Talk to me about fixed gears

[Dirt]

@baiskeli 20715 wrote:

You could simply not shift on your current bike, I presume.

That can give you the feeling of a single speed for sure. I’ve ridden with people on mountain bikes who did that to get the feeling of it. It is still different though. With a true single speed, the mindset is a little different in that you couldn’t shift if you wanted to. You’re either gonna honk up that hill or walk it.

The is no way to replicate a fixie on a geared bike. You can say to yourself, “I will not coast, I will not coast” and you still will coast…. even for a split second. You can’t use your legs to slow your momentum. It won’t get close to the feeling of a fixie.

[baiskeli]

@Dirt 20717 wrote:

Sorry. It would be a lot easier if I were human-sized.

I’m rarely accused of being rational, so this is a unique honor for me. Thanks!

The only other thing that puts it in perspective for me as to why fixies are fun is to think in other terms: Why is golf fun? Tennis? Yoga? Hot dog eating contests? The answer to those completely depends on the individual. The answers to all of the above may be “They’re not fun.”

Rock on, y’all!

Golf would be fun if it involved eating lots of hot dogs.

[baiskeli]

@Dirt 20723 wrote:

That can give you the feeling of a single speed for sure. I’ve ridden with people on mountain bikes who did that to get the feeling of it. It is still different though. With a true single speed, the mindset is a little different in that you couldn’t shift if you wanted to. You’re either gonna honk up that hill or walk it.

The is no way to replicate a fixie on a geared bike. You can say to yourself, “I will not coast, I will not coast” and you still will coast…. even for a split second. You can’t use your legs to slow your momentum. It won’t get close to the feeling of a fixie.

That’s true, you’ve still got the freewheel/hub. Didn’t think of that.

[jrenaut]

@bikesnick 20722 wrote:

yes, that is exactly what i did before getting my fixed gear. i rode in a gear that was equivalent to the bike i bought. true, i could coast, but i wanted to see if riding in that gear was doable.

So I have a 30/42/52 up front, and an SRAM PG 850 12X26 8-speed cassette. If I want to try a day without shifting, about where should I be for a typical fixed gear setup? Or does such a thing not exist?

And Bikesnick, I’m just shy of 6′, so I might take you up on that sometime.

[baiskeli]

@DismalScientist 20721 wrote:

You need to have the cassette sufficiently rusted to the hub so you can’t coast.

I’m working on that.

[Dirt]

The down side…

There are things to think about when you do get to riding a fixie… There is a learning curve. The bike will remind you that you cannot coast. Mild cases are no big deal. It feels like someone bumps you from behind and you wobble for a moment. Moderate cases will feel like someone hits you in the back and throws you forward on the bike… You still have control of the bike, but it definitely shakes you a bit. In the worst cases… if you’re moving fast or under big power and you forget that you cannot coast, it throws you off the bike.

When I introduce someone to riding fixie, I always suggest they ride somewhere flat and mellow for the first 20 miles. That is usually all that it takes to get the feel for it.

I’ve been riding so long that it feels very odd when I get back on a geared bike where I can coast. It takes me a few hours to get used to being able to coast. When I get back on the fixie, it is like hanging out with an old friend. It is easy and mellow and I feel right at home.

Emergency stops are interesting. You can stop very well on a fixie if your front brake is good. It sometimes takes a little longer to stop, so it is good to have a little more space to stop. I generally don’t hit the same top speeds on a fixie that I do on a geared bike. In 35+ years of riding fixies, I’ve never had a time when the fixie had anything to do with me not being able to stop in time. Basically times when I couldn’t avoid something that happened in front of me, I would have hit what-ever it was if I’d been on a geared bike.

Like with anything you pick up, start easy and expand what you do as you gain confidence and skill.

[Dirt]

@jrenaut 20726 wrote:

So I have a 30/42/52 up front, and an SRAM PG 850 12X26 8-speed cassette.

Again, you’ll be simulating a single speed.

Your gearing depends on your terrain and your fitness level. It evolves and changes over time. I generally start people with 44×16 or 44×17. In your set-up, John, that would be 42×15 or 42×16 respectively. As you get confidence and strength, the gearing will get taller. I rode 46×16 in this area for a long time and was really happy with it. Keep in mind that these gear ratios are all for bikes with 700×23 or 25 tires.

I’m currently running 48×16 everywhere. For my riding style, where I’m riding and my fitness level, that gives me the best balance of ability to climb reasonably well and still keep up with the pedals on the downhills.

[Dirt]

@DismalScientist 20721 wrote:

You need to have the cassette sufficiently rusted to the hub so you can’t coast.

I think you’re actually joking here, but I will talk to this since we’re in a question/answer type thread.

That actually doesn’t work. If you’ve ever had a sticky freehub. you’ll know that the chain keeps rolling and the derailleur wraps around the hub and gets pulled into the spokes… usually breaking the frame.

[jrenaut]

@Dirt 20729 wrote:

Again, you’ll be simulating a single speed.

Your gearing depends on your terrain and your fitness level. It evolves and changes over time. I generally start people with 44×16 or 44×17. In your set-up, John, that would be 42×15 or 42×16 respectively. As you get confidence and strength, the gearing will get taller. I rode 46×16 in this area for a long time and was really happy with it. Keep in mind that these gear ratios are all for bikes with 700×23 or 25 tires.

I’m currently running 48×16 everywhere. For my riding style, where I’m riding and my fitness level, that gives me the best balance of ability to climb reasonably well and still keep up with the pedals on the downhills.

Right, but I can simulate a single-speed for no money and on a bike that fits me, so that’s a good start.

The bike is downstairs in the garage so I can’t check, but will the 15 or 16 be marked on the cassette? Or is there a standard size for gears 1, 2, 3 etc on a 12X26?

[Dirt]

@jrenaut 20731 wrote:

Right, but I can simulate a single-speed for no money and on a bike that fits me, so that’s a good start.

The bike is downstairs in the garage so I can’t check, but will the 15 or 16 be marked on the cassette? Or is there a standard size for gears 1, 2, 3 etc on a 12X26?

It is a very good start. You might have to count teeth to figure out which gear. It likely won’t have both on an 8-speed cog set.

[vvill]

@jrenaut 20731 wrote:

The bike is downstairs in the garage so I can’t check, but will the 15 or 16 be marked on the cassette? Or is there a standard size for gears 1, 2, 3 etc on a 12X26?

Check the SRAM website. Pretty sure they have info on that.

[OneEighth]

1. 48×16 and 46×15 are decent for this area. If you want to compare the feel to your geared bike, a cadence of 80 will get you roughly 19 mph in a 48×16. 95 will get you 22 mph or so.
2. I find that riding a fixie is a lot like walking. Think about what you are doing the next time you are walking on a crowded sidewalk during lunch—you constantly adjust your pace based on what is going on around you. It’s the same approach on the fixie…you’re just moving faster.

[vvill]

Interesting… I like the walking analogy.

I’ve always liked the idea of a fixie too, esp for the clean/minimalist/efficient aesthetic (which is part of riding a bike really) but I have bad knees and having to (help) brake with my legs or go downhill at a very high cadence scares me a bit. I don’t have very strong leg muscles either so I think I’d have to go something like 44/18 or even lower. Also there’s lots of hills around me so that’s intimidating as well.

@Dirt 20723 wrote:

That can give you the feeling of a single speed for sure. I’ve ridden with people on mountain bikes who did that to get the feeling of it. It is still different though. With a true single speed, the mindset is a little different in that you couldn’t shift if you wanted to. You’re either gonna honk up that hill or walk it.

Yeah I tried to “single speed” a couple times on my MTB last year and always ended up shifting halfway up the Custis/Rosslyn hill. It’s hard to get past the mentality of having shifters/a cassette.

@jabberwocky 20718 wrote:

Just to repeat, I have two fixies that I’d be happy to loan to any shorter folks who wanna try one. The first is a 50cm Milwaukee Orange one, the other is a 52cm Lotus Legend. Good for folks in the 5’4″ to 5’8″ range.

I might take you up on this one day. I think I could fit on the 52cm. I’m 5’9″ but have shortish legs for my height.

[jrenaut]

Maybe we just need to have a “try everyone’s bike” day at Hains Point sometime.

[OneEighth]

@jrenaut 20736 wrote:

Maybe we just need to have a “try everyone’s bike” day at Hains Point sometime.

Pedal/cleat compatability.

[Author]

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