Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - What is the political significance of the fixie?

What is the political significance of the fixie?

I am not what you would call an activist, but I am aware of a kind of received wisdom among the posts. The very nature of received wisdom is that it is widely agreed upon and yet, not acknolwedged as a belief. I am curious about the beliefs we hold and do not know we hold.

Please don't attack this question by saying that there are no political or philosophical leanings on this forum, or in our larger community. The avoidance of political discussion seems to encourage the spread of received wisdom.

Also, please don't let this trigger a lot of finger pointer and shouts of "J'accuse, Le Hipster".

The hipster thing is rough. A hipster is essentially a pure consumer. They move from style to style, commiting to nothing, sacrificing nothing. And then when well runs dry, they move on, like locusts. Ever read William Gibson's "the belonging kind"? Funny exposition of this concept into a story.

So, please don't call each other hipsters, it suggests the accuser is holier than though and that the accused is pure consumption. (a little inflammatory)

This is a community and we tend to have a lot in common.
For instance, most of the folks on this forum seem to be twenty something, white, urban or at least cosmopolitan, left leaning, often underemployed and male.
I wonder how this effects the politics of the forum?

How do think this holds up in the real world and where does it go wrong? Are non forum riders more diverse? How?

I am curious what fixie riders in this forum think the fixie, the bicycle, fixie culture etc. means in a political or philosophical sense.

Is it an act of consumption? Of defiance, of independence?

It is associated with a variety of counterculture symbols and aesthetics. Does this make it counterculture?
If so, how?

What is the broader impact of our actions, of our choices?

check out these voices.

"Nation of rebels"
http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/06/20/130535.php

"Center For A New American Dream"
newdream.org

There is a lot of politics on this site, it just pretends to be apolitical.
I am not trying to make things politcal, I am trying clarify the politics that are already there.

I am being very frank and honest,
and though it can be hard to break out of the ironic habit, please try to do the same.

Thank you to those who have been.

lolzers u r stupid

It has become a standard hipster accessory with that comes the politics and philosophy of hipsters.

Hate to say it, but there is a "Politics and Religion" forum for discussion of all-things political.

If it stays civil, we can keep this here. If it deviates from fg/ss bikes, I am going to move it to the above-mentoned area for continued discussion.

Since he's relating it to fixed gear riding I don't see why it should be moved. But I do think, anyone who rides a bike, fixed or not is helping reduce pollution, it's a ton cheaper to commute, and it's so much funner than driving.

Ben,
This is a good question, but there are a few things about it I would like to point out.


...most of the folks on this forum seem to be twenty something, white, urban or at least cosmopolitan, left leaning, often underemployed and male.
I think you may be right about the general population of this forum; however, I feel that this forum is a small part of the fixie population. And lets face it, this forum will have some people with such brillian responses at:

lolzers u r stupid
Yes, that one was great, he made quite the point.

Also, the ever popular

It has become a standard hipster accessory with that comes the politics and philosophy of hipsters.
has already come into play. I think that this can be said about anything at this point. Ipods are "hipster accessories" and so are beards apparently, but that doesn't make every person with one of these a "hipster". In fact, I feel that a lot of people simply use that term to describe somebody that they don't have a true reason for not liking. You just can't put your finger on it? The must be a hipster.

I think that there are a lot of different people riding fixed for different reasons. I think that people in this forum are going to butt heads and yell hipster a lot though. I would like to talk to you about this in person. Perhaps at the next time we all get together for some sort of food/game/bike riding night.

It has become a standard hipster accessory with that comes the politics and philosophy of hipsters.

Uh, sure... We all know how political hipsters are after all.


Anyways, I don't see fixies as political or counterculture (they are just machines), or even bicycle riding in general. Put a political dude on a bike and he will probably make it political, put a non-political dude on a bike and they are just riding. In such a car dominated society, cyclists feel a connection with the other riders out there enduring the sh*t. I'd say that the alt-bike nutters are the most overtly political of the cyclist subgroups.

Since he's relating it to fixed gear riding I don't see why it should be moved. But I do think, anyone who rides a bike, fixed or not is helping reduce pollution, it's a ton cheaper to commute, and it's so much funner than driving.
did you miss this in my first post:
"If it deviates from fg/ss bikes, I am going to move it to the above-mentoned area for continued discussion."

it's not about politics, it's about redemption

cost and simplicity

shut up and ride.

we do it because it's fun.

There's no "defiance" in riding a fixed gear or single speed. Sure, you may hate cars (or you might not be able to afford one), but you're buying parts from huge companies you're wanting to rebel against. You lose in that battle no matter what. But then there's the few people that dumpster their whole bike. Wonderful, keep it up.

I'm employed, hispanic, female, and eat a hamburger while carrying a pistol on my way protest outside abortion clinics on my fixed gear bicycle. Do I get kicked out?

It is a symbol of the resolve to destroy all life on the face of the Earth. Forever. Times ten. I mean, not to be an asshat, but if it's a fixie bike that takes me places, then it's a fixie bike that takes me places. Making associations based on percieved, but not verified connections is just asking for trouble, and imho, that's what politics is. I would never do that to a fixie.


I'm employed, hispanic, female, and eat a hamburger while carrying a pistol on my way protest outside abortion clinics on my fixed gear bicycle. Do I get kicked out?

Only if you're also a lesbian Jew who wants to become a hermaphrodite.

What is the political significance of the fixie?



Co-optation, but I thought this was self-evident.

My guess would be left of the average roadie, way to the left of the average mtb'er (think George W.), slightly to the right of the average hard-core "car free" type. Of course, I have no idea what left and right mean, so good luck testing the hypothesis.

wow, don't know too many mtbers eh?

it's okay, i don't either ;)

shut up and ride.

we do it because it's fun.

word.

i'm rebelling against sitting in my apt. being bored, and waiting 15 minutes for a subway train to come...

wow, don't know too many mtbers eh?

it's okay, i don't either ;)
The MTB'ers I know span the spectrum. Fixed-gear riders probably do too. I think you'd find a better correlation between education, economic status, or geography and politics than the type of bike you ride.

Please research your paper elsewhere, or better yet go ride your bike.

I am not a fixie rider or owner, nor do I consider myself a roadie or an MTBer. I just ride my bike for exercise/recreation so you can take my post with a grain of salt.

My observation is that people who ride/build fixies are a kin to surfers and their relationship with the ocean and their environment; they do it because they can, because its fun, because it creates a very zen-like state.

But I could be off my rocker. ;)

The MTB'ers I know span the spectrum. Fixed-gear riders probably do too. I think you'd find a better correlation between education, economic status, or geography and politics than the type of bike you ride.

for sure. it gives me hope that there are still things that people who disagree with (or flat out dislike) each other can enjoy together.

unless they're riding a bike with gears. then they can go **** themselves.

the political significance is that my fixed gear bike gets me to work,
and i'm working on the election,
and we're gonna kick some right wing jerkfaces outta there.

thus,
my blue bicycle,
always workin' for the blue.

this thread is ridiculous, but I would bet that people who commute are more likely to vote democratic than people who race.

the very notion that there is some sort of poilitical or social agenda that i'm supposed to be associated with simply because of the number of gears on my bike makes me want to get more of them.

Seems you won't get to much more on the forums than a personal response... Mine is I'm just obsessed with bicycles. I live in area where I haven't seen another fixed rider and every other ride am told to get off of the automobile's road. So I would say it is part of a counter culture in the sense that our culture is heavily based on the use of the automoble. Look at how are cities are set up. It is next to impossible for me to commute to work in any safe manner. Fixed is a subgroup of the larger counter culture of cycling with its own cultural cues an rules such as white belts and wearing my sisters jeans, thats a joke. I think there are plenty of fixed riders that don't prescribe to these hipster criteria, not speaking from experience since I haven't run into any other fix riders locally, but I did see a bunch of fix riders in ATL the other weekend that I thought I could blaze 'casue they were riding damn slow, but then again maybe they were saving it up for the race on sunday.

So I guess to merely expand upon the question asked by the original poster is what are the latent and manifest functions of the subgroup of fixed riding?

I would say the aparent functions are conserving gas, increased health benefits (unless you smoke reds while you ride), status in the biking community: I think this is the biggest one, the wrds so often seen on here lead me to believe so: fakenger and poseur (Note this sense of status may not extend beyond the fixed community ie. the fixie may think she is hot **** for riding fixed but the mtn. biker or roadie may not even care or notice) less bike maintenance thus reduced reliance on a bike shop were you would pay for services, ability for anyone with access to a good junkyard to build a bike,

Latent or unpercieved functions(this one is hard due to the nature of it being latent): change in marketing/ mfg. of bicycles (look at all the new off the rack fixies now) changes in the legal system (portland arrests),

I would say bicycling counter culture as a whole stands to make a bigger political difference/ impact than any one of the subgroups could do on its own.

But I think what is really weird is fixed riders on the internet... if you were to apply the percieved notions of what makes a HC fix rider would you include internet access and the knowledge of posting blogs, pictures, and fixie news with that criteria or would you just say the ability to wear grandpa's sweater, sister's jeans some CVS hair dye and to pull off a one legged 360 skid?

Does this make any sense i hope not... it is the internet

ps i like threads that start with the first response as a threat from the moderator
so even this question is an act of defiance!

the very notion that there is some sort of poilitical or social agenda that i'm supposed to be associated with simply because of the number of gears on my bike makes me want to get more of them.

Bikes or gears?

say bikes or this thread's gonna get moved.

I make a political statement just by riding a bike. It doesn't have to be intended, it's just there. The notion that you have to have a car and that if you don't drive, you must have lost your license or you're poor is so ingrained into our thinking that just by going against this, you are making a social and political statement. I find road bikes to be my thing, and I've really gotten obsessed. I still drive a car, but I like to ride when I can and cut down my unnecessary consumption.

I owned a fixed geared road bike and a modern geared road bike. They both serve their purposes, though I seem to have a deeper attachment to the fixie. I stopped really caring about what group is the best and campy vs shimano. I didn't like having to clean the commuter gunk out of my derailleur often. I also pretty much stayed in one gear while commuting. My Mavic MA40 rims had a few dents, so I decided it's time to convert to fixed. WOW! Why didn't I do this sooner? The fixed gear keeps the pedals spinning and really smooths out my strokes. While I'm just cruising, I'm making much better circles with the pedaling. While climbing hills, I'm always putting force on the pedals, making it feel easier. Best of all, very little to get out of adjustment, no dealing with $300 shimano shifters. It's just a 1x1 and you connected to the road. There's no worries of what derailleur is the best. I also have plenty of clearance for my rear rack to go on.

As for counter-culture, while road bikes are moving in the direction of more gears, the fixie is going back to the basics, the simplest mechanics. Granted, I run front and rear brakes and I do use bar tape, the bike is still very simple. Road cycling seems to consist mostly of men 25 and older, while single speed and fixed gear seems to be the younger crowd. It seems to be less about bright jerseys and bike shorts and more about the riding, good times, and doing a lot with little money.

I wish I could explain this better.

my buddy is a specialist on the American Stock Exchange. He rides a fixie across the Brooklyn bridge every day. I wouldn't call him under employed.

I would argue that reliance on countercultural phenomenon as a vehicle for political change is misguided simply because the "underground," by definition, is only interested in that which has not attained mainstream popularity. This is why marketing towards "indie" populations is an assured death sentence.

Keep in mind that this only applies to a specific population of people who ride fixed gear bikes. If there is any political significance at all, however, it would come from that population. The rest probably just considers themselves "cyclists".

Otherwise, fixed gear bikes have the same significance every other object of personal association has. Try Baudrillard's book, Simulations. We co-opt and conflate signs with their signifiers as an a posteriori response to the desire to define and categorize.

First of all, I've declared myself King of the Hipsters, and I will decide who qualifies as a Hipster and who does not.
All you wannabes, forget it.
If you can't grow a beard you can't call yourself a Hipster.
I won't allow it.

=====

Political, eh?

Hm.

One of the five definitions of politics:

5 a : the total complex of relations between people living in society
(C)1997, 1996 Zane Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved

POLite, POLice, metroPOLis, POLitburo, hoi POLloi

Personally, I would like to see a national speed limit of 60kmh or 36mph.
This flies in the face of my POLitical belief that the government has no business telling us what to do.
Therefore, I model the behavior I would like to see from others as exquisitely as I can, by riding a fixed gear bike.

I feel so SUPERIOR to those of my fellow human beings who drive FUV's.
I waltz with elephants and swim with whales.
I have 60 year-old legs of rawhide and hickory, a flat tummy, and a profoundly playful glint in my eye.
I FLAUNT (with a French accent) the rules (albeit POLitely).

HAH!

Shove that up your whippersnapper wannabe Hipster hoofus and smoke it.

Seriously, though, I see riding a fixed gear bike as more religious than political.
It has its sexual aspects, too: I can feel women's eyes on my butt (or somebody's eyes).

I love Ken Cox.

ken almost saved the unsavable, but unfortunately this thread is truly unsavable

these rants are the typed out version of how charlie browns teacher talks

wahhh wah wah wahhh wah wahh wah

its an act of constantly moving your legs, unless youre trackstanding skidding or falling.

female, mid thirties, queer, fixie.

the very notion that there is some sort of poilitical or social agenda that i'm supposed to be associated with simply because of the number of gears on my bike makes me want to get more of them.

Yeah, me and all of my apolitical friends who hate to be pigeonholed ride geared bikes now. It's the thing for people like us.

"J'accuse, Le Hipster"
Got my laugh for the day on this board.

I am not a fixie rider or owner, nor do I consider myself a roadie or an MTBer. I just ride my bike for exercise/recreation so you can take my post with a grain of salt.

My observation is that people who ride/build fixies are a kin to surfers and their relationship with the ocean and their environment; they do it because they can, because its fun, because it creates a very zen-like state.

But I could be off my rocker. ;)


I ride fixies and... I'm a surfer. Asking a surfer why they surf is like asking a mother why she loves her child.
A surfer is what you become when turn your life over to surfing. A fixie is just a type of bike.

For instance, most of the folks on this forum seem to be twenty something, white, urban or at least cosmopolitan, left leaning, often underemployed and male.
I wonder how this effects the politics of the forum?
The coasts typically skew left, and those have the largest urban areas. Coasts also have the most contact with the outside world, hence more 'sophistication'. Urban crime rates push towards a more theft-proof bike, an almost total non-issue in huge swaths of middle America. Higher density means shorter distances to travel, meaning gears are less important. Urban areas are more expensive to own cars, so the less affluent find other methods, i.e. public transportation or 'beater' fixies. City 'sophistication' means more diversity in fashion statements, so a 'trend' will pick up more inertia, etc.

So, I'd say there is no political significance. It's a correlation. It just means we're a product of our environments.


My guess would be left of the average roadie, way to the left of the average mtb'er (think George W.), slightly to the right of the average hard-core "car free" type. Of course, I have no idea what left and right mean, so good luck testing the hypothesis.
Gotta disagree about MTBers, at least in California. They're all over the place, and if anything, tend further left than roadies.

my social, political and religious stance is basically '**** you'.
then again i'm still real caught up in this mid-teen angst thing, where as most the people here seem to be on some weird politically correct hippie ****...pretty baffling to me, since most the cats i know who ride fixed are vandals, drunks and scum bags. guess it 'takes all types' as they say.

man i dont know about you guys, but for me its a fun and living thing

yeah its true that me living car free is a far more effective form of protest than some 20 somethings calling in sick to walk down the street with a poster on a stick, but you dont see me bragging about it

edit: but thats a bike thing, has nothing to do with how many cogs

A surfer is what you become when turn your life over to surfing. A fixie is just a type of bike.

Blasphemy!

Well, maybe not.

I see a lot in common between surfing and riding a fixie.
For me, they both change how your head works.

I have started to think not everyone who rides a fixie fully understands or appreciates the experience.
I think some people see a fixie as nothing more than a minimalist bike, and have no "aha" about the physical context of a rear wheel and pedals that always move together in a relentlessly fixed and moving cycle.
Maybe some people see a surfboard as, well, a board for playing in the water.

In judo, we speak of things like fixed gear bikes as "constraints."
After one works within a constraint for awhile, it becomes an advantage.
For example, in judo the ground, meaning the floor, represents a constraint.
A person who works within the constraint of the ground eventually turns the ground into an advantage.

My wife reminds me a kite needs a constraint in order to fly.
Get it?
Without a string to hold it down, a kite will not fly.

If a person rides a fixed gear bike and studies it, it serves as a constraint and, eventually, the fixed gear aspect of the bicycle becomes an advantage.

Man, I fly on my fixie.
That fixed gear gives me wings.

Just a quick note of thanks to all you who took the time (and courage) to addrerss my honest question.

Rallen, Falkon and Vomitron. Were the new postings I noticed. Though I have not read them all.
Everyone has taken an interesting and distinct tack to my overly open ended question.

I like Ken Cox's acknowledgement of the pros/cons of a fixed transmission.

Vomitron, it sounds like you would enjoy "nation of rebels". Though I disagree about marketing to an indie population is a death sentence. Fixed bikes are selling like hotcakes as are slimcut jeans for men and well, VANS seem to be everywhere all of a sudden.

After years in shops you start to "read" bicycles. I saw a bareknuckle this afternoon, chrome bars, phil hubs, quill pedals with toshi straps, locked with a kryptonite chain. Nothing wrong with the bike and yet. It wasn't right. Maybe it was just that it was new, but it looked like someone got advice on what was quality and then went out and spent $US1,200+/- on a good bike but at the same time it didn't have any quirks. After a few weeks it will get some scratches and the rider will change bars or something.
But its perfection of a one style, its total dedication to one aesthetic seemed artificial.
No unusual personal choice manifested itself in the assembly. It was perfect, but without flaws or other distinguishing characteristics it almost made me wonder if it was real.

I am intrigued by a couple of topics all worth a thread of their own.
1. the fashion of fixie riders, certain fashion predominate in DC and likely other cities as well.
2. The simplicity (mechanical as well as environmental and economic) of a fixie is about the same as a single speed but without the panache.
3.Rallen mentions this and I feel stupid for not bringing it up myself.
Everyone here has two things in common. Fixiebikes and the internet. I don't do much on the internet but email, craigslist and this site. But the average facility is striking. Is the rise of the popularity of fixiebikes a new media phenomenon, like the dancing baby and the "chronic-les of Narnia"

1. the fashion of fixie riders, certain fashion predominate in DC and likely other cities as well.
2. The simplicity (mechanical as well as environmental and economic) of a fixie is about the same as a single speed but without the panache.
3.Rallen mentions this and I feel stupid for not bringing it up myself.


1. Hipsters ride fixies and fixies are a part of hipster fashion.
2. Huh? without the panache? If ss is the same as fg without the panache then how is there any significance to fixies beyond flamboyance?
3. Are fixed gears and internet meme? No they are a hipster meme just like vans, pabst, tight jeans and god awful tattoos. Most hipsters are on the internet though.

As vomitron already pointed out(allbeit in his ridiculous deconstuctionist jargon) there is no significance in a fixie. They are currently a hipster fad and so since they are so often ridden by hipsters you can associate any other aspect of hipster life with them but that doesn't give them significance political or otherwise.

Also hipster is not an insult it is a descriptive term.

Also hipster is not an insult it is a descriptive term.

http://catandgirl.com/archive/cg0299costume.gif
and fitting for this holiday.

I love Cat and Girl so much. At least I did back in the day before it was co-opted by those damn hipsters.

*slits wrists*

Side question: does it mean that I've spent too much time on the internet when, upon reading Aeroplane's post, I just breezed over the hamburger/pistol/abortion clinic/employed crap and immediately thought to myself. "THAT GUY'S A GIRL?!?"

Hmmmmmmmm, I always thought it meant that we would all convert to the Republican party due to the conservative nature of the single gear lifestyle, while at the same time having the ability to justify the dollars spent for a rare Campy NJS group. ;)

If it wasn't for the internet I would still be riding a mongoose with mag wheels. I think i hate you internet!

Hmmmmmmmm, I always thought it meant that we would all convert to the Republican party due to the conservative nature of the single gear lifestyle, while at the same time having the ability to justify the dollars spent for a rare Campy NJS group. ;)

thats good stuff