Originally Posted by
GettinMyLanceOn
For getting around the city, I recommend you look around for an older road bike. You see a lot of these on the streets in cities not only because they are relatively cheaper, but they are also less likely to be stolen. As far as single speeds, I don't get it. My experience with SS is that you need to have proper gearing in relation to your weight/strength, which can be a pain. For example, with my friend's bike, he can fly on that single speed, but I can get on it and pedal like lightning, but it won't go nearly half speed. I'm a few inches taller than him, but also probably 60-70 pounds heavier. I'm much stronger, yet that means nothing since the gearing isn't high enough for me. Fixed gears don't really make sense either. There's a reason why track bikes are called track bikes and road bikes road bikes. You're boned when it comes to climbing with a fixie, but at least you'll build considerable strength.
Hey there TohTruck!
This is really great advice, but it requires much time, patience, and some basic bicycle knowledge. You shouldn't just grab the first thing that you see off of Craigslist. Some people try to dump their defective bikes off on CL. Sometimes, you can find potentially great deals on CL. However, you might not be aware of it due to your lack of bicycle knowledge. OTOH, you might not have the time to make the proper adjustments or installations on your bike, even though you might have the knowledge. There's nothing better than finding an old chromoly steel ten speed off of Craigslist for $150, that fits and is in relatively good condition. However, these deals are usually rare and require patience. It's a lot like fishing! Sometimes you just need a little luck.
* This is really more related to my question about your personal cycling condition...Like,
what type of physical condition are you in for the cycling experience? I was just trying to assess your ability to handle a single speed.
Originally Posted by
richard4993
Thats why all of my bikes are geared. I think not having gears is more of a fashion statement than anything. They do have less things to break but personally I like the ride better on a geared bike as I'm not just stuck in one gear so if I'm going up a steep hill I can shift down and if I'm going down hill I can shift into the highest gear and fly.
Having the extra gears TohTruck, is a definite advantage that you just might be able to use, if your cycling skills increase and your desire to cycle increases, at all. You'll find that having the gears when needed is better than not having them available, at all. That's regardless has to how infrequently that occasion may present itself.
Originally Posted by
Spld cyclist
If I were in your position, I wouldn't even consider getting a single speed. These days, derailleurs and shifters are quite reliable and don't add all that much to the cost of the bike. Also, if you're going to be riding in traffic (and in NYC there's no way not to ride in traffic), you're going to want to be able to accelerate quickly and cruise at speeds that allow you to interact with cars. If you're not a really strong rider, you will really want gears for that. If you do some off-road riding at some point, you will also probably want gears.
The case against a single speed is valid, only if you're not a strong enough cyclist, to really ride a single speed, efficiently. Of course, if you're absolutely NOT going to ever encounter any hills, and you're absolutely NOT going to ever require yourself to
"accelerate quickly and cruise at speeds that allow you to interact with cars", then a single speed just might be the prescription for your cycling needs.
So I guess the bottom line is, get a single speed if that's really what your heart truly desires, but realize that you might be inconvenienced by that particular selection, at sometime in the future. Having said that, I live in the Bay Area and there are more single speeds here than you can shake a stick at! The single speedsters seem to be quite happy!
Personally, I would have no use for a single speed, because I just hate hills!
- Slim
PS.
Just think! There once was a time when all we had were single speeds
