View Full Version : Anyone else like the fixed gear for a change?
I took me a while to get my fixed gear out of the garage but I have been riding it more and more lately.
There is something about riding without the influence of the gears to adjust cadence. Go up hill-mash, downhill-spin, with the wind higer cadence, against lower all without any choice. For some reason I really enjoy it. It seems so darn simple.
Anyone else like the fixed gear?
Kenal0
Built one. Rode one. Sold one. All in about 4 months.
As it turns out, I like gears. It wasn't so much going up the hills, it was going down I couldn't get, too much spin.
Psimet2001
07-19-07, 05:21 PM
I really enjoy riding my fixed gear. I usually reserve it for winter riding, but this thread may make me go and ride it tomorrow for poops and laughs.
laryanshabaz
07-19-07, 11:49 PM
Anybody selling a cheap fixie or want to loan/let me ride theirs (never rode fixed before) in my area?
I bet not, but I've been pretty curious lately about trying them out.
If I wasn't so broke I'd buy a BD model.
The Mercier Kilo TT is beautiful.
AverageCommuter
07-20-07, 10:21 AM
I always enjoy riding fixed. I endo'ed and mangled the bars on mine a couple of weeks ago. Pedal released under hard acceleration. I need to get out there and stick a new bar on it.
John Wilke
07-20-07, 12:43 PM
That fixed gear will teach you how to pedal alright ... you either learn fast or die. :p It seems like a phenomenon that comes and goes. In the mid 80's everybody had to have one. I had a Meister track bike and rode it all over the place. I even did some track racing in Kenosha which was fun until they learned I was a roadie and that I could go that fast for more than one lap, then I didn't do so well. Today I'm just happy pedaling ... period. :)
Cromulent
07-20-07, 02:41 PM
Yep. Rode it to work today just for a change. Wore my fred gear too.
wolfbrother
07-20-07, 02:51 PM
I built one up before the summer started, and I've done 500 miles already on my 17 mile round trip commute. I absolutely love it, and my shiny new road bike I bought last summer is gathering dust in my basement. Riding fixed gear has made me want to bike more than ever. I just love the control that I have by using my legs for everything, and I love not having to worry about what gear I'm in. I also swear that it actually helps on hills, as long as they're not too big. I'd like to try some longer rides on it (30+ miles) sometime and see how that treats me.
testtube
07-25-07, 03:08 PM
I just built mine up from the BFSSFG group buy. It's pretty nifty so far. I intend it to be my main commuting rig. I also have a 17 mi. commute, often longer with the scenic route.
It's helped me pick up on some bad habits. Apparently I like to stop pedaling after hard accelerations or when sitting down after being out of the saddle on climbs. My riding partners will appreciate my new, hopefully better, habits...
[edited for typo. no, i'm not anal...]
Anyone else like the fixed gear?Works great in ChiTown because it's so flat in these parts. Roads are good enough that I don't need to level off the pedals or bunny-hop anything. I'm running 48/17 with an 18 tooth freewheel on the flip, just in case I get tired or the road is wonky. I love the constant feedback from the road. Cycling has always been about spinning for me, so the only adjustment was getting around obstacles. My fixed is my primary mode of transportation these days.
http://home.columbus.rr.com/pedex/trackbike_big.JPG
yes
http://home.columbus.rr.com/pedex/trackbike_big.JPG
yes
very nice!
Kenal0
Psimet2001
07-25-07, 04:10 PM
I forgot to post back in here that because of this thread I rode my fixed gear this weekend. Haven't ridden it in close to a year. I really enjoyed it.
Swapped to a 42X15 from a 16 or 17. Still too low, but I don't plan on changing the crank.
I ride some "hills" with it though....;)
that is my work bike or daily cash cow so to speak, I have another that just needs a headset and its good to go(IRO group buy frame)
personally anything less than about 80 gear inches pisses me off to ride
roadfix
07-25-07, 04:35 PM
Built one. Rode one. Sold one. All in about 4 months.
As it turns out, I like gears. It wasn't so much going up the hills, it was going down I couldn't get, too much spin.
Having 2 brakes make going downhills a lot more enjoyable...:D
testtube
07-25-07, 04:42 PM
Swapped to a 42X15 from a 16 or 17. Still too low, but I don't plan on changing the crank.
I ride 42x15 w/ 175mm cranks. Seems to be a good setup for my routes, if anything a hair too tall. I might run a 16 or 17 on the rear for the colder months. Maybe even throw the rear brake on as I don't want the rely solely on the front brake (and have the wheel slide out) in the slippery stuff. I'm not a big fan of back pedaling to slow down...
John Wilke
07-25-07, 04:46 PM
'Ya gotta let'er go and wind 'er out! If you can spin 'er up to 130 without getting bucked off then you know you're pedaling is s-m-o-o-t-h !
http://www.freedomcrowsnest.org/forum/images/smiles/thumb.gif
Psimet2001
07-25-07, 05:40 PM
'Ya gotta let'er go and wind 'er out! If you can spin 'er up to 130 without getting bucked off then you know you're pedaling is s-m-o-o-t-h !
http://www.freedomcrowsnest.org/forum/images/smiles/thumb.gif
I agree. I can spin pretty high, but have gotten away from it. I loved riding fixed gear because it shows me where my flaws are very quickly....as you're being thrown out of the saddle....
quick way to stop the blender leg effect is just do a quick hop skid or two, it can be done quite easily going down a hill, steep hills you can slalom down while skidding
there's a place here where there's a traffic light at the bottom of a short seep hill, best way to stop on a brakeless fixie at that intersection Ive found yet is to skid and stop a bit short then inch forward with the rear locked up still and trackstand and wait.........other method means skidding then turning sideways across the hill to a stop and trackstanding
it isn't going uphill that's tough on a fixie, its downhill
Works great in ChiTown because it's so flat in these parts. Roads are good enough that I don't need to level off the pedals or bunny-hop anything. I'm running 48/17 with an 18 tooth freewheel on the flip, just in case I get tired or the road is wonky. I love the constant feedback from the road. Cycling has always been about spinning for me, so the only adjustment was getting around obstacles. My fixed is my primary mode of transportation these days.
+1
I love riding my fixed gear throughout Chicago. Most of the roads around Chicago are alright to ride on except for some on the west side. I currently ride 48/16 (w/16T freewheel) and so far its fantastic.
I Love My Fixie IRO Mark V
climbhoser
07-30-07, 02:43 PM
Riding fixie allows me to get the most out of my commute, too, as braking and accelerating are equally hard. I also cannot stand it when I stand to accelerate at a light and my out of tune derailleur forces a skip in cogs and I slip, bashing my knee into my bars. Then I'm forced to tune my derailleur up at home instead of spending the time with my family. A derailleur makes me do that once a week, no matter how nice, and I just hate dealing with it.
If you don't like fixed, ride single speed. Anything is better than shifting all the dern time.
recursive
07-30-07, 02:51 PM
For a change? That's where I get most of my (limited) miles!
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