NitroPye

I have been fixing my mountain bike up over the winter and riding fixed to stay in shape and get around. I must say, I have tons more raw power and can pop wheelies and bunny hop with little effort but the freewheel thing is screwing me up big time. When I am accelerating and stop pedaling to take a turn my muscles kinda freak. I'm loving the new raw power, but hating the mountain biking skill that seems to all need to be relearned. I think a lot of it is the geometry that is screwing me up.

How does riding fixed affect you all?

Either way I've decided I am going to ride both more equally now that I have the mountain bike pseudo working again.

P.s. gears are awesome, but derailleurs suck.

darksiderising

I had a similar reaction when I first started riding fixed. I found myself forgetting that coasting was an option on my road rides and powered down descents spinning all-out. I also took hills in a higher gear and I didn't shift nearly as often as I had been previously. I also felt really heavy when accelerating. I still coast a lot less than I used to when I am on a freewheel, and find myself looking further ahead for potential obstacles to dodge.

kjohnnytarr

Only other bike I ride is a pedicab, and they're too different to really say.

Actually, today I was on a MTB for like 45 seconds today, diagnosing a problem, and that was fun, so I'm building one now.

cc700

i'm way less lazy. i was up to 19/21 gears in no time and i kept spinning.

dayvan cowboy

i always forget i can coast.

pirate

Riding fixed makes my pedal stroke lazy. When I finally get my road bike repaired, I will have to remember to push/pull through the whole stroke instead of just letting the pedals carry your foot over the top.

I'm feeling the whole raw power thing, though. Massive quads.

musicsucks

i went out mountain biking awhile ago, and i got stuck in some roots and spent a second thinking about how much it was going to suck to put my foot down- then i remembered that i could trackstand. It was sweet.

jdms mvp

my cadence has increases significantly on my road bike and i rest less

deadforkinglast

Riding fixed has made me much, much faster on my road bike. My pedal stroke is cleaner and I only coast when I absolutely have to. I also appreciate how nice it can be to bunny hop, drop off curbs and corner super super tightly without having to worry about keeping the pedals moving. Still, though, I find myself pedaling when I don't need to at all, like when braking before a red light.

The one thing that gets me in the first 30 seconds or so that I'm on a freewheel is the inability to slow down using the pedals. I almost crashed into a curb over the weekend because I started to backpedal rather than reach for the brakes.

My mountain bike just feels like riding around on a couch.

jetbike

I levitate slightly off the ground since riding fixed. It has cut down my rolling resistance by heaps.

JohnnyDoyle

I definitely freak out the first time I coast on a freewheeled bike after "coasting" (not resisting or pedaling) on the fixed for a few weeks. Then I remember I have brakes.

It has improved my timing/flow more than anything, whether in traffic or on the trail. I don't know so much about my cadence/power, I always feel really weak on my other bike--2.35" knobby tires vs. 23c slicks will do that.

nelzar13

i actually mountain bike alot slower now. I spin in a lower gear now i ride a 42 x17 on my fixed so every time i get on one of my mountain bikes i spin like a mad man! And i rarely stop peddaling to...unless im rideing a place thats real techy ..

nateintokyo

after getting a fixed gear bike and only riding it for about a month, when I went back to my mountain bike I nearly fell off by over compensating the pedal stroke and subsequently it felt like I was riding trough quicksand. two minutes later I was fine

anomaly

My pedal stroke is a lot worse and much more square. I guess I'm very lazy on my fixed. It only takes about a mile on my mountain bike for things to smooth out again though.

Doctor Who

When going back to my geared bikes from riding fixed alot, I'm always slower and my pedal stroke sucks.

Metricoclock

i don't think i've been on a free wheeled bike since i went to riding fixed

Idioteque

don't really notice much of a difference when going from fixed to road. However, for the first year of riding both fixed and road i almost fell 3 times attempting to coast after a hard effort... i'd usually do a 2 hour ride on my road bike before going to work, then commute on my fixie and do that. Probably looked ridiculous.

ralphm2k

Trying to get my feet in the cages on my mountain bike is harder (no tab on the pedal). After I'm in, I feel stupid because I realize I can coast.

parkerlewis

2 points I notice....

1. Going from mamchari (tombo-slightly more manly version of mamachari!) to Keirin I sometimes forget to pedal, maybe this happens on 1 or 2 occasions per week.
2. Going from Keirin to Tombo I can not help but pedal constantly, it just feels awful to coast, and inefficent.

NitroPye

Best explanation of how I felt last night. It was also the first time I rode on bike with suspension in a few months and man did I feel like everything was extra plush. I really missed being able to float over rock gardens.

roadfix

The only difference I notice is that chicks don't really pay as much attention to me when I'm on my geared bike.

moe sizlack

What other bikes?

mugatu

I've ridden nothing but fixed for the past two years. I just built up a single speed and I hate riding it.

caloso

Pros: my cadence is improved and my power band is widened, meaning that when there's an acceleration I can stay seated, spin up the gear more, and then pop it down a cog.

Cons: Tends to square up my pedal stroke when I get lazy.

ianjk

I have trouble around chicks. When I see them I try to bust a foot over the bars no-handed skid while lighting my Parliment and end up just passing them by while looking like a total tool.