You now what's funny? I've been thinking quite a bit about reacquiring my first adult bike, a 1971 Raleigh Record, and converting to fixed gear. It wasn't a very good road bike, which is why I bought a much better Motobecane in 1977, and sold the Raleigh to a friend for $20. But still, it was my first adult bike, and I'm feeling a little sentimental about it nowadays. And besides, it had some really nice old school features (tubular fork crown, wingnuts on the axles), plus a very sweet and classy bronze green and white trim color scheme.

So, while surfing craigslist, I come across one just like my old bike, already converted to a fixie. "Hmmmm, this will be interesting," I think to myself. So I open the link, and what do I see? Another generic fixie with chopped drop bars. No originality whatsoever. For a craze that's allegedly based on customizing to reflect one's individuality, everybody sure seems to end up with fixies that pretty much look like every other fixie out there. Sawed off braze-ons? Check. Powdercoat? Check. Chopped drop bars? Check. Front brake lever? Check. Top tube pad? Check. Spoke cards? Check.