Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - So whats it like?

Im interested in fixed gear but haven't bought one yet. Wonder what they are like to ride, I figure there is a reason 18speed are more popular but I dont usually do what is 'in' anyhow. Comared to a standard 18 speed road bike with equal riders which is faster in a city race through trafic for instance. Didnt know what difference there was in a fixed gear compaired to picking an equal ratio on my 18 speed and just not shifting. The frame geometry I have seen looks like it would be a fast handeling bike.

Riding fixed STILL makes me a better lover.

If you drink your coffee black, you'll do fine fixed...

If you've ever had a major crash that involved spilt blood and a broken bike that you've stood up from smiling, you may well dig the fix.

If you can't go, can't stop, can't afford a bike, you'll love fixed.

You know, that'd make a great bumper sticker......if I had a car.

I can pop off a nicely clustered 3 round grouping from a trackstand with my .45

You grow a larger c**k from riding fixed. Sooner or later you have to find a place to hide it so it doesn't get crushed on your tiny seat. Eventually you have to start taking anti-growth pills to reverse the trend.

If you like a super light bike and lived in a cramped apartment you will love fixed. After owning a Trek Navigator for a while I practically threw my Langster up in the air after trying to lift it. It has to weigh atleast 15 lbs less!

If you are wondering whether or not to buy one and don't want to spend a crap load of cash I hear you brother. See my other recent thread on the Langster. For around $400 you can own a fixie that will give you a bigger hard on than a case of Viagra.

As for speed - this thing is pure torque. Ever see that tech demo movie for the upcoming x-box video game, "Rallisport Challenge 2"? The music and insanity of that is what I think of when I ride this bike. I can't wait to go down a hill on this thing on the drops. Oh dear god help me now..

Riding fixed is like having a tiger by the tail, hold on, don't try to stop.

How the hell do you stop the damned thing anyways?

Riding fixed is like having a tiger by the tail, hold on, don't try to stop.

How the hell do you stop the damned thing anyways?

direct drive = pedals moving = backpressure on pedals = brakes

This question is like a virgin asking about sex. You just gotta do it to understand the feeling.
And just not shifting on your road bike is just self pleasure, you might convince yourself that it's the same, but it's not, and you know it.
You know you'll like it, just find one to jump on and ride, you'll want to do it over and over.

direct drive = pedals moving = backpressure on pedals = brakes

What? You mean you can stop? I've been doing something wrong.

This question is like a virgin asking about sex. You just gotta do it to understand the feeling.
And just not shifting on your road bike is just self pleasure, you might convince yourself that it's the same, but it's not, and you know it.
You know you'll like it, just find one to jump on and ride, you'll want to do it over and over.Best answer yet!

i can't be bothered to buy and/or set up deraileurs.

fssb
sparky

If you hate your knees, you'll love fixed.

If you think that becoming "one with the road" means leaving a long, bloody trail of yourself on the pavement, you'll love fixed.

If your camel-back is filled with whiskey instead of water, you probably already ride fixed.

You people are FREAKS! That's why I would love to meet some of you for PBR, whiskey or whatever HereNT has in his camelbak that day.

Hey 165, is that Auto or Long Colt. I prefer Long Colt but the Auto is definitely more packable.

ClevelandGuy, don't let 'em scare you. Go to Sheldonbrown.com and read some of his stuff on fixed gear. You just have to kind of expose yourself to the concept and see if it grows on you.

1911a...straight

Nothin to be scared of. It takes a little bit of getting used to because you'll forget you can't coast at least once. Once you get the hang of it, ain't no thang.

In fact, my fixie is much better at driving me home after a long night of drinking than my road bike ever was.

']1911a...straight

sorry 165, but since the concealed carry law passed here in Ohio, i pack my h&K .45 usp tactical. Perhaps we should all band together and form some kind of vigilante fixie riders gang, roaming the streets and fighting crime. our batsignal could just be a track cog...

side note: for the batsignal to work, it would have to be cloudy for signal to have something to reflect off of, otherwise you'd just see a spotlight shooting up. Did they only get ahold of Batman on the overcast nights in Gotham?

Once you get the hang of it, ain't no thang.




...said the man whose left collarbone is conspicuously shorter than its rightside counterpart.

']1911a...straight

Doesn't anyone use a sawed off shot gun anymore?

You will know if the fix is for you in the first 50 feet of riding. After that, and you are lucky enough to become a convert, you will find excuses to ride the damn thing 50 feet because it is such a ball. It is a perverse thing, like not being able to keep your finger or tongue off a sore tooth.

Expect your riding buds to not understand, but that okay, as you are the one that gets the giggles on every ride.

Dave

Doesn't anyone use a sawed off shot gun anymore?

Nah, too cumbersome. Speaking of which, I ran across a put gun a few months back. Majorly thick barrel. The old fur trappers used to have them mounted to their river boats and they would fill the barrel with gravel, etc. and shoot ducks. Hmmmm. maybe a mount on the handlebars and.......

DAve

It's like smoking skank bud all your life wondering what everyone is going on about. Then smoking some primo Hawaiian bud, and you see god, or your version of a supreme being. It's definately life changing.

This question is like a virgin asking about sex. You just gotta do it to understand the feeling.

Best analogy yet! Better than smoking pot for the first time analogy...

George

I have this thing that I started doing when I get off work. My work is one mile from my home so it's not nearly enough to get the blood flowing as far as a ride. So I sprint for a mile. Hard and fast, when the stop lights change I make an emergency right. No brakes. No stops. Spinning out for a mile. Car coming? Hit the sidewalk, cross the parking lot. Was that a cop? Too bad, he will never catch me.

Then I'm home and my legs tremble.

at the risk of being flayed, i don't think fixed gear is all that different from free wheelin gears. there are subtleties, sure, but you pedal and the bike goes. maybe the biggest thing is that it's a bike at it's most basic state.

that said, i really appreciate the subtleties.

at the risk of being flayed, i don't think fixed gear is all that different from free wheelin gears. there are subtleties, sure, but you pedal and the bike goes. maybe the biggest thing is that it's a bike at it's most basic state.

that said, i really appreciate the subtleties.

Yup, life is found in the subtleties.

Dave

Im interested in fixed gear but haven't bought one yet. Wonder what they are like to ride, I figure there is a reason 18speed are more popular but I dont usually do what is 'in' anyhow. Comared to a standard 18 speed road bike with equal riders which is faster in a city race through trafic for instance. Didnt know what difference there was in a fixed gear compaired to picking an equal ratio on my 18 speed and just not shifting. The frame geometry I have seen looks like it would be a fast handeling bike.

If you do not tend to coast most of the time when you ride, then the difference will be subtle. The biggest thing, as Sheldon describes, is the lack of details to pay attention to. If there is a hill, you will either pedal harder, stand up and pedal harder, or get off and walk. No more worrying about what gear to pick, etc. That being said, I did spend considerable time trying to pick a good gear up front due to the fact that I don't want to grow a collection of cogs and rings at the outset. Go for a ride on your geared bike and concentrate on pedalling all the time. Try to pick a gear that is a little easier than one that you think you could get by with up the hills you wanna ride. I think I picked a little too high a gear, but I'll just grow into it at this point, and as my pedalling becomes more "round" and smooth, I find I can turn that gear as necessary to be comfortable.

As for the comments about shredding your knees: it depends on your knees. I am apparently not the only one that had knees shot from football who finds that cycling in any form IMPROVES the feeling of me knees.

Best advice: just try it. Somebody mentioned that a LBS let them try a Langster. See if you can get the same opportunity.

Riding fixed STILL makes me a better lover.

What kind of data do you have to back that up?

Charts, graphs, flow charts?

I am looking forward to my first fixed ride on saturday. Looking forward to the feeling of no coasting.

flow charts?
Do you really want to see the flow chart?

Do you really want to see the flow chart?

Power point style, sure.

You grow a larger head from riding fixed. Sooner or later you have to find a place to hide it so it doesn't get crushed in your tiny helmet. Eventually you have to start taking anti-growth pills to reverse the trend.

Skitbra in da mix, yo.

Power point style, sure.
Yeah, I got yer power point right here...

Yeah, I got yer power point right here...
Whoa whoa whoa WHOA..

Back off there tigger.

Easy now.

No reason to go whiping things out in front of the kids...

Nah, too cumbersome. Speaking of which, I ran across a put gun a few months back. Majorly thick barrel. The old fur trappers used to have them mounted to their river boats and they would fill the barrel with gravel, etc. and shoot ducks. Hmmmm. maybe a mount on the handlebars and.......

DAve

You're thinking too hi-tech.

If you fire something with recoil, you will need to brace yourself. You can't just point and shoot without hitting the asphalt.

I've been debating how to do it for awhile now - looking at crossbows (aim for tires) on ebay has only pistol/rifle styles - you have to have a holster or carry it in one hand the whole time... I want a wrist launched arrow for tires.

It's either that or just get a paint gun or a wrist slingshot and start tagging a**hole drivers. If you see a SUV with a big 'ol paint smear, you'd know to keep away.

When riding motorcycles, I used to keep a pocketful of spark plug porcelain. It'll do a number on a windshield. Quiet too.

I don't advocate violence, I just actualize it.

I never understood how pieces of sparkplug porcelin can shatter tempered glass. How is that?

When riding my bike, I strap a 2ft section of rebar to the side...just for motorcycles.

sawn off paintball gun with ball bearings in the magazine?

[i get a semi-on thinking about the possibilities]

fssb
sparky

I liked fixed gear for the same reason I like my 1911a, they get the job done without a lot of fuss. I wish I was as good of shot as 165.

I still find it quite bizarre that it's legal to posess a gun. I guess it's just what you grow up with. It's not like I ever saw a gun though when I lived in the US or worried someone might pull one anymore than when living in the UK I guess. Why do you guys own one out of interest? Is it in case some funkster breaks into your house and tries to steal your fixie? Do you carry it with you? I mean I've fired a ton of weaponry (SA80, M16, LSW, AK47, MP5, Uzi, Ultramax etc) on shooting ranges when I was in highschool, but I still wouldn't ever feel like I'd want a gun.

I never understood how pieces of sparkplug porcelin can shatter tempered glass. How is that?


Rumour has it that thieves use it to break into safety glass and other heavy glass for smash and grabs.

Never tried it myself. Must have something to do with density or vibrations.