Thanks for the advice. I'm going to drop from 44/16 to 44/18 which is 66" on the wabi gearing chart and see how that goes for a week or two. I'll probably have to switch to my winter bike at the end of the month, but it looks like I will need a few more gearing options for the spring to find something that works.

I can't even conceive being able to spin at 130-150 rpm. My Raleigh sports model is 51-69-92 GI, and even on a downhill I spin out at approximately 27 mph which is around 100 rpm. I have been up 30+ mph with that gearing, but I don't feel in control at that cadence.

I've timed myself at 180 rpm. The trick is for your butt not to bounce. You really should teach your legs with a low-geared fixed gear. 'Tis the season.

I tried fixed gear once (other than when I was a kid on my little red tricycle) and absolutely hated it, as in rather not ride than ride one.
Back on topic, my build whether cycling or running has always favored strength over speed, think mule rather than Thoroughbred. I'm not competitive or speed orientated, and where I live strength for hill climbing is far more important than speed.
I don't think I could do 180 rpm on a stationary cycle.




Besides that, I prefer to treat a ride like a gourmet meal than a pie eating contest.

I did the same 25 mile loop today with 44/18 gearing as I did yesterday with 44/16 gearing with similar effort in basically the exact same amount of time. I'm not sure what I expected, but I guess I learned that gearing doesn't make you faster.

I also noticed that my top speed was 25.5 mph (downhill) and calculated my cadence at around 130. I'm going to need a lot of practice to get up to 180 because 130 seemed ridiculously fast to me.

+1

Sounds good. I'm sure you can accelerate and brake faster with the lower gearing too.

Really, 130 is plenty fast. for most people there is no need to spin faster than that (one possible exception - I did 180rpm going down hill once, but I wouldn't recommend that to anyone!)

Aslong as i could over a 10 miles stretch ...simple i could have push more but was already at high rpm

You know, I could be way off in saying I went at 180 rpm. Maybe it was a lot less.

150 RPM is doable in low gear on a flat (you look silly), or down a steep-assed hill (yer gonna die) from my experience.

The hill in tyler park is a 27% max grade, on my old road bike i went down there at around 45 mph, Speed limit is 25. Took me smoking brakes to stop on the flat at the bottom. If i had crashed, i'd probably not be here right now.

- Andy

I was going a little north of 150 RPM when I hit my top speed of 32.4 MPH on the fixed-gear.

I rode 50 miles over the weekend with 44/18 gearing (66"). Finished in just under 3 hours, which is a normal time for me on a geared bike. I calculated average cadence in the high 80's, which means I must have spent a lot of time in the 100's. I don't know for sure, but I think that's a higher average cadence than I would have had on a geared bike. I like the gear everywhere but downhill where I feel out of control when my cadence gets above 120 or so, especially if the decent is bumpy.


I switched to a 44/17 (70") on Monday and did a couple of 25 mile rides this week. I like that gear better for the flat and much better downhill (my 17 tooth is a freewheel), but it's too big of a gear for me riding into a headwind.


I may try a 42/17 (67") or a 45/18 (68") to see how that works. For what it's worth, I think riding fixed is more interesting than SS.

Funny reading all these posts with teeth counts and whatnot..... with the N360 you never know what exact ratio you're using, but you immediately know if it's the right one.

- Andy

For sure. For some, fixed is a way of life, almost a religion. Not for me at all, but I like to do it some.

I pulled my Chorus/Centaur mixed group off my old Gazelle to build up a race bike for my son. Just for funzies, I did a quick and dirty FG conversion. 43x15. 75ish gear inches. (Yes, I know 43 is an odd (and unusual) size, but I happened to have a 43t chainring from an ill-fated magic gear experiment.)

Rode it to work this morning. It's a little taller than I would normally go, but not by too much. So far, so good.