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Just built up a Langster for a couple of hundred quid after not having a fixed for over a year because I wrote off the frame on my last one
Quick, light, responsive, fun - it’s an absolute blast around the city and brings me as much joy as my 2k gravel bike
10/10 would recommend
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Been a wee bit since I posted in here.
I decided that my 'Sunday Best' fixed bike was indeed too small for me so I'm no longer riding it. I think the poor fit was part of what was killing my love for riding fixed.
I had been working on a larger frame which I finished but due to it being winter it's now my track bike, it will become my road fixed in a few months so we will see how I get on with longer fixed rides over summer.
I made myself the steel frameset I was talking about for my hub geared bike and it is definitely a keeper.
Parallel to this, I've been messing about with riding a couple different geared mountain bikes over the last 6-9 months, normally having a singlespeed mtb. Similar thinking, gears would probably allow me to ride further, more places etc. I found some success but maybe because I have the hub geared bike which can take on moderate off roading I decided it was time to go back to riding a singlespeed mtb. I have a frame/bike in the works just now.
I had been kind of hankering for something more sprightly (but not necessarily fixed) for road and gravel rides so have put a coaster brake rear wheel on one of my bikes and did a club ride on it last weekend and enjoyed it.
I do feel I've lost a bit of leg strength from riding gears but maybe that's just in my head.
I've also been doing some work on my grandad's old Flying Scot and will be riding it fixed for road and gravel rides.
TLDR: I've definitely become less dedicated to riding fixed but I'm also not fully embracing gears. Also as I've been enjoying different bikes and different types of riding I've pretty much forgotten about any hang ups I had about 'wimping out' of riding fixed.
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From @M_V : “…enjoying different bikes and different types of riding I've pretty much forgotten about any hang ups I had about 'wimping out' of riding fixed.”
I’m with you there. I keep a fixed gear in my collection not out of obligation, but for fun, since in the end it’s just bikes.
I still enjoy riding fixed quite a bit. I might not be as fit as I could be, but the difference in ride rhythm is a nice change of pace. It’s hilly round here. About 1,000ft per 10mi give or take depending on the route. I may be able to go further afield on a geared bike in my current fitness, but my shorter jaunts on the fixed wheel aren’t any less fun.
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I've not really ridden fixed since I mangled me knee a few years ago by dropping a cargo bike on it. I built my Donohue up again not long ago and as much as I love it, it just doesn't suit my style of riding any more. It's too aggressive and too impractical. It was great fun when I was in my early 20s, I used to ride a few hundred miles a week on it for work and have done a couple of centuries on it. These days I prefer not being bent in half and not getting a wet arse for 6 months of the year so I've built a Pompino with a nice comfortable position, a disc brake and mudguards. Really enjoying riding fixed again! Now I just need to get as fit as I was 5 years ago and I'll be laughing.
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I had not ridden fixed for about 5 years. Then last year, I decided that the thing I hated most about winter riding was bike cleaning! On gears, in winter, everything gets so crapped up. At the tender age of 63 I hauled out my old Claude Butler Majestic frame out of the garage and rebuilt it as a fix wheel - double fixed rear cog! Hardcore! Fortunately, I've never experienced any knee troubles in life so riding fixed suits me.
I rock up to a local cafe near where I live after 20 miles or so and I swear other riders think that I'm an animal. Whereas, the steady rhythm of fixed wheel suits me particularly as I get older and I lose speed. I'm thinking that I'll continue to ride fixed for as long as I can but purchase a Pashley hub geared bike for summer posing as there's not much chance of me riding with a fast group or fast anything! -
Took my shopper to a 50km gravel race on Sunday expecting to get dropped on climbs and descents, and hang on for the flat parts. I wound up picking off gravel rigs on every climb, a few on the flat and.. got dropped on the descents. Had a blast. Now and then I think about rebuilding it with a coaster brake but it just wouldn't be the same.
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Started riding fixed at 38, and still flying the flag at 50. I keep it fixed as I find it helps maintain my knee muscles which compensate for my ever-deteriorating knees. Still ride SS on the BMX (yes, ok ), but when I got a Brompton a few years ago, the gear experience and lack of fixed action was a massive disappointment, to the extent I converted it to fixed. Do what makes you happy.
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After a worse crash on a fixed bike almost 10 years ago, I stopped riding fixed in the city for a long time, and while occasionally I go fixed today, I still don't like it on road BUT I love it off road. Really, dirt touring and bikepacking trips on a fixed bike hold a special place for me, both mentally and physically.
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About
Dedication to Fixed?
Posted by
@M_V
I'm 35, started out riding fixed about 12yr ago. These days my only bike is a Rohloff cycletruck.
I definitely have a soft-spot for SS bikes, but riding brakeless on the street just feels kind of reckless now that I'm older, more brittle, and have responsibilities that need me to be able-bodied.