jcd11235 0 #1 July 23, 2012 I regularly see dozens of fixed gear bikes locked to bike racks on campus and around town. Where I very rarely see such bikes, however, is on the streets being ridden. (This fact is somewhat disappointing, since, when the opportunity does present itself, I find a certain pleasure in coasting past fixed gear riders on smooth, level pavement.) Is this common in other areas? Is a fixie merely a fashion accessory? For those who don't know, a fixed gear bike is a bike on which the rider cannot coast. The motion of the pedals are "fixed" to the motion of the rear wheel. If the wheel is moving forward, the pedals are moving forward. If the wheel is moving backwards, the pedals are moving backwards. Usually these bikes have only a single speed, and are often equipped with no brakes. Once upon a time, only the strongest cyclists rode fixed gear bikes. Now, they seem to be a trendy bike to own, though not necessarily to ride.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ryoder 1,381 #2 July 23, 2012 I think the primary purpose of them is to look cool parked outside the coffee shop.Here is CO, the terrain is just too rolling and the hills too steep for them to be useful, (IMO). That said, I was climbing Flagstaff Mt one day, (grades range from 6 to 16%), and was feeling pretty proud of myself for passing some kid on the way up. As I stood at the top of the ridge, taking a water break, he came struggling up. Then my jaw dropped when I saw he had just one gear.I didn't notice if it was just a SS, or a FG. "There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #3 July 23, 2012 I actually see a few on the road once in a while... But I ride on the major axis, not in and around campus (its when close to campus that I see most of them). I've been humming and awing about getting one, but, my commute has a 2 mile climb at the end of the ride, and, well, I'm not a climber, never mind on a highish ratio! lolRemster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #4 July 23, 2012 Quote As I stood at the top of the ridge, taking a water break, he came struggling up. Then my jaw dropped when I saw he had just one gear.I didn't notice if it was just a SS, or a FG. I ride a SS and don't have any problems climbing even steep hills. One of my frequent riding companions is a scholarshipped university swimmer fifteen years younger than me, and in much better shape. She rides a geared road bike, and I regularly drop her going up hills. Climbing sucks, but since I can't shift into a lower gear, it doesn't suck very long. I can barely keep up on level road, though.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #5 July 23, 2012 QuoteI actually see a few on the road once in a while... But I ride on the major axis, not in and around campus (its when close to campus that I see most of them). I try to avoid the major roads, but I'm a year round commuter, so I ride all over the city, all hours of the day and night. (I do avoid any daytime recreational riding in July and August, when it's just too hot.) I'm reasonably confident that I'm not just missing them.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #6 July 23, 2012 Quote climbing even steep hills. Is your profile up to date? Florida? Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #7 July 23, 2012 Quote Quote climbing even steep hills. Is your profile up to date? Florida? I should update that. I'm in the Ozarks now.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #8 July 23, 2012 Hehe... All I know is that I love my granny gear! Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ryoder 1,381 #9 July 23, 2012 Flagstaff Mt: http://303cycling.com/flagstaff-hill-climb-boulder-colorado Even Tom Danielson needed over 22 minutes to climb it. So it isn't going to be over quickly.BTW That descent video doesn't start at the top, so it misses the best part: Being dumped down a 16% grade into a double hairpin turn. Taylor Phinney has the Strava record right now with a descent time of 7:13. I am 106/696 with 8:48. Problem is it is rare to descend w/o overtaking a slower motor vehicle. "There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #10 July 23, 2012 Quote Flagstaff Mt: http://303cycling.com/flagstaff-hill-climb-boulder-colorado Even Tom Danielson needed over 22 minutes to climb it. So it isn't going to "be over quickly". Our climbs tend to be shorter than that! Possibly steeper though.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cocheese 0 #11 July 23, 2012 I found this:http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessek/4461347206/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #12 July 23, 2012 Quote I found this:http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessek/4461347206/ Decent approximation of 90 percent the the dudes on fixies in NoHo and Silver Lake. Also, the cutter working bay one of the facility I work at the most. Meh. People think it's trendy, but folks were taking track bikes on streets back in the '70s and probably earlier as well. They didn't call them fixies though. They were simply track bikes.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NWFlyer 2 #13 July 23, 2012 Quote Quote I found this:http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessek/4461347206/ Decent approximation of 90 percent the the dudes on fixies in NoHo and Silver Lake. Also, the cutter working bay one of the facility I work at the most. Meh. People think it's trendy, but folks were taking track bikes on streets back in the '70s and probably earlier as well. They didn't call them fixies though. They were simply track bikes. http://dadsaretheoriginalhipster.tumblr.com/ And yeah, that pic cocheese posted looks like half the guys in my neighborhood (an enclave of hipsters & aging hippies, along with a bunch of us that don't fit into either category)."There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ryoder 1,381 #14 July 23, 2012 Quote I found this:http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessek/4461347206/ You will see those guys on www.bikeforums.net in the SS/FG forum endlessly discussing what color rims/chains/tires/saddles/bartape/etc to buy."There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jdfreefly 1 #15 July 23, 2012 http://browncardigan.s3.amazonaws.com/imagesfarm/2012/Cf6aJFRNkVSBfYu.jpg Methane Freefly - got stink? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #16 July 23, 2012 Quote I found this:http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessek/4461347206/ Brakes? Wannabe bike messengers don't need no stinkin' brakes! Just ask them.Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jakee 1,254 #17 July 23, 2012 Quote Quote Flagstaff Mt: http://303cycling.com/flagstaff-hill-climb-boulder-colorado Even Tom Danielson needed over 22 minutes to climb it. So it isn't going to "be over quickly". Our climbs tend to be shorter than that! Possibly steeper though. Than 16%? It could be 100ft high and you wouldn't be getting up it easily.Do you want to have an ideagasm? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diablopilot 2 #18 July 23, 2012 It's a fad.---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
likestojump 3 #19 July 23, 2012 QuoteIt's a fad. If we get more of those hippies in the sport, we will have them bring the rounds back :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 2,381 #20 July 23, 2012 I think I'm gonna get myself a "fixie" with a Rohloff hub. That way I can be hip but still actually use the bike to get to work. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JohnMitchell 14 #21 July 23, 2012 Our son Brett got a SS bike that he could turn the wheel around for FG, but I don't think he's ever done that. He mostly rides the 20 mile flat trail that runs by our house. As you, Krisanne, know, he's definitely not a hipster. He's a hard charging parkour athlete, very dedicated the staying in shape. He let me ride it one day to take one of my bike wheels to the shop in town. It was a sweet bike. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Remster 24 #22 July 23, 2012 QuoteIt's a fad. Yeah! Wally's World has'em, so its not cool anymore.Remster Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #23 July 23, 2012 QuoteI think I'm gonna get myself a "fixie" with a Rohloff hub. That way I can be hip but still actually use the bike to get to work. That's not a fixie, Bill. That's practical (price of the Rohloff notwithstanding).Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcd11235 0 #24 July 23, 2012 Quote He's a hard charging parkour athlete, very dedicated the staying in shape. Doesn't that make him the type of cyclist that used to be associated with fixed gear bikes? Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jayach05 0 #25 July 23, 2012 It's a hipster kind of thing here in Kansas. I was on a 'Critical Mass' ride where around 25 people out of roughly 100 had fixies. It looks much harder than multi geared bikes but to each their own. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
