Riding Roubaix Fixed

Having found little info on the web regarding riding long distances fixed, i thought i would share my experiences of riding the 2015 Roubaix challenge fixed wheel. Firstly, this was my first century ride and loved it, really hard but believe it or not, the pave breaks up the monotony of the roads which is essential for a fixie. Second, these are my impressions (not facts) of riding the route, happy to hear other experiences but i haven't found many on the web.

Riding pave goes from one extreme to another - Arenburg was like riding on ice cubes, back wheel all over the place but as my old east european ski instructor used to say..."commitment but with a gentle touch" is the way to go. Push through the pave, the moment you slow down or get nervous, you are ****ed. So many people in front of me got scared and slowed down rather than ride though it and they all crashed. Other pave like Carrefour is long, gentle uphill gradient and a head wind, you just have to grind it out.

Few things to clear out of the way for general purposes:
its really well organised
its really well sign posted
feed stations are great (especially if you like sweet stuff, though i can't even see a waffle without feeling slightly queasy now), so you don't need to carry loads of food or 2 water bottles.
Technical back up is great if you crash or run into trouble (i somersaulted on the pave and was well looked after)
it is not flat, undulating is probably the best i can say
pave grades over 2 are hard
double tape handle bars is essential
Vittoria open pave tyre at 90 psi worked well for me (6 of us rode that day, and the only guy with a puncture rode a different tyre)

Fixed essentials:
I used a cinelli gazetta with 48x18 gearing (70 inches) and this is the most interesting area of discussion since i spent weeks thinking about this. Fixed gearing is a very personal thing though given size and weight and experience you can make some generalisations. I am 6ft and 180lbs and been riding fixed for 5 years. I had just done the black legend (purple patch, well organised and nice views) 80 miles around wessex 2 weeks before which was hilly on the same gearing and thought i should go with this. I had heard the riding pave is like interval training, hit the pave as hard as possible and ride through it into zone 4/5 heart rate for a couple of km and recover on the road (i had a wahoo heart rate monitor on)..well to be honest you can forget this on a fixie. You choose a compromise gear that can get you through the gently undulating tarmac route without losing too much on the others and when you hit the pave, you just have to grind it out - its brutal. When you drop below a certain speed (and after 75 miles fixed, you slow down!!), you get bounced by every cobble rather than glide over like the pro's do. If you've been riding fixed for years then you may have a different view but i haven't seen it on the web. Maybe next year i'll go 48x17 and see if i can ride through the pave better....not sure.

So you have 27 pave sectors to ride (50km) and the first few you hit with great relish especially on a fixed because you can control the slide and bumps better than a geared bike. To be honest despite wiping out on one of the early sectors, i loved Arenburg and probably thought i had better control than most. My wipe out came from something that most blogs don't cover. Riding pave you choose to ride the crown or look for smooth stuff on the edges. I found a smooth patch on the side but there tends to be grass verges, and riding fixed, you can't coast your pedals over some of the sharper verges which is where i think my pedal got stuck and flipped me over.

75 miles in and i hit a low point, its difficult riding fixed in these events unless you have a pal as you end up riding on your own given the constraints of fixie gearing. I rode the whole 103 miles on my own and you have to pull yourself together occasionally. On the flats i would try and find a group to hide behind and get a tow but eventually you get dropped. Anyway, you just have to get through the mental dip and at 80 miles, I realised that I only had 20 miles to go so its like a count down. What helps though is the friendly nature of other riders passing you by especially the Dutch and Belgium riders who seem to respect someone riding fixed.

Coming into Roubaix was great despite the rain (again) and then once round the velodrome, medal pick up and then a beer.

Final thoughts.
Great fun and the camaraderie will get you through if nothing else.
I saw 2 other single gears but no fixed which is a shame
I was amazed how much time i lost on the pave (down to 8-12mph)
Gearing is still experimental and i might go double fixed (17 and 18) next year.
Loved it and even thinking about Tour of Flanders next year. But anything over 100 miles fixed is really tough, you're body never rests.

bullhorn handle bars (probably go drops next year)

Not strictly related, but as a Marlborough native I had no idea that sportive existed. Definitely will get on that next year. Chapeau to doing it fixed though, the hills round here are no joke.

Great stuff.
Chapeau.
I rode most of the pave later in the day after the sportive was over. I have often thought about doing it fixed (I go every year) but as I was chaperoning a bunch of riders I stuck with gears.
And I didn't stack or flat. In fact I never have either in the last 15 or so years. Famous last words.

I thought about riding it fixed - it makes a lot of sense for Roubaix. In the end did it on 1x10. Next year...

48x18 is the gear of champions, but uphill on pave and in to that headwind...eeesh

You fucking hard bastard. Well done!

Great read

Well done.

5 of us from Northies did it on all our road bikes. We hung together (largely) but there were a group of Belgians 2 of whom were riding fixed who kept passing us/we kept passing them.

On on of the more difficult sections one of the fixed riders passed me like a breeze, then about 20 yards ahead the cobbles made him pop his left cleat. I was transfixed as he continued to pedal for about 5 revolutions with his right foot and I just watched him as I continued to pedal.

He got his cleat back in.

Ryzard is right, you don't need 2 water bottles (because I lost one anyway!) but in that event you will stop at every feed stop.

The sportive (163km/140km/80km) is totally doable fixed but that chain has to tight. I would recommend open pave or 28mm tyres. I would also recommend wrapping your wrists (yes, like a boxer). I would not recommend this ride being your first century ride!
The faster you can approach and ride the cobbles the more enjoyable it is.

Well done Ryzard.

@Ryzard - Great write-up. Would love to have a go one day.

No pics? Great effort

I would recommend open pave or 28mm tyres. I would also recommend wrapping your wrists (yes, like a boxer).

28mm or 30mm if you can get them in.

Just used Lizard skin bar tape, single layer, two years old + Specialized BG fit MTB mits that have 4mm of gel pads. Zero problems with wrists / hands. But then having raced XC and CX I'm used to getting a battering.

Hi...to follow up on some kit used.

Cleats were speedplay zero's, great at staying clipped but with quite a lot of float (which I prefer) Only time I came out was on the somersault and that was only one cleat.

My gazzetta is not drilled to hold a bottle cage so I used an M-Wave universal bottle cage quick release. I was quite sceptical since it cost so little but was surprised at the firm hold on the frame without scratching and how it kept the bottle in even through the somersault.

Knowing that the food stops were good, I only took some Nuun for electrolytes and jelly babies for the morale (they don't really help with your body)

Can't say my wrists hurt as I barely held the handlebars, just guided them but my biceps were sore. Used double wrapped handle bars (mike giant tape) and giro x Cinelli gloves for the grip (awesome).

Open pave are 25mm and was impressed with them, didn't feel like I lost too much on the Tarmac.

Agree with Arvy, this is not recommended for your first century ride but if it is...way to go.

Entries are live for 2016. I'm in, planning on riding out + doing the sportive fixed. Nothing ventured, etc.

More detail on your bonkers plan, please @umop3pisdn

That's all I've planned so far. Leave London on the Thursday, cycle 85 miles to Dover. Crash in Calais, 75 miles to Roubaix Friday morning. Then the sportive, then the race, then Eurostar back Sunday night.

Pompino with 32c and probably 48x19 for the ride over, maybe an 18 for the sportive? Rack and panniers for kit. yolo.

keen

Ah I get ya. You'd do the 'medium' route, then I guess.

Doable, fo' sure.

Weather was amazing this year on the day of the race, would have made a lovely return journey

Nah, the 163km. 5.30am bus to Busigny.

Better get yourself somewhere to stay nearish to the velodrome in Roubaix then :)

Probably better to cycle to Busigny on the Friday TBH - 5.30 bus is 4:30 uk time.

Rep

Entered

Yeah, just noticed everywhere selling out! Have booked a room in Lille, sure I can manage 4 miles to the velodrome in the morning.

Have booked a room in Lille, sure I can manage 4 miles to the velodrome in the morning.

Lille... It's a curious place, a bit dismal here and there, but there are a couple of brilliant places to eat. Not sure why you wouldn't just keep on riding through to B though, given it means a more civilised morning on the day of the event, and you don't have to put your steed on a bloomin' coach.

Done the sportive for the last 3 years...You might as well stay in Lille (the chinatown-ish-y bit is much more preferable IMO - 10 mins walk to stations).

The coach isn't so arduous tbh...Bikes are well hung (ooo er) in a trailer (it's no London to Brighton skip).

The medium course is ridiculous - Arenbergs the first cobbled section. No-one deserves that as their baptism!

Doing it (all!) fixed is triple hard. There's no hills worse than a motorway bridge lump (maybe a bit of a medium and shallow sapper as you get into Roubaix outskirts?)

Just the hassle of getting kit to Roubaix afterwards. Don't want to be doing Pave with panniers.