HereNT

I know I'm kind of new to this board, but I have been riding fixed for a couple of years...

The last couple weeks though have seemed to have a lot of 'my first fixed' style postings... A LOT more newbies...

Is this a good thing or not? Why are so many people going for the fix now?

Newbs?

OldSkools?

Anyone know what's causing this trend?

jinx_removing

Could it be that there is a fixie fascination spreading across the globe? I hope so, but I think it may have a lot more to do with the time of year. People see all of the fairweather cyclists out and they want one of their own. Add that to the "hipness" factor of fixies and I think it may explain why there are so many newb questions.

pitboss

summer...it'll peter out again.

HereNT

Good... I've been pretty happy with the winter cycling board so far... think this will be the best winter so far if I actually buy some stuff per the posts there...

I've been seeing a lot more people here on SS or Fix, too, ones that aren't on the board... While I want everyone to be riding fixed, I still wonder about it. I've seen people with rolled up pant legs around here that I know weren't riding to the bar...

Is it the gas prices, or is biking just cool?

riderx

The more people riding bikes, the better (unless they are recumbents ).

??? You mean if you are not riding to the bar then your pants won't get caught in the chain?

HereNT

Yeah, more bikes the better. I'm just wondering why it seems that SS or FIX are popular with riders this year..

The rolled up pant legs that I noticed were from people that didn't ride where they were... I saw them at the bar because that's where I was. I've seen a couple of people walking downtown with about a 1 inch cuff turned back - not enough to actually keep you from catching the chain, which would be the reason for rolling pant legs back...

South Fulcrum

Agreed, the more bikes the better the world is.

The more bars the better the world is.

Pants rolled up? Ya'll are still wearing pants? It's summer. It's 90+. Pants?

modmon

i think the fact that more bike shops have been carrying complete cheap fixed gear bikes and parts (in response to bike messenger culture) has a lot to do with it. now non serious bike riders are able to go to a bike shop and take a good look at a fixie whereas it was probably more difficult to do when fixies were more underground. then throw lance armstrongs tour de france win into the mix and see what happens next.
oh yeah.. fixies make you cooler than anyone on regular bikes. get a fixie and a mesh hat and your on your way to smalltown fame

ink1373

not all new folks are bandwagon types, though...

i got into cycling because i've always wanted to get rid of my car, which i finally did. with the belief system i have (none of that god crap, don't worry), fixed riding was really the only logical choice. i've been riding fixed for only a few months, but i've got the rest of my life planned around it.

here to stay.

shiftlessbast-

I can't help but think that part of it is consumer fatigue with the ridiculously overtech-ed mountain bikes that were all the rage for the past few years. So many people getting upsold on Kleins and Gary Fischers they didn't need, with the Shimano alphabet soup of LX, DX, S***X, Diorama, Peoria...

Do you think that the huge surge in popularity of the beach cruiser style bike is related? I can't ride a block in Denver without seeing someone on one of these things. Now THAT'S a fad.

s2sxiii

echoing the upsold sentiment -- I spent a couple month's looking for a bike for my sister -- she wanted a road bike cause she liked the style better, but the price range was right around 400 bucks -- good luck finding something like that.. we couldn't go into an LBS around here without them trying to sell her a 1200+ women's specific bike. I understand people trying to do their jobs, but when you tell them a price range, they should understand you don't want to spend 3X that or more. Even when was buying parts for my langster, I would tell the LBS guy exactly what i wanted, and he'd still try to sell me something else that was more expensive -- "I want a silver thompson seatpost" "Have you thought about carbon? we have some great carbon seatposts, way more comfortable" -- they try to sell me carbon everything, even a carbon fork when i bought my Langster (that lame specialized one with the gel inserts or whatever).

Moral of the story -- use the forums to find out exactly what you want, order that specifically, and leave the LBS to install it (if you can't do it yourself)

makisupa

I think its a statement of simplicity. In this day when everything else seems to be getting more complicated and out of your control and more expensive, computers, cars, etc. it's nice to be able to have a machine so cheap and simple and yet so effective as a fixed gear. Add to that the damn good looks and the insane fun that can be had and its a clear winner!

interpol

careful, you may be mistaken for sounding elitist. if i'm not mistaken i believe a majority of the people here have sung the praises of fixed over any other type of riding. the vibe seems to be positive, encouraging and inclusive. i sense there is a conflict though, that we all want to promote fixed riding cause we're so excited about it but it will somehow lose it's appeal if every tom, dick and harry is riding one. it's a silly phenomenon but it exists much like one's petering loyalty to a indie band who's now getting radio play. my foray into the world of fixed gear was an evolution bourne out of pragmaticism not a whimsical fancy driven by whats 'cool' today. as for newbs, i'm one. one day i won't be. i've learned a lot from this forum and hopefully someday i can contribute to the community. i believe the trend is a function of riders spreading their enthusiam coupled with the increasing product market. it can't be kept a secret forever.

timmhaan

i don't think so. at least not here. the cat's offically out of the bag. there are so many fixies now it's hard to walk more than a block without seeing one. a lot more than 2 years ago.

pitboss

same here, but consider them the "Jenny (867-5309)" of the urban cyclists.
Those that do stick around, cool. Make it positive. I have seen A LOT of shiny new Pistas hit the streets, only to be put on Craigslist or eBay. Fine. So be it. Not everyone likes it - I just hope that the demand does not skyrocket, and then plummet in a disatrous manner and kill off a lot of smaller industry opportunities. Yet this is typically of the human virus: overconsumption to the point of erradication.
The hardier riders will remain. The ones who do it b/c it looks cool will be seen riding the next trend soon enough.

ryan_c

I'm a "newb", I just built my first fixie, but I started builing it up before I discovered this forum or anything, and still to this day do not know a single other person who rides fixed. I have seen a few recently when I happened to be on the north side, but thats the only live contact I've had with them.

I started really getting into cycling this summer - a combination of not having a running car, not wanting to pay outrageous gas prices, and wanting to get fit. I decided I wanted something a little different from my dad's old Fuji road bike, and in my searches online I found out about fixed gear bikes - so I did a little comparative shopping and put one together. Its simple, it will last, it's a blast to ride, and its probably quite healthy/beneficial, since I'm not riding brakeless on hills or anything.

I believe that interpol stated it very well, so I'm not going to repeat all that, but I agree wholeheartedly.

Defenbacher

I'm going to agree with this. Being a newcomer myself (haven't even finished my first one yet), I must say that what attracted me to them was definitely the simplicity. Skinny road frames with hardly anything hanging off of them just look so fresh, fast, and cool. Plus I (like a lot of other more casual riders, I would assume) have been riding a mountain bike nowhere else but on the streets, and I figured if I'm going to get something built more specifically for the road, why not have it be the simplest, lightest, and fastest it can be? Not to mention the efficency of always pedaling - I mad a conscious effort to always pedal for a while on my freewheel MTB before I sold it, and it was amazing how often one wants to coast, and how it can make riding more difficult overall).

So, all in all, I cannot wait until I finish up my fixed machine and hit the roads. I've already gotten a lot of great info from this forum (I don't really know anything about bicycle mechanics). Thanks to everyone...

pitboss

so what. HereNT is simply asking opinion based on current trends. I certainly do not see elitism rearing its head through his initial dialogue. Only observation and inquiry.

jinx_removing

I agree. I knew someone was going to throw the "E" word out there. Any time a topic like this comes up it always turns into a "you think you're cooler than everyone" debate. Please let's get away from that before this thread turns ugly. It was just an observation on HereNT's part. Yikes.

dgs

I was commuting and riding single track on a mountain bike for two years, and before that commuting on a road bike for 4 years, but had always begrudged the CONSTANT tinkering and aligning thse bikes required, not to moention what a ***** it is to keep a multi-geared bike's drivetrain clean. On Earth Day I ran into some dudes on the street doing free bike tune-ups. I noticed this one guy's bike had a single cog and single chainring and asked him about it. We got to chatting, he let me try it, and I was amazed at how much fun it was (that first ride was scary too). I read up online, got an off-the-shelf pista, replaced everything but the frame after wearing out the sub-par components, and I haven't looked back.

funny: I spend WAY more time tinkering and adjusting the fg than I ever did with the mtn. or road bike, but in the name of fun and upgrades rather than let's try and keep this f*ing bike running smoothly. however, the last few weeks of the stock components' life on the pista were similarly troublesome. You get what you pay for.

interpol

my bad, i apologize for sounding accusatory. it could've turned into an ugly debate without me saying that but it didn't and i think that really speaks to the character of the people here.

shecky

Fixed gear seems something of a trend. I see them among bicycling aficionados, perhaps a bit for the challenge, simplicity and trendiness.

Single speed, however, has been common as long as I can remember. Around here, "beach" cruisers are a serious means of transportation. If there's any trend in this dept, it's that lots of folks are actually purchasing more expensive and stylish cruisers from the LBS rather than picking the Huffy cruiser from xmart. There are even a couple DUIcycles in the neighborhood that have been set up as single speed coaster bikes that have given, and will likely continue to give, years of trouble free service. This segment of population isn't concerned with weight, speed, efficiency. They aren't going to don any special clothing to ride a bicycle. These tend to be very pragmatic and/or casual riders.

Personally, I think most derailer bikes in the LBS are way overkill for the masses.

jinx_removing

I'm surprised that fixed or at least SS isn't even more of a phenomenon. So easy and cheap to maintain.

pitboss

no worries. I just hate it when people lump all the trendy, moronic, whiners in here into one stereotype. You losers.

(yes, I am kidding...)

Serbaside

I've always gone a bike ride everyday since...since...well since I can remeber, BUT I've only in the past 6 months got into the singlespeed stuff. Now I am starting to build up a fixie from a old Le Tour frame. It was realizing I didn't need all those gear...I never even changed gears...
I'm from dallas so we don't get to far away from Ford F-350s here...so I can't speak with much experience about people with SS or fixie bikes

[off topic]
I hate shocks on bike, anyone else hate shocks? Ya bike lately have just been getting too "high-tech" with too many things that can go wrong.
They put shocks in the fork (fine)
Next they put shocks in the bottom frame tube (ok?)
Then they put shocks in the rear (wtf?)
These type of things are on basically every x-mart bike, how many kids that buy bikes like this are gonna be extreme dirt jumping any time soon? None of them
[/off topic]