Forgot How To Coast...
 

I rode my regular geared road bike for the very first time in 8 months after riding nothing but fixed gear all this time. What a strange feeling... for the first several miles, I had to practically think and force myself to stop pedalling to coast. My legs kept spinning no matter what.....not that there was something wrong with that. It was almost as strange but different feeling, somewhat like getting on a fixed gear for the first time.....but this time it almost felt scary.....I didn't have that "connected" feeling, like I was missing something. Sorry if all this don't make any sense...

it makes perfect sense. i tend to stay away from my road bike when i have to ride in traffic just because of that disconnected feeling. my mind wanders on a road bike a lot moreso than when i'm riding my fixie. it's like, riding a fixed gear forces you to be fully engaged in riding the bike. it feels more natural to slow down by resisting with your legs than by pulling a brake.

everything you said should make perfect sense to anyone who's ever ridden a fixed gear, and then gone back to a bike that coasts.

Exactly...........I rode out a few minutes early just to get used to this feeling before the wave of my regular weekly training pack caught up to me. I jumped in near the tail end of the pack and immediately felt so insecure on my road bike that I decided to pull out within a mile. Although I'd like to hop on my road bike from time to time, this was no fun at all. I guess I need to use my road bike more frequently....

yep. when i rode my geared bike after about 1 month of fixin', i felt like i was going to lose my balance, and like i couldn't control the bike. coasting was WEIRD. when the bike started going faster than i was pedalling i felt like the pedals had fallen out of the bottom bracket and panicked for a second.

if you ride both regularly you'll get used to both though.

I rode fixed for 3 months, then some of my BMX friends came to visit. i rode one of their bikes around the skatepark and it was the wierdest feeling coasting. i kept trying to pedal as I dropped into ramps. it almost feels like something is wrong when the pedals don't want to keep going around.

cory

yeah. i just helped a friend pick out a road bike on tuesday. i took it around the block and it was so bizarre. i kept trying to find a gear i'd be comfortable in, finally realizing that my problem was that there was no feedback from the pedals. knowing that if i stopped pedalling, they would stop. it was fairly disarming.