Commuting - Why do lots of fixie riding hipsters use straight bars

Because the short flat bars are suitable for short urban rides, tricks, and maintaining a certain aesthetic... look at any riders who lay down the serious miles and you won't see many flat bars.

I rode 165 miles on a fixed gear in something like 9 hours. No problems there. Done the same ride on a geared road bike in something like 8 hours. Also no problems there. My first 100 miler I did through some hilly terrain with a 35lb mtb, shocks bouncing like crazy, 26x1.8" slicks, riser bars, in something like 6.5 hours.

I think you meant to say "look at some riders who lay down the serious miles and you may not see many flat bars.

Look at a lot of serious messengers around here. Flat bar, brakeless, doing 2-400 miles a week. If that's not serious mileage, what is?

shonts [like shants, only shorter, but longer than regular shorts]


What if they're between shonts and shorts?

Honest, show of hands, how many people making assumptions here have ever ridden a fixed gear in heavy city traffic?


Me me me me me! I done did that. I even was ran into by a car while riding my old fg. Do I get a medal?

Anyhow, all I said was that short flat bars look silly (or something to that effect).
I suppose I shouldn't have replied to your post. Oh well...

IMO, the whole fixe thing is more of a fad fashion statement than anything. Thus, you will see a fashionable trend in the gear and look of fixe's.

I mean - it's OK. Whatever is fun and cool on two wheels is good by me. I like the idea of being able to stand at a stoplight without putting your feet down and without falling down. That is neat.

The first guys who road bicycles across the American continent did it on fixe's with single position handlebars, so mileage on them is do-able. I bet if those guys had the choice with modern equipment, though, they would gladly ride multi-geared bikes with freehubs.

On m y fixed gear i have a front brake only, and it's on top not on the drops.
http://www.2404.org/smull/fuji/4.jpg

I'm thinking of switching to bullhorns since i'm not really using the drops.

I switched to bull horns from some old flipped bars. Man these things are great, there's so many hand positions. Sometimes I'm using 2 different hand positions at one time. :D

just make sure there tilted up just a bit or they hurt your wrists.

[QUOTE=mike;6997518]IMO, the whole fixe thing is more of a fad fashion statement than anything. Thus, you will see a fashionable trend in the gear and look of fixe's.

Not everyone is into fashion....I love to build bikes and ride them..all kinds.....my favorite is my fixie...Oh how I adore her.....For this simple reason- low maintenance and easy upkeep. no derailures to fail, no free wheels to lock up on you randomly, nothing but the road and the hum of your tires gripping the pave in a tight turn onto a major street with traffic trying to keep up with you....man I love the look on their faces...

Last fixie I had had a sugino 75 drive train, izumi V chain, philwood cog, and it sounded like a meat grinder...

slvoid - Would you ride on short flat bars for 100 miles straight ?

And if so, why ?

Couriers can lay down some serious mileage (I know lots of them and fix their rides) but they are also on and off their bikes a lot which gives the arms and wrists a break.

I have ridden fixed centuries but prefer my touring (drop) bars over anything else as for extended rides with fewer or even no breaks having multiple hand positions is something I consider pretty essential.

As to fixed gear bikes being a fad.. they have been around longer than any other kind of bike and if anything are experienced a renaissance.

I was going to take my road bike but the forecast said possible thunderstorms and the carbon wheels I have don't really brake well in the wet. Plus it was going by a sandy road and I didn't want the sand chewing up the carbon rim so I took the fixie instead.

At the end of the day, I had some knee pain from a saddle that was rotated something like, a quarter degree too much to the right, something i never noticed on rides under 100 miles.

So i really wasn't planning on it but it turned out to be not so bad.


slvoid - Would you ride on short flat bars for 100 miles straight ?

And if so, why ?

Couriers can lay down some serious mileage (I know lots of them and fix their rides) but they are also on and off their bikes a lot which gives the arms and wrists a break.

I have ridden fixed centuries but prefer my touring (drop) bars over anything else as for extended rides with fewer or even no breaks having multiple hand positions is something I consider pretty essential.

As to fixed gear bikes being a fad.. they have been around longer than any other kind of bike and if anything are experienced a renaissance.

What if they're between shonts and shorts?

Back in the 80s they were called Jams.

Risers are for barspinnzzzzz!

Along with 650c Arrospoks for teh front wheelz :p

Tarck it up, baby!

Back in the 80s they were called Jams.

"jams"

*spits out milk*

Wow. ain't heard that word in along time. ;)

chopped flat bars are flop.

that being said, if you ride your fixed gear and do mad stunts, it's function.

"I chopped them to navigate city gridlock" is blowing smoke.

if you've chopped your bars narrower than your buddies in a one-upmanship fashionista battle, yet can't spin your bars while stopped, you win the poseur prize.

Fixed gear idiocy is currently in vogue with youth.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3022/2577812021_743a72ff1c_o.jpg

Looks even worse on frames intended for actual racing.

SS/FG is filling with these abominations.

http://www.zweg.com/ico/yak.gif

The reason I bought a flat-bar bike was because it was cheaper. Every road bike I looked at was a couple hundred more expensive. I bought a Specialized Sirrus. I would have preferred the base Allez but it was too expensive. I really love the Sirrus, but would love it even more if I could put drop bars on it. Can anyone tell me how doable this is? I'm not mechanically inclined! Would my thumb shifters work on drop bars? I'm assuming they would, but would be difficult to use and uncomfortable.

The reason I bought a flat-bar bike was because it was cheaper. Every road bike I looked at was a couple hundred more expensive. I bought a Specialized Sirrus. I would have preferred the base Allez but it was too expensive. I really love the Sirrus, but would love it even more if I could put drop bars on it. Can anyone tell me how doable this is? I'm not mechanically inclined! Would my thumb shifters work on drop bars? I'm assuming they would, but would be difficult to use and uncomfortable.


Drop bars have a bigger diameter than flats, so the "cheap" way to convert would be to buy bar-end shifters and new brake levers. STI is awesome but expensive. If your Sirrus has V-brakes, you need to get proper brake levers that work with them.

The other option is a trekking bar, which is the same diameter as flat bar, so you can use the same gear.

Ok, taking this thread in a slightly different direction...

The word "hipster" has been thrown around a lot. What do you define as a "hipster?" What does a "hipster" look like? (I'm sure everyone will have a different concept of this)

-Is it the punk rock bike messenger who's been riding for 15 years, and thinks he is a bike god?
-Is it the rookie bike messenger who want's to to be the person above?
-Is the the weekend warrior?
-Is it any kind of noobie?
-Is it the college kid who is just going through an identity "phase?"
-Is it the fan of so-called "irony fashion?"

To me it means anyone who conforms to the latest fad or fashion...

Ok, taking this thread in a slightly different direction...

The word "hipster" has been thrown around a lot. What do you define as a "hipster?" What does a "hipster" look like? (I'm sure everyone will have a different concept of this)


Its those kids with the stupid hats and beards who listen to indie rock and think they are so cool. They need to be extincted!!!

That's nothing. Check this thing out:

http://img399.imageshack.us/img399/6533/4y79vy9hn0nh8.jpg


http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3022/2577812021_743a72ff1c_o.jpg

Looks even worse on frames intended for actual racing.

SS/FG is filling with these abominations.

http://www.zweg.com/ico/yak.gif

we should stop this before this just becomes another jackass ssfg of the day thread.

we should stop this before this just becomes another jackass ssfg of the day thread.

It's headed that way, no doubt :thumb:

we should stop this before this just becomes another jackass ssfg of the day thread.

I think that's all the more reason to KEEP POSTING! :p

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3022/2577812021_743a72ff1c_o.jpg

Looks even worse on frames intended for actual racing.

SS/FG is filling with these abominations.

http://www.zweg.com/ico/yak.gif
Uhh not really. The bike looks great.

Yeah I don't really get why narrow flat bars have gained so much traction in the fixed gear world. Bullhorns make a lot more sense, and look cooler to me, if thats what you are going for. You can still do the colored mountain bike grip thing with bullhorns. I think people get intimidated by drops because they look uncomfortable. I prefer road drops myself.
Sometimes it irritates me when I see narrow flats because I hate how they look, and I would find them to be crappy to ride with. Then I tell myself to lighten up.

What's the difference?

All hipsters are dorks

Not all dorks are hipsters

Fred rules all.

chopped flat bars are flop.

that being said, if you ride your fixed gear and do mad stunts, it's function.

"I chopped them to navigate city gridlock" is blowing smoke.

if you've chopped your bars narrower than your buddies in a one-upmanship fashionista battle, yet can't spin your bars while stopped, you win the poseur prize.

Fixed gear idiocy is currently in vogue with youth.
It could be so much worse. They could be doing these one-upsmanship things with motor vehicles.

One speed
One hands position
One style of clothing
One type of food
One music
One hairstyle
One "language"
One lifestyle

Welcome to the future!

Not relevant to commuting but this is where I post and read so deal with it. Why do I see all of these fixed gear bikes with wee little straight bars about the same width as my drops. Its like drops but with less hand positions available. And its clear than most of these bikes have been converted from bikes that would have had drops. So someone must have taken the drops off and replaced them. Is there a good reason for this? Am I missing something?

A flat bar will have fewer hand positions. Otoh, "look around" and grip for steering and braking will be MUCH stronger. Hint: why do you think MTBs have flat bars? For riding in traffic flats can make much sense.

Also otoh, those multiple hand positions on drops really equal "too low to see", "second rate braking", "can see, but can't brake" - at least in traffic. (Most drop bar users haven't realized all of the above because they don't know how to brake aggressively, so braking grip isn't an issue for them.)

As for cutting flats down, the correct size is about shoulder width, for fairly obvious reasons. (Hint: try sticking your arms in front of you.)

As for cutting flats down, the correct size is about shoulder width, for fairly obvious reasons. (Hint: try sticking your arms in front of you.)

Well, yeah, except the style is to cut them down as narrow as the flat portion of a drop bar:

http://img399.imageshack.us/img399/6533/4y79vy9hn0nh8.jpg

These really are just neutered drops, and provide very little leverage, or function (tricks are not a function).

to be hip

Ok, taking this thread in a slightly different direction...

The word "hipster" has been thrown around a lot. What do you define as a "hipster?" What does a "hipster" look like?

A dork with tats?

A dork with tats?

Does one with tats become an instant dork? Say it ain't so!!!

Does one with tats become an instant dork? Say it ain't so!!!

Only if he/she is a hipster on a fixie especially if wearing shants.:)

Only if he/she is a hipster on a fixie especially if wearing shants.:)

Whew!!!! :twitchy:

The fixie craze is a resurgence of infatuation with bike messengers. Think "Quicksilver" but 20 years later.

Jamies aged nicely

http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/0fE9gyn4Uc2nx/340x.jpg

Kershaw looks almost the same

http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg194/unregistered_coward/kershawwhitney.jpg?t=1215208758

Weird, I thought bullhorns will all the rage with fixies. I know a local bike shop that runs a blog in which they post builds and conversions and several of their fixies has been converted with bullhorns.

Also, I found this video when looking up a pair of Nitto bullhorns... it's cool as hell: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoTMnlSFU64

Also, I found this video when looking up a pair of Nitto bullhorns... it's cool as hell: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoTMnlSFU64


Fruitboots vs Fixies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeNmFhIjGXE

And something completely irrelevant: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vy2aJY6rq8

Weird, I thought bullhorns will all the rage with fixies. I know a local bike shop that runs a blog in which they post builds and conversions and several of their fixies has been converted with bullhorns.

Also, I found this video when looking up a pair of Nitto bullhorns... it's cool as hell: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoTMnlSFU64
Nice video. Are bladers that fast in real life?

Nice video. Are bladers that fast in real life?

Well, I never was anyway!

Nice video. Are bladers that fast in real life?

While gliding downhill, an inline skater in a tucked position can achieve speeds that exceed the speed of a tucked cyclist. This is due to lower wind resistance. The rolling resistance is similar for a cyclist and a skater -- it is only when actively skating (i.e., in the skating stroke) that the skater incurs greater resistance. Skating is roughly 50% slower than cycling on flat ground. Skaters routinely achieve downhill speeds of 60 km/h, similar to cyclists. Compared to cyclists, though, skaters particularly suffer on uphills, when the drafting advantage disappears.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_skating

Wouldn't want to hit a bump going fast on inlines.

[QUOTE=sean000;6994121]

On the other hand I think swept back upright bars (Albatross bars and the like) look great on racing frame single speeds (especially if it's an older lugged steel frame). /QUOTE]

+1 ..... got one of my havnooians set up that way.

A flat bar will have fewer hand positions. Otoh, "look around" and grip for steering and braking will be MUCH stronger. Hint: why do you think MTBs have flat bars? For riding in traffic flats can make much sense.

Also otoh, those multiple hand positions on drops really equal "too low to see", "second rate braking", "can see, but can't brake" - at least in traffic. (Most drop bar users haven't realized all of the above because they don't know how to brake aggressively, so braking grip isn't an issue for them


You're kidding, right? Can't brake? Don't racers decelerate from 50mph? The difference in stopping power between road bikes and MTBs isn't because of the levers. It's because of the brakes. Would a road bike with drops and discs be a poor stopper? There's absolutely nothing about the drop bar that gives a rider less visibility. There are bike fit issues that do, but I've seen plenty of fixie hipsters running their flat bar way lower than I run my drops.