Commuting - I love SS/FG in concept, but......

there are days like yesterday where i was reminded of how glad i am that i decided to go with an IGH for my foul weather/back-up commuter bike. a 30 knot headwind screaming at me right off the lake for 14 miles on the way in, then an absolutely riotous 30 knot tailwind shoving me along for the 14 miles of my return run home.

the simplicity of a single speed bike really, REALLY appeals to me, but because my commute route takes me directly along the stupidly windy shores of lake michigan, i just don't know how a single gear ratio could work comfortably and enjoyably for both 30 knot headwinds and tailwinds.


an alternate title of this thread: "Why do big giant bodies of water have to be so goddamn windy?"

Be appreciative of the fact that you enjoy a tailwind...

Yeah. I've ridden my new IGH bike for about 650 miles, and I'm hooked. Super easy compared to my touring bike, but still enough to at least get up and down the hills.

I saw a great piece of advice to somebody considering a fixie, they were told to pick a gear on their normal bike and dont change gears. If you like riding like that, the get a fixie.

On the odd occasion when I have ridden with a fixie rider you have to wait for them to pick up speed when the light goes green, as their gear ratio is to high for a fast takeoff. This puts me in the mass of bikes taking off. Then their high speed is generally lower, as they are not geared high enough. If they are, they are even slower to take off...

Also, unless they carry a front brake, and that does seem to defeat the whole idea, they have to be much more ready to stop, as skidding a back tyre is not the quickest way to stop.

Still, I really do see the appeal of such a simple bike....

z

I saw a great piece of advice to somebody considering a fixie, they were told to pick a gear on their normal bike and dont change gears. If you like riding like that, the get a fixie.

I always find that gear... ride a bunch of miles on it. Then run into a nice steep hill :(

I can't understand the appeal of limiting myself to a single speed, even less so have it fixed so that I can't coast. But, around here it's pretty hilly. No one gear will ever be good enough for everything, and going down hills around here fixed just sounds like torture, to me at least. I'll stick to my gears. I've found I need my granny gear sometimes when I'm commuting with my books on the back.

On the other hand, my grandfather lived down in the flats in Louisiana and he refused to ride anything but a single speed because he just didn't need the added complication. I can respect that, and I even imagine a fixed gear wouldn't be unpleasant in such a flat environment.
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It's true that with a fixed gear/ss you can't always have the appropriate gear for any situation, but it's relatively easy to find a ratio that will work consistently if you are a strong rider. FG drivetrains are more efficient than geared bikes so it isn't quite the same as just leaving your bike in one gear and never shifting. You'd be surprised to learn how not having the option to shift really frees up your mind. Also, I don't see how running a front brake defeats the purpose of a FG in any way.

Also, I don't see how running a front brake defeats the purpose of a FG in any way.

Well the whole appeal of a fixie, for me, is that it is a simple as possible. Adding anything would seem to defeat that ideal.

z

I recently had to ride without my rear derailleur for one morning commute (broken cable) and I absolutely hated it. Even though Shanghai is flat as a pancake, there are a couple of bridges that have to be climbed on my route, plus the wind seems to be quite variable, and so I change gears relatively frequently. I just couldn't get by on a single speed. Mechanically simple, maybe, but not being able to keep an efficient cadence in any conditions pretty much ruins the idea for me.

I always find that gear... ride a bunch of miles on it. Then run into a nice steep hill :(

Oh, +10000.

I had a lot of arguments in my head against fixed gear/ss until I lived with it for awhile and now I love it.
Never wished for more gears or felt wanting in traffic.
The simplicity just makes it so enjoyable, hard to describe. There are a lot of good things it does for your spin, strength and it's mentally fun because it's a new challenge for something you take for granted.

It's made me a better rider. I wish I took it up a long time ago.

As to the front brake- if it's needed than that is as simple as possible.
You can go without brakes. Just ride a lot slower or a lot crazier.

Just curious, but how do people ride up hills with SS/FG?

I seriously considered getting a bike with a Alfine 8 when I was bike shopping earlier this year but soon realized it would not go low enough as they came from the store. I figured that I could change the chainring and/or rear cog but if I did that, the top end would be about 70 gear inches maximum according to Sheldon Brown's Gear Calculator. If it went up to 80 or 85 that would be perfect. The Alfine 11 seems to have a much more usable range as it can be geared to have a range from about 23 to 90 gear inches.

My daily commute is quite a workout even with 28T ring 34T cog combination or about 22 gear inches.

It actually feels a little easier to me to climb on a fg but I live in Missouri where even our mountains are really only big hills. I think you would be surprised what you could accomplish in only one gear if you absolutely didn't have the option to switch to another. :)

I've gone up hills in 3rd gear on my 3-speed on occasion that normally I'd use 2nd or 1st if I'm tired. You have to stay 'on top' of the gear, which basically means going like hell into the hill and cranking as hard as you can to stay at a high enough cadence. Still, when I'm tired at the end of a ride, loaded up with lots of stuff, I'm glad to have a couple of lower gears.

I think an IGH setup has many of the advantages of SS/FG (no derailleur to get bashed or clogged up with mud/snow, single fixed loop of chain etc) but gives you more options at the expense of a bit more complexity. Apart from the 3-speeds, they're also difficult to repair. For flat areas a single speed is perfect.

. . . the simplicity of a single speed bike really, REALLY appeals to me, but because my commute route takes me directly along the stupidly windy shores of lake michigan, i just don't know how a single gear ratio could work comfortably and enjoyably for both 30 knot headwinds and tailwinds.

I'd suggest taking a look at (if you haven't already) the SA S3X FG hub. I poo-poo'd it when I first heard it was coming out, took a second more serious consideration of it when I had a little arthritis flare up in my knee, and for the past year of every-day commuting use, have found it to be a revelation.

I really like the idea of a fixie, but have never ridden one. I have to ride a lot of hills both on my commute and other riding (averaging about 100ft per mile), and I don't like having to mash or spin too fast. The most extreme gearing I'd go is probably 1x7. I grew up with a few heavy cruisers that had 1x3 and 1x5 and they weren't too fun.

I once fantasy spec'ed out a fixed gear ratio, checking the gear inches, etc. and ended up with something similar to what Lance Armstrong apparently rode which makes sense since it's a lot of hills. But I would hate not being able to coast when going down some of these hills. And for commuting, forget it, no way I'm sacrificing acceleration or top speed when I'm in first in a line of vehicles at a red light taking the lane.

The big difference I would like to experience for myself is the feel of a tighter chain and having no derailleur. Riding a geared bike without changing gears is not the same, I imagine.

One day I will probably just get a BMX/trick bike (always something I've wanted for my "stable") and that will quench my fixie thirst.

for people wanting to try SS/FG, find a good gear ratio, then don't touch your shifters. Try to live with that for a season and see if it floats your boat.

On long rides, +2 hrs., Shifting to me is second nature, just a flick of the fingers. From my experience, I tend to "free my mind" when I have perfect cadence, otherwise I focus too much on spinning and not lose my footing if the gearing is too low on a long downhill or i focus too much on pushng the pedals and suppressing leg and lung pains when gearing is so high on long uphills.

I converted one of my bikes to fixed/single speed several years ago. Although I enjoyed riding it, the lack of gearing options was very hard on my knees and I had to reinstall gears. You learn how to ride differently when you only have one gear. My problem was that I found that I had to attack all of the hills (and my commute route is very hilly) and that led to knee injuries -- probably because my legs were not warmed up enough for that kind of riding while commuting. My knees started hurting within several weeks of converting my bike to SS and I stupidly did not relate it to the gearing change until I had damaged my knees, which took about 6 months of rehab to clear up (and they still aren't 100%).

However, if you commute in an area with flat terrain, I can see the appeal of riding SS/fixed.

Just curious, but how do people ride up hills with SS/FG?

Basically, you stand up and pedal harder. :)
It takes a bit of adjustment but it's not as bad as it sounds. Somehow this kind of riding feels easier on an SS drive train, though I can't put my finger on why.

I find I can climb moderate hills just as easily on my FG as on my geared road bike, although it gets tiring to keep your momentum up on very long hills. However, past a certain threshold of steepness I can't maintain a reasonable cadence anymore. At that point, climbing on a fixed gear just flat-out sucks. But such hills are rare in my area and I can usually route around them.

Well the whole appeal of a fixie, for me, is that it is a simple as possible. Adding anything would seem to defeat that ideal.

z

This is nonsense. Adding a front and/or rear brake to a fg is merely prudent for commuting under any kind of load or riding in any kind of traffic. Locking one's drivetrain is a nice trick and definately works to stop a given fg, but to commute brakeless is to invite calamity by a substantial percentage. One can choose to ride brakeless as it does look cool. But, the ground is cool @ a constant 55F. Save it for the track. :rolleyes:

everyone keeps mentioning hills in this thread, but i live in chicago, one of the flattest places on our globe. the only "hills" we have here are expressway overpasses. :D

the enemy me for me on my commutes is the wind that often obnoxiously blows along the lake michigan shoreline. on wednesday when the 30 knot winds were blowing, i had to drop down to the 4th gear (52 gear inches) on my alfine 8 IGH (6th is my normal cruising gear (75 gear inches)) to make headway against that awful, awful wind. and unlike hills, wind like that doesn't stop, it just kept blowing and blowing and blowing at me all the way up the lakefront. i can appreciate getting up out of the saddle and powering a SS/FG up a nasty hill along a commute route, but i don't have the realistic option to stand up and power through a 30 knot headwind for all 14 miles of my commute!

i could of course just gear down a SS/FG into the 50 gear inch range, but that doesn't really work all that well for tailwind or wind-neutral days. on wednesday i had that same wind as a tailwind on the ride home, so i bumped my alfine IGH all the way up to 8th gear (99 gear inches) and I was FLYING with the wind all the way home at god only knows what speed. there's no way i would have been able to take advantage of such a ridiculous tailwind like that if i was locked into a 50 gear inch on a SS/FG.

i guess the real point of this thread is that it would be nice to live on a planet without wind. why does the air in my little corner of the world frequently seem to be in such a damn hurry to be somewhere else?

Gears were invented for a reason.

My normal commute route is quite flat, and my primary commuter bike is a single-speed. I like to coast, so I don't run fixed.

If I have after-work activities that take me further east, then I have a few hills I have to deal with. Very ride-able hills, but enough of them in a week and my knees feel it.

If I need to haul anything heavy, I'm riding a geared bike. I made the mistake once of hauling 80lbs of pet supplies in a trailer towed behind the single-speed. Even tiny hills became a problem.

I did ride a 100K populaire with a group of strong riders earlier this year. I was the only bozo on a single-speed. It was a moderately hilly route. I did fall behind, but still made the time cutoff.

My SS is geared about 65 gear-inches. I completely understand the wind being an issue. However, I don't live next to a big lake. :)

everyone keeps mentioning hills in this thread, but i live in chicago, one of the flattest places on our globe.

Yeah, but we still have the heavy traffic to deal with. Being able to take off from a full stop and gain speed quickly is a must, IMO. As mentioned, that's harder to achieve with a fixed gear.

It takes a bit of adjustment but it's not as bad as it sounds. Somehow this kind of riding feels easier on an SS drive train, though I can't put my finger on why.

Perhaps the lack of a derailleur and shorter chain leading to a more direct transfer of force. But I'm just guessing, I've never ridden a FG.

Basically, you stand up and pedal harder. :)
It takes a bit of adjustment but it's not as bad as it sounds. Somehow this kind of riding feels easier on an SS drive train, though I can't put my finger on why.

The pedals carrying your feet back up to the top position from momentum? :)

I'm also fixie-curious. I think of it as a sportier beach cruiser and I loved my cruiser before it was stolen. It was so simple. I may still get one and accept the limitations that it's not gonna be as good as my 3x9 up hills and that I won't be able to kick it into high gear for a burst of speed. I think a fixie would be better in an area that is generally flat or inner city where a tight handling bike. Again, I have not ridden a fixed gear...I just have my reservations.

This is nonsense. Adding a front and/or rear brake to a fg is merely prudent for commuting under any kind of load or riding in any kind of traffic. Locking one's drivetrain is a nice trick and definately works to stop a given fg, but to commute brakeless is to invite calamity by a substantial percentage. One can choose to ride brakeless as it does look cool. But, the ground is cool @ a constant 55F. Save it for the track. :rolleyes:

+1
if i get a fixed gear, it will definitely have brakes.

an alternate title of this thread: "Why do big giant bodies of water have to be so goddamn windy?"

Tell me about it , I'm just a few miles inland of the biggest body of water
on the planet.

Gears were invented for a reason.

Ok, and I enjoy riding my fixed gear. :)



Just curious, but how do people ride up hills with SS/FG?



I have a couple hills on my commute and I learned to deal with it. I have found the all around gear I like and I go. Outside of commuting I actively go climbing on my fixed gear because it is challenging and I get a big sense of satisfaction when I reach the top. Coming back down is even more exhilerating

I ride exclusively singlespeed these days, and I live and ride in very hilly areas. There's no magic solution to finding a gear that will be good for everything. If you only have one, you have to pick and choose your areas of compromise: A tall gear will be good for open flatland cruising and suck for hills or stop 'n' go traffic. A teeny gear will kick ass for climbing and suck for downhills and flatland cruising; you might be first off the line at a stoplight, but you'll get shelled after 10 yards when you're doing 120rpm and stuck at 17mph.

My commuter bike is set to 70 gear inches. I get a cruising speed of 19mph at 90rpm, and I can comfortably climb the mile-and-a-half 5% grade on my way home. The short section of 12% grade on my way to work sucks, but I can grunt my way through it.
My CX race bike varies depending on the course. So far I've used 65 gear inches for my "tall" gear on dry, flat courses and 56 gear inches for my slog gear on muddy, hilly courses or courses with lots of technical turns and few flat-out straighaway sprints. I race Cat-4 35+ against a bunch of dudes with gears and after 4 races I'm still ranked in the top 30% for the the primary series I race in. (I placed top 20 in the secondary series I race.) So it's possible in some situations to be just as quick on a singlespeed as the geared gang.
My brevet bike sits at a cozy 67 gear inches. Rando isn't a race, and I'm not looking to set any speed records. Add in that most rando clubs love hills, so I picked a gear where I can cruise comfortably at 16 - 17 mph without spinning too high, still have reserves into the headwinds without digging too deep, and I can climb most long grades without getting up out of the saddle. I'm not going to be setting any speed records, but I can easily finish all but the toughest of courses within the allocated time.

I have my next 3 bikes planned out in my mind. The next one is definitely a road bike, the one after that is a Moonlander, and the third one is going to be a fixie. I don't see using the fixie all the time, and definitely not for commuting, but I see using it for fun when I feel whimsical. Originally I was thinking of making the Moonlander a fixie, but to be honest that doesn't seem like a great idea if I decide to take it into some deep snow.

I'm too much of an engineer to handle riding a fixie all the time, but the historian in me wants to feel oneness with the original bicycles as well.

PS: when I do eventually get a fixie, I'm thinking of going with a double crank plus a dingle plus a flip-flop, with no derailleurs. That'll give me 6 total ratios (4 fixie, 2 SS), but I'll have to get off the bike to change gears. Is that cheating? :D

I love my fixed gear and ss bikes but when I was looking at riding into a 30mph headwind today was happy to have 18 speeds to work with.

If I had two good legs riding fixed into severe winds would not be as much of a problem as it is now.

I have gears, but have started another experiment of going to SS by finding one gear and leaving it there. Been two days without shifting; if I make it for a full month, then I can explore further about committing funds to a dedicated SS bike.

I have gears, but have started another experiment of going to SS by finding one gear and leaving it there. Been two days without shifting; if I make it for a full month, then I can explore further about committing funds to a dedicated SS bike.

This is the way I made the transition. Rode a dedicated ss commuting for a year before I made the jump to fg w/t same GI. Then after 2 years I've increased the GI by a little over 5 inches. Now I've got a dedicated multi-geared commuter for hauling clothing, food for the week on Mondays. The rest of the week I use a fg w/seatpost rack/trunkbag combo for hauling the day's clothes and food containers homeward. Love the 2 bike system. There have been a few 'fg days' when I woke up to 'the wall' and having the multi-gear available was a welcome relief. My rt commute is 42 rolling miles w/84.4 GI. It's a beast at times.

Someone previously mentioned the SA S3X...there's a Mercier at BD for under 400.00US. Steel frame, rack bosses, etc. W/a 78.8 GI chainring/cog combo one wonders whether the ratio goes up from there or down. Would think it would be lower. Especially for loaded commuting. I've got an old Raliegh Sport that is in 3d gear at rest going lower w/each shift. Probably follows the same design except fixed.

I've been a "full time " SS/FG rider for few years now. This means I don't own any geared bike anymore. I have 3 bikes and none of them have gears. As long as I am healthy and strong I want to continue riding SS/FG.. I don't really want to go back to gears. On very windy days I just go slower, in winter time I gear down and spin more.
I don't have a problem if it takes me a little longer to get to my destination. I live and ride in flat/rolling terrain, but some rural areas I ride are very hilly.

I've been a "full time " SS/FG rider for few years now. This means I don't own any geared bike anymore.

SS/FG's has gear.

Ok, and I enjoy riding my fixed gear. :)





Nothing wrong with that. Ride on.

As for me, multi-gear is a must. :)

I have two Masi Speciale Commuters. One set up as a SS, the other multi-geared and I use the SS 99% of the time. When I do take out the multi-geared, I ride it like a single speed as in I hardly ever shift.

Like the OP I live in a flat city on a Great Lake and yes sometimes there is wind. I just put my head down and pedal hard.

Everyone is different, we all ride what ever bike we want but we still have one thing in common, we commute by bicycle. Lucky us!

I'm also fixie-curious.
I think I might be SS-curious. I may try to put one together sometime. Generally it's flat around here and I can probably get through most hills. If I can't I'm certainly willing to walk the bike. Walking is good exercise.

For me, I figure a 42 front ring and about a 16 or 18 on the back..

I have a new project that I might single speed it up. It would certainly be interesting.

Basically, you stand up and pedal harder. :)
It takes a bit of adjustment but it's not as bad as it sounds. Somehow this kind of riding feels easier on an SS drive train, though I can't put my finger on why.

I find I can climb moderate hills just as easily on my FG as on my geared road bike, although it gets tiring to keep your momentum up on very long hills. However, past a certain threshold of steepness I can't maintain a reasonable cadence anymore. At that point, climbing on a fixed gear just flat-out sucks. But such hills are rare in my area and I can usually route around them.

My commute involves a section of 12-15% grade where even 22 inch gear is quite difficult. The 1/4 mi on either side of this is about 8-10% grade. I'm not able to any part of this in my 36T middle chainring at all. Do you just zig-zag or walk up the street in this type of situation?

When climbing:

1. Maintain momentum as long as possible.
2. Sit and spin until you have to stand and smash.
3. Keep cranking until you reach stall speed.
4. Get off and walk.

Keep at it and before you know it, you'll find you won't be walking anymore :).

SS/FG's has gear.

Thanks for telling me, I didn't know that.

Do you just zig-zag or walk up the street in this type of situation?

On some of the rural roads that I ride, Zig-Zag is the only way to ride up, can't do it in a straight line, sometimes I come across a hill where I just get off and walk part of the way, this only happens on my recreational rides... my daily commute doesn't have any big hills. I run 65-70 gear inches.

I absolutely can't stand fixed gear -- to me it's incredibly annoying to be forced to spin down hills while resisting and riding the front brake. That's just me though, a lot of people like it and more power to them.

I love riding SS though. I ride a trek earl every day to work and love it. It's quiet and needs almost no maintenance whatsoever.

When climbing:

1. Maintain momentum as long as possible.
2. Sit and spin until you have to stand and smash.
3. Keep cranking until you reach stall speed.
4. Get off and walk.

Keep at it and before you know it, you'll find you won't be walking anymore :).

right now im riding my FG in SS mode but thats what i do. and i haven't been riding for long(3 weeks?) on my current commute route is only 2.3 miles with about 50/50 up n down hill and im already able to make it up every hill. my strategy is haul ass down hill, pray for a green light, and pace myself going up. wakes me up in the morning. :)

I alternate between my roadie and fixie just because I like to mix it up. The fixie is more fun though.

I've ridden SS for commuting for about a year now and love the clean look and simplicity. I've built some muscle so the hills are not a problem (they are short so climbing them is like a quick sprint). Wind is a bit of an issue - almost wore me out last Friday. The only thing I regret is not being able to go to a higher gear on the flats. That's about to change since I am building up some new wheels. For the rear, I opted for the Sturmey Archer S2, with the kick back 138% second gear. I don't know what I will end up with as far as gearing and will experiment a bit. I am aiming for 2 gears that straddle my current set up 50/50.

I decided on the S2 primarily because of the simplicity - no cables or levers.

-G

To each their own preference but I will always ride multi-gear bikes for one reason. In my eyes the bicycle is a machine intended to efficiently utilize the energy produced by the human. Multiple gears do that more efficiently (at least in the vast majority of commutes). That...and I like tinkering with any and every machine I own. The more parts the better, so long as they do not negatively affect the efficiency of said machine. If SS/FG is more fun for you then by all means that is what you should ride. But for me...fixed gear will always be a flawed design as will single speed (albeit to a lesser extent).