Chatting with two Gen Y locals at the hip lbs n Halifax. Two of them are riding brakeless on the oh-so-steep inclines of downtown Halifax. They both lifted their hoofs to show me the soles of their melting sporty shoes

I've been away from SSFG...is brakeless the new black?

If you mean is it as safe as riding carefully at night? With no lights? Yes.

We recently had a thread about running brakeless and the majority of us feel like it is safer to have a front brake.

......but we're talking single freewheel here...same page? Not fixed?

Sorry should made that clear..they started off road and have now adopted well to urban. Interesting to hear from those with experience. Where's the control coming from?

I've been on these boards a long time. As far as FG riding is concerned it seems like running a front brake is the new black. There was a time where no one seemed to run a brake. As far as brakeless SS, that's just stupid.

I don't think you have control if you can't stop effectively and as fast as possible. Maybe I'm just too wimpy but I don't think anyone should run brakeless or even just one brake on a singlespeed.

i would like to see a video of that

This is not particularly new....

thank you...it all makes sense now.

Not.

Is it just me or is SSFG in San Francisco like... really stupid?

I am in SF right now visiting some hella tight bros from way back when and got a chance to go on a bike ride the other night. Let me tell ya, the bike situation is outta control here. Valencia = every single parking meter with a hip bike locked to it. Krikey. I felt uber-hip riding a beat up women's mountain bike with extremely loud squeaking rear brake amongst all the ss/fg/vintage roadies. ****e women's treks are the new SSFG, BELIEVE!!!!!!

--trend setter.

I see a lot of kids on brakeless BMX lately,trying to Flintstone to stop.I guess natural selection will take care of this eventually

Two brakes + fixed is the way to go..

God, everyone on bf is so farping negative and judgemental all the time. You guys just talk **** on anything thats not the safe/norm. Obviously this guy isn't some hip scum trying to follow a trend. He's just a quarky tweak who likes to ride his SS without a brake. It's cool to opine and have a discussion about it but you don't need to down talk it just because its dangerous.

Sure, if all you do is commute. Not if your into fsfg

Busting out the c-word! I understand not rocking a brake for FGFS, but you can also use brakes for weekend "commuting" rides.

this one really turned into a *****storm. freewheel + no brakes = stupid. fg + no brakes = slightly dangerous.

just because you ride fixed without brakes doesn't mean you don't have a way to stop.

p.s. i have a front brake.

sweet, ruined shoes and tires.

the same kids that are running brakeless will also be the same kids that jump into another thread next year.

a small niche of my friends decided recently to participate in a triathlon recently and they all did it on fixed gears (three of whom were brakeless). and now they all want to get "real" bikes like cervelos and the like. a lot of people whom run brakeless one gear bicycles are doing so because they suspect its cool at the moment but typically jump to the next bandwagon by the following year.

I'm thinking that you're only part right. Riding brakeless leads to black & blue.

Works for me.

freewheel brakeless?

*baffled*

So you are only "into" SSFG if you ride brakeless? Fail.

I saw a kid doing that once. I was on my way home from my commute and caught up to three fixed gear kids. None with brakes, but then I noticed the one in the back was coasting.. at first I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me as I looked for the brakes again.. but then we approached a red light and he stuck his foot on the tire. Seemed to take him a while to slow down..

and makes us all look bad you have to pull a stupid stunt to avoid crashing