Originally Posted by
Velo Dog
I can't even see a link, let alone open it, but I think my singlespeed counts. It started life as an '85 (approx--I bought it used) Trek touring bike, with triple crank and five-speed freewheel. I got a new roadie and wanted a mountain bike, but couldn't afford one, so I mountainized the Trek and rode it all over the Sierra near Reno for a couple of years. It was surprisingly competent, and I learned a lot from it. Eventually I got a real MB, and the Trek has been a singlespeed (took off all but the middle ring and spun on a BMX freewheel) for about five years. I still ride it on gravel and dirt occasionally, but I can't pull the hills without gears anymore.
Initially, I posted a link to my club's forum where I originally posted this. DG reported that he couldn't get to it without an account. I was going to set up a dummy account that the 50+ers could use, but decided that wasn't a great idea. So I copied the posts and put them here and edited out the link.
I took the bike on a downtown road ride today. The fatter tires didn't seem to slow the bike down much and they cornered better than I expected with those knobs on the sides. They made bounding over rough pavement and railroad tracks a blast. The gearing that was marginal on the trails was plenty low for even the steep hills we attacked. The good wheels made a big improvement in the overall feel of the bike. I like the drop bars much better than the Moustache bars for just about any kind of riding.
I'm happy with the changes I made to the bike. It is more versatile and more comfortable than before. It works pretty well for anything short of extreme offroad riding and very fast road riding. I feel that I could take the bike anywhere and not worry about being able to get through a section of rough pavement or no pavement.
Now it is time to turn my attention to Ribby, my Bridgestone RB-1, and make her into an even better fast road and century bike.