Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - how far do you ride your fixed gear?

just like the title says.

i've been wanting to ride a bike to work for several months now (even though it's starting to get cold outside at this point). at the same time, the only bikes that interest me are MTB and fixed gear / ss bikes, neither of which will probably be good for an 18 mile each way trip to work through Cincinnasti's finest hills. But I'm seriously contemplating building up to be able to accomplish it at least once. What do you guys think? Any of you ride that far? hilly terrain?

Some background on me.. around November of last year, I decided I wanted to run a marathon and raise money for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. I hadn't ran since my days in high school running for gym class. I was able to start training in January and successfully complete a full marathon (the Flying Pig here in Cinci) this year. I have dedication.. maybe the one good thing that stems from my pride. :D

go for it! maybe do a trial run on the weekend or something first so you don't show up an hour late and exhausted.

A 36 mile RT is a pretty long commute if you plan on doing it 5 days a week, but its not impossible, especially if you are in good condition, and it appears that you are. Stick with it and it'll get easier with time. I do a 25-30 RT commute everyday, all year long, and I still have plenty of energy left for other riding. For a fit person, that distance is not too far for a fixed gear or ss road bike, but I would hate to pedal a ss mtb 36 miles a day unless it was offroad.

For the record, my longest ride with a fixed gear was 128 miles. People have gone much further than that.

I ride 6 miles each way back and forth once in a while to school on ss road bike and its decently hilly terrain!

It's doable. :) You'll just have to experiment with the gearing so you'll be able to tackle those hills but still be able to go a decent speed on the flats.

If you like bombing downhill, a SS may be a better choice so you can coast. It's all dependent on how fit you are.

Plenty of people here can do waaaaay more than 18 miles on a fixed gear bike so it's all up to you.

go for it! maybe do a trial run on the weekend or something first so you don't show up an hour late and exhausted.

i was thinking about that. a dry run of sorts. btw, your blog is funny!



i really like the thought of doing it fixed but ss may be a little more practical. i don't think i could do it 5 days a week but doing it a couple times would be worthwhile for the experience and considering gas is $3+ and my Jeep likes to drink the stuff..

hmm.. i may have to give this one a go... seeing others who can do it is encouraging.

I ride 22 miles 3 times a week on a SS. With 42/17 gearing. I am spinning like a fool.

You will do fine after a few days of exhaustion.

make sure you wear those padded drawers

I've done 30 mile group rides with roadies on my fixed (averaging maybe 23mph but up to 28/29 (perfectly flat terrain)) and it wasn't too bad. 36 RT sounds like a lot, but remember that it's only 18 miles, then an 8 hour break, then 18 miles back. And doing that fixed at your own pace is extremely doable.

The distance others ride does not have much bearing on your situation unless the terrain, gears, fitness, body weight, wind, temperature, clothing,speed, etc, is the same.

Too many variables.

The weekend run is a great idea.
It may seem very tough in the begining, that will go away if you keep riding. Eventually it may seem easy.

I have done 130 miles on my track bike. It really doesn't matter to you. I'm ten years ahead of you in practice. It might be flatter here too, I have no idea. You could easily equal and then pass me, given time. At one time 18 miles seemed like a long way to me. All you need to do is keep riding.

I was doing 15 mile commute each way on a road bike where I would rarely change gears. It was no big thing.

How big are these hills though? Hills complicate the mater heh

i commute 36 mi RT daily. most days i use my CX bike, but at least once a week i use my fixed. i have some big hills on my ride. they are a PITA, but i manage.

I go 10 each way thru New York's gnarliest roads on a fixed gear most days. No hills but the bridge.

I retired my fixed gear for the rainy season.

My commute is less than 4 miles each way but over the past month I've added 20 miles or so a couple of times a week. That was all leading up to an 80 mile ride last weekend. If you want to do it, you can, just gotta prepare, map out your route and all that.

I second the weekend suggestion.

I have done 30 mile round trips before. They are really not all that bad. I commute daily to work 12 mile round trip with 52/16 gearing. I live in chicago so it is pretty flat.

I say go for it.

just like the title says.

i've been wanting to ride a bike to work for several months now (even though it's starting to get cold outside at this point). at the same time, the only bikes that interest me are MTB and fixed gear / ss bikes, neither of which will probably be good for an 18 mile each way trip to work through Cincinnasti's finest hills. But I'm seriously contemplating building up to be able to accomplish it at least once. What do you guys think? Any of you ride that far? hilly terrain?

Some background on me.. around November of last year, I decided I wanted to run a marathon and raise money for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. I hadn't ran since my days in high school running for gym class. I was able to start training in January and successfully complete a full marathon (the Flying Pig here in Cinci) this year. I have dedication.. maybe the one good thing that stems from my pride. :D

I love to see new people getting started on a fixed gear. It is so much fun when you first start out because you are constantly aware of everything around you especially if you are going to commute during peak traffic hours.

I'm new to FG riding about 16 months. But being a multi-speed Ultra cyclist I have a huge base of miles. My first rides were less than 25 miles and I was sore because of the new muscles being employed. Eventually, my mileage came up and I was doing centuries with 10,000 feet of gain for training. I then rode a couple of double centuries with moderate climbing and did fairly well.

Then my domestic situation changed and childcare and training began to clash. So the only way I could get any miles in was commuting. I had moved 65 miles away from my work and began commuting on my FG. I would leave my car (using my car as a locker) at work and ride home at night and then ride back to my car in the morning where I had baby wipes and a fresh set of clothes to use for work that day. On Wed mornings I would commute and ride my shop ride and end up with a century before work. (oh I would start my commute at 2am). Terrain was less than 2,000 feet along the coast of Southern California. In a 10 mile section I would do 1,000 feet with rollers that were 10-12% grades. I rolled a 49 x 15 (87 GI) because I needed a high crusing speed to make it to work on time. When it worked out I would commute both ways in a day for a 130 RT.

I just complete Furnace Creek 508 which is 508 miles and 35,000 feet of climbing on my fixed gear. It is a non stop, crew support ultra cycling event through Death Valley and other remote areas. So anything is possible on a Fixed Gear.

Start with easy gearing, evaluate the right ratio to get you to work on time but not too hard on the climbs. You might have to muscle (gearing wise) some of the rollers so you don't spin you out on the descents. This is assuming you have good knees and all that good stuff. Try just one leg of the trip as described above (leaving your car at work-- assuming safe neighborhood, not a single car family etc etc) and then eventually both legs on the same day. Be aware you will tighten up if you "ride a desk" at work so maybe you should buy "the Stick" and massage your legs at work. You will have an increased appetite so plan ahead. Another good reason to drive and then leave the car at work is you can pack two lunches and snacks and leave them at the refrigerator (assuming you have one) at work so you don't have to tote that in the am. Scented baby wipes are your friend when commuting. Also allow enough time for flat repair since the majority of your flats will be rear flats it takes a little longer to get the wheel off and the tension and chainline straight when reinstalling. If you wear black shorts you won't have to worry about wear to wipe of all that chain lube when you're done.

Vireo, I believe I saw your pictures on Flickr. Was that you riding the red Milwaukee frame? Pretty impressive.

^^^^^
this guy is nuts, i like it

I commute 20 miles RT to school with continual rolling hills. I ride both my fixed and road bike, but I prefer the fixed because I have to lock up outside and the bike is a beater. The first time I rode the fixed out that far I was a bit nervous but I was amazed how easy it was. The biggest annoyance is having to slow down because I'm spinning too fast(over 150rpm I give up and throttle back).

I'm thinking that riding SS would be the most ideal for my commute, the are many hills but only 2 that are really tough with the steep gear..

Jer

Vireo, I believe I saw your pictures on Flickr. Was that you riding the red Milwaukee frame? Pretty impressive.

Yes. Thank you. Andy at Ben's Cycle helped me with my custom requests. How did you come about the pics on Flickr?

All you need to do is keep riding.

beautiful and true

holy crap vireo!! you're a madman!!! i work with a guy who just did his first ironman. I know what kind of training goes into a big event like that. unreal and badass!! that really puts my measly commute to shame!! haha!

edit: sorry for excessive use of exclamation marks.. apparently, i was really excited while i typed that.

i think i'm going to take a little of everyone's advice. thanks a ton for all the input and feedback. i guess my next step is to map out the best route before just going for it. i can leave my Jeep at work (gated / safe area) so that sounds like an interesting idea as well. i'm also used to marathon training and the associated appetite, haha.

to answer the other question, the hills around here can be pretty brutal i think i saw in another thread someone referred to cincy as the SF of the midwest, lol. i think my route would have me downhill on the way there but uphill on the way back. i also have to go out of my way as i have to cross the river into KY and I only know of 1 bridge that's possible on. from there, i could go straight and up / down some more massive hills or follow the river around which would be longer but possibly worth it. now that i think about it, is there a website that helps plan bike routes?

holy crap vireo!! you're a madman!!! i work with a guy who just did his first ironman. I know what kind of training goes into a big event like that. unreal and badass!! that really puts my measly commute to shame!! haha!

edit: sorry for excessive use of exclamation marks.. apparently, i was really excited while i typed that.

i think i'm going to take a little of everyone's advice. thanks a ton for all the input and feedback. i guess my next step is to map out the best route before just going for it. i can leave my Jeep at work (gated / safe area) so that sounds like an interesting idea as well. i'm also used to marathon training and the associated appetite, haha.

to answer the other question, the hills around here can be pretty brutal i think i saw in another thread someone referred to cincy as the SF of the midwest, lol. i think my route would have me downhill on the way there but uphill on the way back. i also have to go out of my way as i have to cross the river into KY and I only know of 1 bridge that's possible on. from there, i could go straight and up / down some more massive hills or follow the river around which would be longer but possibly worth it. now that i think about it, is there a website that helps plan bike routes?

I added to my post-- flat repair.

I am familiar with the rolling terrain of Ohio and nearby states. I completed 2 person Race Across America in June and rode across those midwest states. I was on a multi-speed bike of course.

you'll be fine. Just gear right for the hills.

At one time 18 miles seemed like a long way to me. All you need to do is keep riding.

Nicely put. I remember the first time I did a "long" ride on a bike - almost sixteen miles! I felt so empowered.

Here's my 2 pennies. I have an 44 RT commute. I take the train about 15 of those miles most days (in the AM, lets me hit snooze 2x). I do it fixed all the time, but I have only a few short hills to deal with. Even still I like to use my geared bike a couple times a week to give my legs a little break. If you have some gears to bail you out of you're tired or just feeling "off" you'll be less likely to just fall back on your car. Finally, there's no reason you have to choose. Having two bikes means you don't have to fix every mechanical issue right away, you can let your bike sit for days on end with a flat if you don't feel like dealing with it right away. This also means you'll ride more and use your car less. Old MTBs are cheap, plentiful and make excellent commuters.

Yes. Thank you. Andy at Ben's Cycle helped me with my custom requests. How did you come about the pics on Flickr?

I was actually looking for pictures from Furnace Creek on Flickr, and I came across yours. It was pretty hard to miss, there must have been 500 of them.

I was actually looking for pictures from Furnace Creek on Flickr, and I came across yours. It was pretty hard to miss, there must have been 500 of them.

Oh. I am done to 350 now. And still whacking away....I want to get down to 250 while simultaneously working on my race report.