Fixed activity in my 'hood is minimal and none of the LBSs seem to stock fixie stuff; I didn't want to get knee deep into a conversion where the best model I had was some pictures on the 'net. For instance, I couldn't wrap my head around how the cog remained fixed, even though I understood and had seen pictures of lockrings -- I just couldn't "see it". But now I have one I can use as a model to work from, either upgrading it, coverting another bike, or buying a higher quality fixie.