JamesGoodman

I did the 100 miles on my Sputnik (48/16 freewheel) and though I expected to see lots of beautiful fixies out there nd I did, I was surprised at how many other people there with

JamesGoodman

Sorry about that. I did the 100 miles on my Sputnik (48/16 freewheel) and though I expected to see lots of beautiful fixies out there nd I did, I was surprised at how many other people there with single freewheels. It was a great ride and great to see so many people with just one gear.

queerpunk

hells yeah. i was with a fixed crew. had fun. my ass hurts and i need a new saddle.

blickblocks

Pics? Video?

JamesGoodman

Just riding. All that hurts with me are my hands and wrists, a little sore. Any suggestions? Maybe I didn't switch hand positions enough, or maybe I need some serious handlebar tape to replace the stuff that came stock? I'd welcome suggestions for 50 year old wrists. My butt loves the specialized saddle I swapped off my mountain bike, an Alias (or something like that) 143.

Gyeswho

that was so AWESOME!!! good to ride with so many other riders. my butt's a lil sore but I AM GLAD i invested in some cycling shorts for this or I don't know how I'd be right now.

jyossarian

Yup, great ride and TA did their usual excellent job. Funniest part for me was missing a route marker and getting on the entrance ramp for the Belt Pkwy and seeing the bike path I was supposed to be on on the other side of the guardrail. And since I was out front, a bunch of roadies followed me on to the Belt. Hairiest moment was a woman that hit a pothole and swerved left in front of me. I swerved left to avoid her, but that was the closest I came to being taken down.

brainsan

I did the 103 miles on my heavy commuting rig (48x18 free wheel) outfitted with trunk, horn, reflectors, etc. Since I started about 30 minutes late, the roads and bridges were already congested with cyclists. I had a great time though. It was mostly uneventful. I have witness two accidents. One seem to be serious on the bike path (the narrower section on those bridges with crater sized holes) alone the Belt Parkway. The EMS crews where already at the scene when I passed by. The other accident happened right in front of me. A rider pulling up front saw a turning arrow at the last moment and applied the brake. The guy behind him was not paying attention, touched wheel and fall. It's not really a big deal. The rider got up, checked everything, shook hand with the guy in the front that applied the brake without warning, exchanged a couple of jokes and we are on our way again. It's not meant to be a fast ride. However, you can kind of open up in a some sections of the ride. Here's my speed profile. This is the full stats recorded by my 305. The real killer for me was the 18 miles ride home from the park.

JamesGoodman

Three times yesterday, must have been the sun or the great sights, I followed the riders in front of me instead of the green arrows and three times those riders had missed a turn. Once in Bay Ridge; once on the way to Coney Island, and one along that nice park trail that led to and from the Alley Pond refueling stop. That probably added a mile or so to my day, but I had only a five mile trip home from the park. For those of you in the city in October, the MS ride is great fun. They close the FDR Drive and the West Sideway but the real thrill is the ride through the Lincoln Tunnel.

JamesGoodman

P.S. I have not decided whether I'll ride my singlespeed or rent a bike with gears for the MS Ride. There wasn't a mile yesterday that I needed or wished I had more than one gear, but if my memory serves me there are several long steep hills on the west side of the Hudson up by the Tappan Zee Bridge on the MS Ride. I suppose I could swap my 48/16 for a 17 or 18.

sethw

I did the ride single speed (48x17) --- made it to 112 st. (after coming off the Tri-Borough bridge) before throwing in the towel and jetting back to the top of central park. Nice to see a lot of fixies / single speeders out there.

Next investment: cycling shoes. Platform pedals and Vans are okay for commuting seven miles. Not so much for trying to do 100.

PS: My fave part was waiting for the light after the Brooklyn Bridge, then being the first to the top of the hill there and then realizing, oh crap, there's no one in front of me. And some awesome guy joking with me, "Which way, boss?" Hah.

Yoshi

This year I opted to volunteer as a mechanic at a rest stop (Alley pond) which was surprisingly fun. I might do that again next year.

JamesGoodman

Hey Yoshi, I am pretty sure we talked fixed gear/single speed at the Pond. I was the guy chain eating apples. Thanks a million for the encouragement and support.

JamesGoodman

Hey Seth W., as you know or will find out 100 miles with platforms and sneakers is the eqivalent of twice that in shoes and clip-less pedals. We were alongside one another for a while along the Belt Parkway. An enjoyable day.

DrHansNoodleman

I did it on a coaster brake bike with - I'm not sure what gearing, 42x16 I think. I usually do it wearing tevas and platform pedals. This year I did it wearing "crocs". I definitely recommend tevas over crocs - the croc sole is so squishy I was effectively curling my toes over the front of the pedals for most of the ride...

jayrooney

I did it fixed 48 x 16 last year and it was really fun.
I did it with gears this year and it was WAY more fun.
My favorite part was flying down and around the spiral path just before the Van Cortlandt park rest area.

Now i put my road bike away for the next century, back to fixed.

acoldspoon

I went for a nice ride the day before, but missed the century. I had been planing on doing it, but somehow ended up staying out partying until after dawn instead. Damn dive bars. Maybe next year.

sethw

At the Brooklyn Res-a-vour (can't spell it... ha):


Near the Verazono Bridge, wife got a flat:


Stopped at a bike shop so my buddy could buy a new cleat for this shoe:


Standing in line, walking over the bridge:


More: All my 2007 NYC Century photos, 2006, 2005

sethw

Yea, trust me - proper shoes are being ordered. I already have the pedals, just gotta open up my Nashbar catalog and order some!

It was a GREAT day. Let's do it again next year! haha

JamesGoodman

Correct that, we were next to each other at the Astoria rest stop. I was the guy with the black singlespeed. Small world.

monsterkidz

I saw a few people on fixed/singlespeeds. Ran into Gyesswho at Astoria rest stop. Then caught up to some dude on a rust colored Langster and a kid on a single speed Pake.

Gyeswho

wait what bike did you have? were you on the KHS?

monsterkidz

Haha yeah dude, I didn't connect that you were Gyesswho until about a half hour after we talked. How was the rest of the ride?

Gyeswho

the rest of it was great. I had to stop cuz some caught a flat and had to do my marshall duties. When we got to Van Court reststop it was around 5:30. A group of us said we are going to book it and get to central before it closed. It basically turned out to be an all out race to get there in time. We got to central at 6:07 and I was so shocked we made it in time after all that riding we did. it was awesome!

sethw

Hah! Yes. I saw you back at Central Park I believe. Good riding all around. Next year I'm leaving the Vans at home