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Why did you start riding fixed?

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Singlespeed & Fixed Gear "I still feel that variable gears are only for people over forty-five. Isn't it better to triumph by the strength of your muscles than by the artifice of a derailer? We are getting soft...As for me, give me a fixed gear!"-- Henri Desgrange (31 January 1865 - 16 August 1940)

Why did you start riding fixed?

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Old 04-19-11 | 08:36 PM
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Why did you start riding fixed?

I searched but couldn't find a thread like this, I'd like to know everyone's excuse!

I started because the friction DT shifters on my old Centurion LeMans Rs wouldn't stay put. They constantly needed adjusting to avoid chain issues/noise. Also, I was a new rider then and DT shifters were scary to reach.

Pulled everything off and put on a fixed wheelset.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:38 PM
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my friend was like 'yo check this out' and put on the MASH DVD. true story.
i also grew a pretty sweet moustache that year.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:41 PM
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I read about it on Sheldon's site. At first I was seriously like, "why the heck would I want a bike like that?" It didn't take long before I was cobbling together my first FG conversion.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:41 PM
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:43 PM
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I had a frame and I already had my road bike, so fixed was the next move after learning of its popularity and my growing curiosity.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:49 PM
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Bikes: Geekhouse Deerfield, GT Edge Ti, Spooky Skeletor, TET Track, Ritchey P-650b, Bridgestone MB-3

During the summer of 2009 I randomly became infatuated with fixed gear bikes by checking out some online blogs and Fixed Gear Gallery. I convinced my parents to get me one for Christmas, but didn't end up placing the order until sometime in March of 2010. I've been riding fixed since then. I'm considering a road bike, but I keep "accidentally" spending money on new track bikes.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:49 PM
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When I got in a bike accident, then snapped my chain a week later, it was the cheapest way to get my bike back on the road.
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:51 PM
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Bikes: fixed gear recumbent trike

i really dont know why... probably to sup my wife
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:51 PM
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...to sup your wife.

Last edited by rustybrown; 04-19-11 at 09:08 PM. Reason: timestamping
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:52 PM
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Old 04-19-11 | 08:58 PM
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I wanted to be different, so I put together a FG like all the cool kids.
Seriously though, a couple years ago I became obsessed with the idea of fixed gears. Since I hadn't been on a bike for a few years I decided to put one together. Now I love it and haven't turned back.
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:03 PM
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Because I'm still like I was back when I did my first conversion back in 2000, not a fan of gears.
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:17 PM
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:18 PM
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My roommate all through college was an art major.


(hipster)
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:24 PM
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To loose weight cuz I'm a fat lard. From 245 now 225. And still loosing. 20 miles a day
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:28 PM
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Outstanding, just a a bit of advice, you may want to start upping the mileage, 20 miles will soon become routine and weight loss will start to diminish.
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:31 PM
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Originally Posted by Dannihilator
Outstanding, just a a bit of advice, you may want to start upping the mileage, 20 miles will soon become routine and weight loss will start to diminish.
Yes I notice that after 3months. It's starting to be too easy. So I up my gear inches from 75 to 80. And probably add 5 more miles in 2weeks
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:36 PM
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Bikes: Bike Count: Rising.

Cool. Good luck with it.
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Old 04-19-11 | 09:43 PM
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Try lowering you gearing and pedaling faster.
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Old 04-19-11 | 10:03 PM
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It just looked like fun. It turned out to be true.
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Old 04-19-11 | 10:19 PM
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When I was racing in High School all the roadies I trained with had fixed gear beater bikes for the winter. So when I needed a beater bike to lock up on campus I decided to build one. Even though the one I have now isn't much of a beater......
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Old 04-19-11 | 10:41 PM
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Originally Posted by hairnet
Try lowering you gearing and pedaling faster.
It was to my understanding that if you bring your heart rate up too much (enter the anaerobic stage of exercise) your energy source moves to carbs instead of fats as in aerobic. Assuming there is a diet to go alongside this exercise, it would seem as though this would be counterproductive. Granted, this is provided my limited knowledge of physical training.. So I am only asking to further/make changes to said knowledge.

As for fixed.. I started on a singlespeed, at one point in time my freewheel went ka-boom, and I had to ride fixed until I could get a new one. I ended up hating the freewheel because of the pawls and stayed fixed.
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Old 04-19-11 | 10:44 PM
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Bikes: Fixed Gear

****in' brakes on my Dawes SST i bought from a guy off CL kept giving me problems, I was one of the people who hated fixed gears and said "nope never" until that single speed freewheel went out, the wheelset was flip flop and had a cog on the other side already, 16t fixed so i turned it around and said "**** it" and fell in love.
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Old 04-19-11 | 10:51 PM
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Build leg strength. I was a swimmer.
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Old 04-19-11 | 11:17 PM
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Well, I wanted a fixed gear because they look clean as hell. Then after I started riding one I kept riding because never feeling slack in the chain is addicting.
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