Random SS/fixie sightings
#77
Thread Starter
Not-so-Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 805
Likes: 0
From: Norfolk, England
Bikes: Orbea Enol roadie, Fly Micromachine BMX, Fort Track fixed
Originally Posted by William Karsten
Had the same problem with another hobby, people would slap something together and garner the image that they were "hardcore" when if you looked closely, they weren't.
#78
the poseur or not thing is pretty played, but it reminded me of something
in my undergrad I was a resident advisor. I just got back from a ride and
was talking with my friend at the front desk when a kid comes down and starts
handing me cash. He looks at me for change when I realize he thinks I'm deliverying
for Panda Express. Turn around and the delivery guy is behind me wearing logo'd
shirt and hat holding a plastic bag full of food.
Honest mistake, but funny nonetheless.
jeff
in my undergrad I was a resident advisor. I just got back from a ride and
was talking with my friend at the front desk when a kid comes down and starts
handing me cash. He looks at me for change when I realize he thinks I'm deliverying
for Panda Express. Turn around and the delivery guy is behind me wearing logo'd
shirt and hat holding a plastic bag full of food.
Honest mistake, but funny nonetheless.
jeff
#81
無くなった

Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,072
Likes: 0
From: Sci-Fi Wasabi
Bikes: I built the Bianchi track bike back up today.
I stopped at Big Mikes subs on the way into work tonight, free locked the front wheel while I was getting lunch.
When I came out, I thought my bike was being stolen. A guy was standing with a black and green Bianchi tilted vertical so only the back wheel was touching the ground. Was about to say something when I noticed he had a lot fatter down tube and brakes. Thought it was a road bike at first, then noticed it was fixed...
When I came out, I thought my bike was being stolen. A guy was standing with a black and green Bianchi tilted vertical so only the back wheel was touching the ground. Was about to say something when I noticed he had a lot fatter down tube and brakes. Thought it was a road bike at first, then noticed it was fixed...
#82
Just Say WU!

Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 73
Likes: 0
From: columbus, oh
Bikes: 04 bianchi pista fixed, 96 trek 830 xc no suspension mtb
greetings ...
came across this site by way of the ongoing *debate* about chrome bags, and have been reading for the last few hours. lots of information here & lots of hilarious random **** too. i saw a couple people posting from columbus on this thread so i thought i'd join in.
i had a couple single speeds as a kid, but had been doing the geared thing for like twelve years. it's nice to be able to ignore potholes, jump curbs etc, but my mtb has been losing weight for a couple years, and i'd been thinking about something faster, cleaner. sheldon brown's site, fixed gear gallery, etc. gave in this whole idee fixe. i got one of the new chrome bianchis a month or so ago (i know, i know i _bought_ it... but i wanted it, couldn't afford to build up a surly or a kona frame, and don't have parts laying around)
i love it. absolutely f**king love it. i didn't want to get off of it after my first real ride, so i just rode around in circles and figure eights for another hour or two. my trackstands are getting better (did a no handed one for fifteen seconds or so the other day) and i'm working on skidding (i do have a front brake though...but i felt bad for my rim the first time i had to use it). i actually like going up hills better than i did with gears; it's weird. and the silence is bliss. the big obnoxious clear-coated over stickers on my bike annoy me, though...i wish i could just have it plain gorgeous chrome.
but anyways, i go to osu and i see fixies almost every day. at least two of the guys in the lbs (baer wheels) ride ss/fixed. most of my friends don't get it. my gf doesn't get having two bicycles (she thought i should just get a target bike...which are quite common around here $105 double suspension monstrocities) i know the girl at north campus video has one (it's old, so it's cooler than mine). someone used the term 'poseager' (maybe in another thread)...am i actually less cool now that i ride a fixed gear, replaced my ancient falling apart back pack with a chrome metropolis last year (which i think is an cool, functional, comfortable bag for a student commuter) and roll up my pant leg so it doesn't get stuck in the chain?
so the moral is; not all of ohio sucks, and don't hate me cause i bought my bike.
peace -ben
came across this site by way of the ongoing *debate* about chrome bags, and have been reading for the last few hours. lots of information here & lots of hilarious random **** too. i saw a couple people posting from columbus on this thread so i thought i'd join in.
i had a couple single speeds as a kid, but had been doing the geared thing for like twelve years. it's nice to be able to ignore potholes, jump curbs etc, but my mtb has been losing weight for a couple years, and i'd been thinking about something faster, cleaner. sheldon brown's site, fixed gear gallery, etc. gave in this whole idee fixe. i got one of the new chrome bianchis a month or so ago (i know, i know i _bought_ it... but i wanted it, couldn't afford to build up a surly or a kona frame, and don't have parts laying around)
i love it. absolutely f**king love it. i didn't want to get off of it after my first real ride, so i just rode around in circles and figure eights for another hour or two. my trackstands are getting better (did a no handed one for fifteen seconds or so the other day) and i'm working on skidding (i do have a front brake though...but i felt bad for my rim the first time i had to use it). i actually like going up hills better than i did with gears; it's weird. and the silence is bliss. the big obnoxious clear-coated over stickers on my bike annoy me, though...i wish i could just have it plain gorgeous chrome.
but anyways, i go to osu and i see fixies almost every day. at least two of the guys in the lbs (baer wheels) ride ss/fixed. most of my friends don't get it. my gf doesn't get having two bicycles (she thought i should just get a target bike...which are quite common around here $105 double suspension monstrocities) i know the girl at north campus video has one (it's old, so it's cooler than mine). someone used the term 'poseager' (maybe in another thread)...am i actually less cool now that i ride a fixed gear, replaced my ancient falling apart back pack with a chrome metropolis last year (which i think is an cool, functional, comfortable bag for a student commuter) and roll up my pant leg so it doesn't get stuck in the chain?
so the moral is; not all of ohio sucks, and don't hate me cause i bought my bike.
peace -ben
#83
Just Say WU!

Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 73
Likes: 0
From: columbus, oh
Bikes: 04 bianchi pista fixed, 96 trek 830 xc no suspension mtb
didn't really mean to end that on a defensive note...i love my bike, and that's enough for me. i just want to know what people think. you all seem cool enough
#84
Senior Member

Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 829
Likes: 0
From: birmingham
Bikes: a tvt soon to become a s/s...
saw a guy on a singlespeed bianchi on the south bank of the thames on sunday. those celeste things look nicer in the flesh don't they?
but the one which really gets me was: tuesday, outside london bridge station, i'm at the pedstrian crossing, and notice a surly headbadge, but it doesn't quite click until i watched the guy skid stop and then keep pedalling round the turn, and it was like: "ooOOOooo.... so shiny". the people i was with didn't even notice.
in other news... it's summer here! and cyclists [of all genders] look so hot in all ways, shapes and forms. toned leg muscles are where it;s at.
fsnl
sparky
but the one which really gets me was: tuesday, outside london bridge station, i'm at the pedstrian crossing, and notice a surly headbadge, but it doesn't quite click until i watched the guy skid stop and then keep pedalling round the turn, and it was like: "ooOOOooo.... so shiny". the people i was with didn't even notice.
in other news... it's summer here! and cyclists [of all genders] look so hot in all ways, shapes and forms. toned leg muscles are where it;s at.
fsnl
sparky
#85
Senior Member

Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 271
Likes: 0
I've seen a guy and a gal in my neighborhood riding either fixie conversions or track bikes... next time I see them I need to take a closer look.
For a city as sprawled out and flat as Houston you'd think I'd see more.. but no just a few friends: a cinelli olympic, nishiki fixie conversion, multiple steamrollers and my basso.
Most of the couriers I've seen downtown seem to ride SS mountain frames. weird.
For a city as sprawled out and flat as Houston you'd think I'd see more.. but no just a few friends: a cinelli olympic, nishiki fixie conversion, multiple steamrollers and my basso.
Most of the couriers I've seen downtown seem to ride SS mountain frames. weird.
Last edited by ...jeff; 08-28-04 at 11:13 AM.
#86
Senior Member

Joined: May 2004
Posts: 132
Likes: 0
Been seeing them more and more often in West LA, I see one maybe once a week now. Some conversions, some track bikes. All ridden by civillians.
Messengers downown are pretty much equally divided among mountain, road, and fixes.
Messengers downown are pretty much equally divided among mountain, road, and fixes.
#87
Thread Starter
Not-so-Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 805
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From: Norfolk, England
Bikes: Orbea Enol roadie, Fly Micromachine BMX, Fort Track fixed
Time this got bumped again methinks 
Spotted a nice little TT bike in town today (Norwich to be precise), yellow, tri bars, singlespeed (much like my own, but not as nice). I'm guessing it was fixed because I watched him go as far as I could, and he kept pedalling, even when he got to some traffic and slowed right down.

Spotted a nice little TT bike in town today (Norwich to be precise), yellow, tri bars, singlespeed (much like my own, but not as nice). I'm guessing it was fixed because I watched him go as far as I could, and he kept pedalling, even when he got to some traffic and slowed right down.
#89
Te mortuo heres tibi sim?
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 3,486
Likes: 0
From: East coast
Bikes: hardtail, squishy, fixed roadie, fixed crosser
here in longmont (so min north of boulder, co) i see one other fixed/ss once in a bit. more in boulder, and plenty in downtown denver. trailwise, quite a few ss mtbs out there, including mine. i still get a lot of odd/incredulous looks when i'm on mine on a trail. out on a ride with my fix, i have not seen another one yet. tons of uber expensive geared rides abound around here though. the incredulous looks increase when out on my road fixed by a huge number. a lot of bike snobbery around here. sad. my commuter is fixed, with rack and fenders/lights/mugholder/bell. it gets sneered at by "real" roadies at stoplights all the time. ______s.
#92
troglodyte

Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 1,291
Likes: 1
From: the tunnels
Bikes: Crust Romanceur, VO Polyvalent, Surly Steamroller, others?
Every day I ride my bike to the train station near my house, lock it up then take the train downtown for school. I have been consistently locking my bike up (only room for 2 on the "rack") next to this old black Robin Hood. This bike is there at 7:10 every morning, and at 4:30 (latest I've gotten home so far) every day, so I haven't spotted the owner yet - I'm really curious who rides it, I have to admit, I am slightly covetous.
If I ever see another fixed gear in my neighborhood, I will probably fall off my bike in disbelief. I thought I saw one once, but I was in a car and it was an extremely brief glimpse.
Today I ran into a guy who lives in the apartment across the street while I was just starting out on a ride today, we started chatting about bikes and my fixed, and he showed me this old bike he used to use when he lived downtown - it was an older lugged steel frame with bullhorns and it was a [ghetto] singlespeed! It sounded like his derailers gave out so he just picked a gear he liked and cut the chain to that length, stripped everything else off, and has only a back brake. I think I talked him into getting the tires pumped up again and going out for a ride in the future. Who knows, maybe I can talk him into turning that into a sweet fixie.
If I ever see another fixed gear in my neighborhood, I will probably fall off my bike in disbelief. I thought I saw one once, but I was in a car and it was an extremely brief glimpse.
Today I ran into a guy who lives in the apartment across the street while I was just starting out on a ride today, we started chatting about bikes and my fixed, and he showed me this old bike he used to use when he lived downtown - it was an older lugged steel frame with bullhorns and it was a [ghetto] singlespeed! It sounded like his derailers gave out so he just picked a gear he liked and cut the chain to that length, stripped everything else off, and has only a back brake. I think I talked him into getting the tires pumped up again and going out for a ride in the future. Who knows, maybe I can talk him into turning that into a sweet fixie.
#94
Senior Member

Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 16,767
Likes: 85
In my lounge room.
Spent the weekend building up a fixie from an old Peugeot frame I picked up over 12 months ago at a tip shop, plus some really cr@p stuff lying about my garage. Chopped and inverted drop bars, reversed the R600 brake levers, fitted up some no-name cranks, a worn-out 68mm BB cartridge, and a cog from an old road bike spun onto a steel hub with a BB lockring.
This is my first foray into the fixed world (so be gentle with me). Different I must admit, especially when I went to coast and the bike said: "Uh-oh, no you don't, boy". Legs were a bit sore this morning in places I thought odd.
I'm wussing at the moment with just a 32 chainring and 14T rear cog, mainly because of the hills where I live. But I'll work up to a 42 or 44. And the bike is light, nicely light.
Now I know it works, I'll strip it back down and paint the frame, get some decent parts (wheels and BB mainly) and put it back together again. I think I have only ever seen one non-track fixie around my neck of the woods.
Spent the weekend building up a fixie from an old Peugeot frame I picked up over 12 months ago at a tip shop, plus some really cr@p stuff lying about my garage. Chopped and inverted drop bars, reversed the R600 brake levers, fitted up some no-name cranks, a worn-out 68mm BB cartridge, and a cog from an old road bike spun onto a steel hub with a BB lockring.
This is my first foray into the fixed world (so be gentle with me). Different I must admit, especially when I went to coast and the bike said: "Uh-oh, no you don't, boy". Legs were a bit sore this morning in places I thought odd.
I'm wussing at the moment with just a 32 chainring and 14T rear cog, mainly because of the hills where I live. But I'll work up to a 42 or 44. And the bike is light, nicely light.
Now I know it works, I'll strip it back down and paint the frame, get some decent parts (wheels and BB mainly) and put it back together again. I think I have only ever seen one non-track fixie around my neck of the woods.
#95
Bike Evangelist

Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 93
Likes: 0
From: Houston. TX
Bikes: Redline Mono-cog converted to BMX cruzer, 79 Peugeot single speed, Fuji s12-s single speed, Centurion Ironman single speed (see a pattern?)
I used to see a hand full of single speeds when I lived in Austin, some fixies, cruisers, SS and a lot of 24" and 26" BMX cruisers. Since I have moved to Houston... nada. I had a rodie here ask me if my ride was a track bike, and told him no just an old frame converted to SS. Then he said to me "why on earth would you want to do somthing like that!"
Just one more thing, Ohio may be full of lard-o's, but Houston is the 2nd fattest city in the U.S. after holding a three year run.
https://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/04...etro-25076.htm
Just one more thing, Ohio may be full of lard-o's, but Houston is the 2nd fattest city in the U.S. after holding a three year run.
https://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/04...etro-25076.htm
#96
Thread Starter
Not-so-Senior Member

Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 805
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From: Norfolk, England
Bikes: Orbea Enol roadie, Fly Micromachine BMX, Fort Track fixed
Well I've been in Seattle for all of two days, and I've already seen four fixies
My girlfriend's gonna get real mad at me for looking at bikes all the time.
My girlfriend's gonna get real mad at me for looking at bikes all the time.
#97
Here in Toronto, there are loads of fixies. They're big with the messengers, of course, but also with a surprising number of commuters and recreational riders. About half a dozen of us in Randonneurs Ontario (https://www.randonneursontario.ca/) ride fixed, and a few of us have just started the Toronto Fixed Group (https://www.pathcom.com/~praxis/) for fixed-only rides.
#99
Originally Posted by techone
Saw this one today, looks great in person.
(Would've liked to talk a bit more, but had ALOT to do before my girl came back from Wales today.)
(Would've liked to talk a bit more, but had ALOT to do before my girl came back from Wales today.)
#100
Yup

Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 3,083
Likes: 6
From: where the sunbeams end and the starlight begins
Bikes: Kona Unit, planet X cx bike, khs fixed gear
99.8% of all the bikes here are s/s. In fact I've seen 3 geared bikes so far. The s/s road bike that are sold here all come with aerobars for some reason. You can buy 'fancy bikes' (geared) or not fancy (s/s). Bikes here are for transportation only. When I get access to a computer that I can put pics on I will show the various s/s bikes available to the consumer in India.
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When sadness fills my days
It's time to turn away
And then tomorrow's dreams
Become reality to me
When sadness fills my days
It's time to turn away
And then tomorrow's dreams
Become reality to me




