iamtim

I read some conversations in other BF boards that left me with the impression that not many regulars of the A&S forum approve of riding fixed gear bikes -- both brakeless and with a front brake -- as a daily street bike.

I'm curious if this is actually so, and if so, why?

Thanks.

noisebeam

Approve? Why? Brakeless? Learn to resist. Oh my.

Al

iamtim

Your? Reply? Makes? No. Sense. :-)

I think you're asking why I heard some people don't approve of riding brakeless, and that I should either resist their disapproval or use resistance to brake. If that's so, you're a little off-base from what I'm looking for -- I ride fixed with a front brake on the street, but mostly brake with my legs. I'm curious as to whether or not it is an issue with some of the A&S regulars or not, and if so, why. It's not going to change my POV, I'm just interested in a little conversation on the topic.

-=(8)=-

Uptight, unimaginative...not open to anything that diverges from thier opinion.

I would sugest riding for a month or so and draw your own conclusions.
My commute is definately easier on the fixed gear but the 'regulars' assure me it isnt.

I would suggest a front brake...you might not need it but its like a helmet...
Great to have when you do.

iamtim

See above; I already ride fixed, but am interested in the A&S regular's take as a point of conversation.

noisebeam

I guess I was curious about the intent of your question. You aleady know the ins/outs of brakeless and fixed gear, so why look for approval from A&S regulars? Yeah, 'resist' was intentionally vague: resist the debate / resist to slow / resist the desire for no front brake
Bottom line is you will never get anyone to seriousy suggest that no hand brakes is safer, but some will suggest that lack of them can make one more careful.

Al

iamtim

I'm not looking for approval. I'm just interested in their point of view as a topic of discussion. Just out of curiosity.

noisebeam

Far far more important for safety than what kind of bike you ride is how you ride it. Whether its fixed, free, a mtb, crusier or racer, it can be ridden in a safe or a dangerous way.

Al

noisebeam

questioning approval?

Al

iamtim

Yeah, that's it. You got me. I'm rebelling.

"Damn those A&S riders! If they say you shouldn't ride fixed brakeless on the street, I'm going to do exactly that! As a matter of fact, I'll ride single-speed freewheeled brakeless, just to show 'em! Mwuh huhahahahahhaahahaha!"

In all seriousness, I don't understand why I'm getting static over this. I just heard what I heard, and thought it would be a good topic of discussion. I mean, that's what these discussion forums are for, yes? Dicussion? About bikes? Or riding? Or bike safety? Right?

CB HI

Thats not my impression. I would only suggest that it is better to also have the front brake as a minimum redundant safety system (same as other bikes with both front and rear brakes). I certainly do not have issues with a fixed - simple, light, fucntional.

kf5nd

TEST RESULTS

We had a fixed gear bike in our Road One class... we did tests of how long it took to stop our bikes... the very best he could do was about the same as other bikes with rear brake only, but mostly worse.

And his best was about 5x longer than the front+rear brake efforts of his peers.

Needless to say, it was an eye-opener for him.

Most of your braking power is in your front brake. Put a front brake on your fixie, and you'll probably be OK.

Helmet Head

I don't know of anyone who thinks a fixie WITH a front brake is unsafe (for someone who knows how to ride it).

But, yeah, a fixie without a front brake has much longer stopping distance, not to mention becoming a death trap should the chain snap on a 30 mph downhill with a traffic signalled intersection at the bottom.

Feldman

Having 50 year old knees, I use two brakes. I'd think the longer you want your joints to last, the better brakes look on your fixed. Otherwise I see NO problem in using a fixed wheel for urban riding.
I've been riding one, on and off, since @1972.

Knudsen

iamtim, #14 looks kewl, flat out! Can you stop her on a dime? You said with front brake was an option in the discussion. Without, no doubt, you loose a lot of stopping power. In a car front brakes are 70%, but on a bike, I believe, 90% is a closer figure. I used to run Yamaha 250 DTs in the moutains of the Philippines (about 250 pounds of bike). I added a really big rear sprocket for power and removed all the weight I could. One of the first things to go was the rear brake. Downshifting werks 100 x better and acts like abs. Neighbor kid had a bmx and he could do anything with it. I don't think it had brakes, except for his feet on the tires. How do yuou keep your feet out of the spokes?

SirMike1983 

Not much of a fixed gear person, myself, but there's nothing wrong with them. Some people prefer them and if they like to ride them then that's their choice. Nothing wrong with that. I've always admired people who can ride the fixed gears skillfully as it's a real test of fitness.

I will say a front brake is a must for street riding though. Resisting is fine most of the time, but there's always a chance you'll need to make an emergency stop right away (double if you suffer a mechanical failure or injure yourself resisting). From a pure physics the front brake does most of this work, so any bicycle that is on a city street (fixed or not) should have that on board. Even if you're very careful, it just doesn't hurt to have the brake there if you need.

But other than that, nothing wrong with a fixed gear on the street. Some people like them and they should be able to ride the cycle of their choice.

Da Tinker

I run a fixie with a front brake. The basic physics of stopping a bike are not dependent on the drive train. You got to have a front brake for a quick, controlled stop.

Yah, I'm a LCI just like Peter.

BostonFixed

I hope you're not one of "those ss/fixie guys getting cheap thrills dodging cars."

https://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.p...05&postcount=9

https://www.bikeforums.net/advocacy-safety/168541-sometimes-there-nothing-you-can-do-close-call.html

chipcom 

How does taking a crap at a regular intervals make one an expert on riding fixies?

jyossarian

What's wrong w/ cheap thrills? BTW, I ride both geared and fixed and I get cheap thrills on both.

MrCjolsen

Stopping a fixie without using the brake is like stopping your car from 60mph by downshifting. You can stop, but it takes a while. And it's not that good for the "engine" if you make a habit of it.

Daily Commute

The freewheel, gears, and rim brakes are useful inventions that make cycling easier. But some people enjoy fixed wheel bikes. As a bike commuter, who am I to question someone else's quirky but harmless choices?

Bikepacker67

I don't!

I just bought a low end Gary Fisher to use for a 'bike-in-the-shop' bike, and am thinking of gutting the cheapy Alivio drivetrain for something simple and more reliable.