i don't know how you SS/FG guys do it. i live in flat-as-a-pancake chicago, but i find that i still NEED gears because i ride directly along chicago's windy-ass lakeshore. on a moderate day i find that my comfortable cruising GIR is 82, but when i have one of those days with a 30 knot headwind on the way into work and then a 30 knot tailwind on the way home, an 82 GIR is woefully inappropriate for both of those conditions. i need to drop down into the 60s (or even 50s) to battle the stiffest headwinds for 15 miles, and then i'll be over 100 on the way home to take advantage of the tailwind pushing me along.

being locked into one GIR all the time would make my rides less fun for me. that's why i got an IGH for my winter commuter, SS-like simplicity, but still allows me to battle the wind on the worst days.

more power to all of you that can do it.