame that will take 700c wheels with fat tires. At 5'8" you should be thinking medium or 18" - 19" frame depending on whether they are marketed as s/m/l or 16/18/20. Are there no bike shops in Rekjavik where you can sit on different bikes to size yourself?
Just trying to open conversation here. :)

:) Your questions are confusing, hence the 40 hits with no replies yet. There are 5'4" and shorter women riding 29ers, so why do you think 5'8" is too short? A 29er is simply a mtb/hybrid frame that will take 700c wheels with fat tires. At 5'8" you should be thinking medium or 18" - 19" frame depending on whether they are marketed as s/m/l or 16/18/20. Are there no bike shops in Rekjavik where you can sit on different bikes to size yourself?
Just trying to open conversation here. :)


Also, Surly claims toe overlap isn't a huge problem with that frame (although the fact that they mention it on their website shows that you are not alone in you concern).

Frankly, I have one fixed bike with fenders, which increases the possibility substantially- and the only time I'd steer far enough to have a problem is during extremely slow speeds. On the street, I'm concerned more with pedal strike, so I'm not an any situations of overlap.

:) Your questions are confusing, hence the 40 hits with no replies yet. There are 5'4" and shorter women riding 29ers, so why do you think 5'8" is too short? A 29er is simply a mtb/hybrid frame that will take 700c wheels with fat tires. At 5'8" you should be thinking medium or 18" - 19" frame depending on whether they are marketed as s/m/l or 16/18/20. Are there no bike shops in Rekjavik where you can sit on different bikes to size yourself?
Just trying to open conversation here. :)

i understand what a 29er is, but, it seems like they tend to be popular with taller riders, especially for a mtb setup. i am not sure why this is.

i ride a 52cm road bike and an even smaller cross bike that just barely escapes toe overlap. the reason i asked about sizing on a surly is because i have read (dont know from experience) that they run big. so i am wondering if anyone out there who is my size has a karate monkey, and if so, what the size is.

my mtb's are 15.5 (trek, a little small) and 17 (ironhorse, a little long in the tt)...so if i'm say, a 16" in the karate monkey, which has 29/700c wheels on it, wont their be some toe overlap?

as for bike shops in reykjavik...um. not really. they all suck and they only carry a few mainstream brands. i would likely be the only one in the entire country with a single speed, much less a surly.

am i making any more sense now? thanks for the help...

Have you asked these fine folks:

http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=61

Iceland? Cool country (no pun intended)...

Warm, actually.

Sneaky vikings.

:) Not knowing if you are M/F regarding foot size eg I am male size 45 or whether you use clipless or clips and straps are more questions.
If you are uncomfortable posting that info here, contact Surly directly, they will help you out.

:) Not knowing if you are M/F regarding foot size eg I am male size 45 or whether you use clipless or clips and straps are more questions.
If you are uncomfortable posting that info here, contact Surly directly, they will help you out.

M, size 42, clipless

Now you have all of the information you require to email Surly directly regarding sizing.