Anyone ever ride a Century on a Fixed Gear. Looking to do it this Spring. Anyone have any advice? Like gearing, what to bring, how to pace myself, etc.

I'd also like to try this sometime soonish. Subscribed.

Lately I've been kicking down rides that big every month-ish so I can't imagine it will be too different. I've never ridden a fg for more then 3 or 4 hours though so I'll still pace myself conservatively. [MENTION=492970]bassboy1126[/MENTION] have you done many 6-8 hour rides on geared bikes? I figure nutrition and "what to bring" should be the same, plus a 15 mm crescent wrench of course.

I've done two and I can tell you what not to do:

1) Don't do it on a bike you just got that doesn't fit you too well. It was good for like 70 miles and then pure hell for the last 30. Chalk that one up to being young and stupid.

2) If you do one on a bike with an Italian threaded bottom bracket, make sure it's nice and snug because, they do work themselves loose. Trust me.

Otherwise, have fun.

From someone that learned a lot of this the hard way

Use a gear ratio you're comfortable with. Same goes for the bike, make sure you feel good on it.

If you've never ridden a century then work your way up to get used to the hours on the saddle. Sometimes centuries are more of a mental challenge than a physical challenge.

Continuing from the last point, it never hurts to be over packed with food and water if you're unsure about what works for you as well as how the weather will affect you. Snack/drink steadily along the way until you're experienced and can go farther/longer on less fuel. Consider a handle bar bag or something to carry food/drink.

PACE YOUR SELF. Inexperienced riders often go too fast early in a ride because they feel good but eventually burn out. It will feel like you aren't trying very hard but it pays off in the long run. Again, experience will guide you in figuring out how much effort is ok early in a ride.

Have fun! It takes the edge off.

It's been some time since I did a big ride. Maybe more tips will come to mind later.

I did one back in July and five or six others this year on road bikes.

I don't find much difference between geared and fixed other than the fact that you can't coast and are limited by gearing. The fixed century was routed to avoid major climbs and was the flattest of them all. It was intentionally done solo so that I could ride my own pace and stop when and for as long as I wanted.

Eat and drink more than you think you need. Slow down and stand every few miles to stretch. Every five miles or so I slowed, stood and counted off 32 revolutions of the pedals.

Learn to be very relaxed on the bike, to the point of being able to recover while spinning. Recover means letting your heart rate drop significantly. Learning to be very relaxed is key to not expending lots of energy.

Pick a beautiful route and enjoy it.

Am I missing something or has the old "Sticky Index/Start Here" thread/s been eliminated? And if so, when? The reason I ask here is that there was at least one very informative tutorial in there about riding long distances fixed that IIRC was written by a guy who does(did?) a lot of big-distance Randoing on his FG bike that I was going to link for OP. If all those old links and threads that were there seemingly forever, but likely were hardly ever viewed, really have been removed - it just goes to show how you take things for granted until you need them and they're not sitting there right in front of your face anymore

I'm also pretty sure there is still another guy here that regularly does long charity rides on his roadified track bike. If you don't want to search for past riding fixed LD and century threads yourself, and there are some, perhaps he will chime in.

Speaking for myself...while I am sorry to have to admit that with age and growing infirmity I've cut back on the sheer volume and distance that I'm riding nowadays, I still do occasional Metrics and infrequent Imperials on my Sw8 Phiksie, but it is nothing compared to the miles I used to put on. It may well have contributed to my weakening legs but I always was a big believer in "if something is worth doing - it is worth over-doing." Yes, of course, working to get trained up, good preparation, and proper nutrition and hydration are crucial to successful long rides - but it is easy to slip into over-thinking it to the point of paralysis by analysis and consequently never doing anything.

Just get out there and ride...a lot. And ride far...a lot. You can, and will, work out details like adjusting your bike fit and gearing over time while you are riding more and building endurance. Plus, keep in mind those things will change from your short to longer, and maybe eventually even ultra-rides.

Have fun and good luck - think I'll go ride now myself. Gonna use this discussion to inspire me to get back on the horse...


Edit - oh yeah almost forgot, in the thread awhile back about what to carry daily I swam against the tide here when I expressed my carry as little as possible compunctions. But when it comes to this type of riding - I may actually carry too much. You should too

I've done multiple fixed-gear century rides. I did my first fixed-gear century at age 58, and I'm 63 now. The best preparation is riding. Try to ride at least 3 to 5 days of the week. They don't have to be particularly long rides, 30 to 40 miles is plenty. But try to fit in a couple longer ones in the last few weeks before the century. Pace yourself on the century ride. Don't try to set any speed records your first time out. Stay away from the hot-dog racer types on their multi-gear bikes. Find a casual group instead. If you find their pace annoyingly slow, you can always drop them and pick up a different group. Food stops are a good place to switch groups, as you don't need to chase anyone down. Don't be ashamed to walk up a steep section, if you need to. People will think you're bad-ass enough just for attempting the ride on a fixed gear. And don't ride brakeless. Your legs will get tired and you'll appreciate not having to use them when you need to slow down. And don't forget to have fun!

I've done many. Hairnet has a lot of great advice. I"ll just pass on two tricks. Consider a flip-flop wheel and two cogs one or two teeth apart. Can be a lifesaver late in a ride that got much harder than planned. (Think wind.) And if your century is on rollers where you can hit the bottom of the hills with speed, do this: Spin easy down the hill, until you are about tho hit the end of the grade. Then spin like crazy. Go nuts. Stay nuts into the bottom of the climb and as far up as you can get. Come out of the saddle and honk it. When starts to be a grind, settle in and tough out the rest of the hill at a reasonable speed. Done right, you will fly past folks on geared bikes and not bog down into will up the hill. Yes, this will take its toll. You will pay for it. But you will pay at dinner after a fun, inspiring ride (and you will be talk of many that you passed)

Edit: along John's lines, I did my first Cycle Oregon ride on a fix gear at 59. Crater Lake. ("Cheated. Brought all the cogs, carried and used a chainwhip and spanner. I recall unscrewing cogs twice and flipping the wheel 7 times on the day we rode up and around the rim.) Last CO was two years ago at 63. Was all set to do it again last year, Crater Lake again, but the fires stopped the ride.

Ben

I've done a handful of fixed centuries. Don't listen to me though. Just listen to The Octopus:

Training for Your First Fixed-Gear Century