Newbie/idiot new build

May I ask what ratio you use?Obviously,it's different strokes for different folks.Still,I'm interested.Did it take you long to find the ideal gear?

Generally speaking the best gears for fixed riding (especially when you're starting out) have a similar ratio to 48-18, which is around 70ish gear inches. this means you have enough oopmh to get up to reasonable speed without spinning like a lunatic, but the gear is light enough to allow you to learn to skid stop etc.

Skid stopping (pre-empting a question!) is basically where you unweight the back wheel, then attempt to reverse the rotation of the pedals (pull up with leading foot, push down with trailing foot) causing it to skid. There are various different techniques involved in this process, depending on whether you want to skid to show off or to actually slow down :). Simply attempting to force all your weight counter to the direction of motion won't really do anything (other than throw you all over the place) because most of your weight is over the drive wheel. Skid stopping, skip stopping (lifting the rear wheel off the ground and cancelling the forward motion), hock stopping (skidding the back wheel out to one side) are all methods of slowing the bike down without using the brakes.

Jesus...think I'll stick to brakes for the time being.But thanks for the explanation.Is there really any advantage to being brakeless?I mean,obviously,reducing moving parts reduces weight and the number of things that can go wrong,but is that it?Am I,(almost certainly),missing something?

err no, not really. i ride with a front brake. I guess it reduces weight, but so does skipping breakfast :). The way i see it, it means that you dont have a safety net if something goes wrong. I know a lot of people who can ride brakeless more than adequately, but they cannae stop if their chain pops off no matter how good they are!

sounds like a recipe for disaster.brakes for me,I think.

Right guys, thanks for answering my questions. I've had a look at the bike and I don;t think it has any cotters so thats good as it might mean i am able ti use the crank still.

I'll let you know how i get on with this and may even pop down to polo at brick lane......now time for rugby tho!

I've just switched from SPDs to clips&straps. I got pissed off with having to carry a change of shoes most places, and also never managed to get 100% confident skids without coming unclipped. I've only cycled with clips for a day so far, but I find skidstops easier and I don't come unclipped any more!

I do wish I'd splashed out on the clips with leather shoe protectory bits, I love my shoes too much!