Mountain Biking - Are single speeds more fun?

I've heard that some people love single speeds but I'm wondering why they find them more fun. If you have a geared bike couldn't you just leave it in a middle gear instead of getting a SS?

Less to go wrong, less to adjust, usually cheap i guess.
I dont like them, the suck for hill climbing lol

My beater bike is a botched SS at the moment, only because i can't be arsed dialling in the fickle, stubborn old dérailleur.

I don't see it as any more fun than a bike with gears. I prefer gears.

Personal preference. Is a blonde more fun than a brunette?

I've heard that some people love single speeds but I'm wondering why they find them more fun. If you have a geared bike couldn't you just leave it in a middle gear instead of getting a SS?

Zip tie your shifters so they won't shift for two weeks. Ride your local trails. Let us know how it works out...

Personally I like my gears. Faster riding makes me happy.

IMO, riding a geared bike without shifting isn't the same as riding a true SS bike.

There's something to be said for a perfectly straight chainline, not losing power by running your chain through two derailer pulleys, the zen factor of a quiet drivetrain, the reduction of weight, and no shifting distractions. You just ride, that's it.

Both types of bikes have pros and cons though. I have a blast riding my SS, but I'm glad I have a geared bike as well. Why not do both?

yes

Is a blonde more fun than a brunette?

yes...but not as fun as a strawberry blonde.

yes...but not as fun as a strawberry blonde.

I can vouch for that.

yes...but not as fun as a strawberry blonde.

I'll tell you, I've had much more fun with brunettes. Such is life... and the single speed vs. geared argument.




Thread closed.

I'll tell you, I've had much more fun with brunettes. Such is life... and the single speed vs. geared argument.




Thread closed.

My girlfriend just died her hair strawberry blonde, i'll have a ride report soon.
Until then, thread opened.

the single speeds bike become super light. they could be around 20 pounds, which means he will kick your but on an average ride. they are also simple, you juts have to pedal and it is great winter training since your cadence is very high
carlos

I love my newly single speeded Cannondale F600 and I will probably never ride a geared mountain bike again.

There's something to be said for a perfectly straight chainline, not losing power by running your chain through two derailer pulleys . . . .I've often noted the .000000000000000000000000001 hp loss created by the chain passing thru two jockey wheels too. Annoying isn't it?

After spending much of my childhood riding a single speed bmx bike, and wishing I had gears while riding trails with it, I could never imagine going back to a single speed.

I guess if you live somewhere flat it would work, but not where I live.

I've often noted the .000000000000000000000000001 hp loss created by the chain passing thru two jockey wheels too. Annoying isn't it?

You mean with a single speed, I could double my HP output?

I'm riding a single-speed coaster-brake bike. Riding on paved bike paths, a couple of longer rides.

I had sort of a mixed philosophy for doing so. One thing is that I was riding a cheap multi-speed mountain bike and the gears were a continual pain in the hiney to keep adjusted. And if I tried to just keep in one gear (high gear in my case), that worked pretty good, except if I really stomped on it, things would go "poing" and it would hop out of gear or skip a tooth or whatever it was doing when it went "poing". Really more of a "rrrccthrc" sound. And then where I'm mainly riding is pretty flat; I got to where I could do the whole course in high gear on the mountain bike.

Then another thing is that I'm riding for exercise, so I don't have a lot of motivation to make things easier. If I could ride twice as fast with the same effort, then I'd just have to ride twice as far. Plus, when I was a kid, I always rode single speed bikes, so they're not anything foreign to me.

Some people really get into the fixed gear/zen/perpetual-motion-up-the-hill thing, and that just sounds like a lot of hooie to me, but to each his own. Ride whatever sounds fun to you, and if it's 87 gears or one, go for it.

I guess if you live somewhere flat it would work, but not where I live.

Here in western PA we don't have 3 mile long mountain climbs, but we have plenty of steep, long enough climbs. I was one of the best climbers of the poeple I ride with when I had many gears, I'm still one of the best climbers with only one. I didn't believe it my self, that you could really ride the hills and still have enough speed, but for true single track it works. Even when we ride road sections, I'm twirlling away at about 120rpm, but I still keep up.

Some thing I like about SS are:

1) Flow, you must flow not just downhill, but uphill when finding the perfect line to save energy or a spot of traction for a few hard pedals, instead of just sitting and spinning your granny gear.
2) Fitness, you're basically doing random intervals, you greatly excede your sustainable level of exertion on a long climb but just when you think you can't make it you reach the top. Then you recover on the next down hill, only to repeat again and again. I'd been on a fitness plateau for a while, but now I'm improving again.
3) Form, you must pedal smoothly but very slow and hard at times, you must spin very fast at times.
4) Fun, don't think, just clear your mind, work those pedals and find the flow.

It was not for me. I bought one cheap to see what it was about and ended up selling it a couple of months later. Some people swear by them but IMO gears are the way to go. I found the single speed only fun on rolling single track but very annoying on the flats. Overall not worth it for me. Same for the rigid fork, hated that too.

Some people are faster on a fully-rigid SS then the guys on geared FS.

I went back to gears for a short time, but I just like single speed so much better. Here are a few reasons:

1. Having to stand while climbing = less butt pain.
2. No chain slap while descending.
3. No granny gear means I can't wimp out so I climb faster.
4. Bike looks so much cleaner and meaner without all the extra crap.
5. I'm never in the wrong gear.
6. Less maintenance.

The fool who thinks they are for the flats has it backwards. They suck on flat terrain. Why? Because a good gear for climbing is too low for flat terrain. Single speeds are best in the hills and mountains where mountain bikes belong. But hey, if you like gears and suspension, fine. But I will still kick your butt on the single speed. I hope you don't start crying when I do.

They suck on flat terrain. Why? Because a good gear for climbing is too low for flat terrain.

So a good climbing gear is too low for flat, but not to low for downhill? I would say you have it backwards.



5. I'm never in the wrong gear

Correction: You are almost always in the wrong gear, you just have no choice.

The fool who thinks they are for the flats has it backwards. They suck on flat terrain. Why? Because a good gear for climbing is too low for flat terrain. Single speeds are best in the hills and mountains where mountain bikes belong. But hey, if you like gears and suspension, fine. But I will still kick your butt on the single speed. I hope you don't start crying when I do.

Yea, what Thor29 said.


So a good climbing gear is too low for flat, but not to low for downhill? I would say you have it backwards.

I don't think you really need to pedal much on down hill single track, technique is 90% of your speed. It is most certainly the flats where you suffer somewhat.

Also almost everyone who rides SS has rode multi-gear bikes. Have you rode a SS mountain bike?

I don't think you really need to pedal much on down hill single track, technique is 90% of your speed.I wish I'd known this before pedalling my a** off on this year's downhill race courses. I could have coasted more and gotten better times.

I don't think you really need to pedal much on down hill single track, technique is 90% of your speed. It is most certainly the flats where you suffer somewhat.


You are missing the point. If you usually ride in flat areas, you can use a single gear ratio that is suitable for flat land riding. A singlespeed bike set up for climbing will suck on downhill and vice versa. I live and ride in a very hilly area, I use low gears going up, mid range gears on flats, and high gears going down. There is no way I could ride those trails as fast, or as efficiently with one gear. Thats just a fact.



Also almost everyone who rides SS has rode multi-gear bikes. Have you rode a SS mountain bike?

Did you take a poll to find that out? As I said before I spent years riding a singlespeed bmx bike on trails, I would never go back.

I wish I'd known this before pedalling my a** off on this year's downhill race courses. I could have coasted more and gotten better times.

Yes you may be slightly slower in spots, but over all I've found that I'm still perfectly able to keep up with the people I ride with, and I'm getting stronger and faster with every ride. Of course this applies only when you ride down and up hills. I'm talking XC here. Also I said 90% technique, which will cost you a race if you can't pedal for that last %10 of speed, but on a more casual ride doesn't mean much and you do make up some time on the uphills.

We can argue all day, but even I didn't believe it was possible to ride in only one gear until I tried it. Now I love it and probably won't ride any other way. You do your thing, I'll do mine.

As for rigid vs. non: I have a full rigid (aluminum) cheap mountain bike and, at that price point ($350 CDN), am very glad I don't have a suspension fork. I can't buy a better mountain bike as I am saving for a road bike.
Meanwhile, though I do get beat up, I enjoy every ride and I see myself finding smoother and smoother lines. If I had the money, I would go hardtail FS, but am perfectly happy with full rigid at the moment.

If I had the money, I would go hardtail FS, but am perfectly happy with full rigid at the moment.

I'd love to see one of these hardtail full suspensions.

Is your rigid a single speed?

Yes you may be slightly slower in spots, but over all I've found that I'm still perfectly able to keep up with the people I ride with . . . yadayadayada.Somebody took me way too seriously. Never take dminor seriously - - unless he's being serious. Seriously.

I'd love to see one of these hardtail full suspensions.

Is your rigid a single speed?

lol oh, as I typed I thought, "Front suspension = FS."
Therefore, my ideal bike would be a hardtail with a suspension fork, as you have likely inferred by now.

No, my rigid has gears, I don't think I could swing single speed, as I ride a great deal on the road with this bike, while the trails I ride have some monster hills I can barely ride in my granny gear.

It's an '05 Trek 3500 if you are interested.

I've often noted the .000000000000000000000000001 hp loss created by the chain passing thru two jockey wheels too. Annoying isn't it?


I felt the difference in power transfer from my geared ride immediately. Maybe it has more to do with the chainline, or maybe it's just mental. Either way, I felt it.

Besides, you're exaggerating. The power loss has to be at least .000000000000000002 ;)

So a good climbing gear is too low for flat, but not to low for downhill? I would say you have it backwards.

Correction: You are almost always in the wrong gear, you just have no choice.

There's this really cool thing called gravity - if you let off your brakes, you can go really fast. Try it sometime.

On my single speed I am always in the right gear because I always know what is going to happen when I stomp on the pedals. Also, I chose to have only one gear and I got to pick the gear ratio.

But anyway, this is all off topic. The original topic was "are single speeds more fun". And the answer is, yes, of course. Most of the time. I like to go fast, and I can go just as fast with one gear as I can with 27. (Except on those danged flat sections that I mentioned earlier). It's a personal preference - I love my steel single speed 29er, but maybe you prefer to ride a double squishy with little wheels and lots of gears. To each his own, I guess.

I rode ss for a season and loved it and then built a fixed gear mtb and de-converted the ss into a geared xc and single track machine.

I didn't like the fixed gear for the single track and gave it to a friend after building another trail friendly fixed gear.

Now I am building up a new Kona ss and can't wait to hit the single track and trails with it... I have to agree that an ss that is gearing for climbing leaves something to be desired for the flats but other than that they are a thrill a minute.