Originally Posted by
Phil_gretz
The point is that this thread brings out the passions and prejudices, as well as fears and convictions of its posters.
That’s well said. After fifty some years of riding a freewheel, I have concerns that I will mess up if I try to ride fixed, and the healing and repairs at my age may take a while. Plus, I’m riding on a lot of complex terrain… not single track but lots of rough places, old bridges with big metal plates, short radius trail underpasses with sharp descents and sharp turns, rough gravel and stone patches. I am familiar with managing all that while coasting and then accelerating when it seems optimal. It would be a whole new deal to negotiate all of those things while having to continually pedal.
OTOH, I’m very interested in trying it, after all our discussion of internal vs external pedaling work and how fixed gear lets you push forward, maintain exact speed or even force the bike to do work on your feet and legs and slow down. So, I may get a flip flop rear wheel that will let me try fixed on less challenging terrain. Hopefully without messing up and throwing myself off the bike. 😊