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But it's one thing saying it, I really don't think a lot of people would actually get on a bike for the first time and go off around London without any brakes. Infact a lot of people would probably never take off the front brake, no matter how long they've been riding. It's like me talking about a Ferrari and saying about how cool it is that it can take corners at 60mph. I'm never gonna go round a corner in London at 60. However on a track, I might go around a corner at 60. Equally on a track I may take off the brake.
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Natch. Daily Mail will get hold of the story and all fixed gear bikes will be burnt in the middle of Trafalgar Sq whilst delirious car drivers cluster fcuk each other in ecstasy over the world being a safer pace.
Those of us that have not been shot 7 times in the head whilst shopping in Tescos shall be sent to unknown parts of the world on flights that don’t exist as the threat of fixed gears to Great Britain very existence has sent Gordon Brown in to a spasm of Dr Strange Love proportions.
Mondays are not good.
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BRM666 But we aren't talking about how far you can push the limit, it is about the ability to stay safe in an emergency that is being overlooked.
[Edit] - Should have quoted.
Yeah but surely not having a brake is only to see how far you can push the limit? Because otherwise everyone would have brakes, helmets, leathers, and roll around in a gigantic ball of foam. Everyone wants to be safe, but everyone pushes looking cool as far as they can whilst still being safe. I know that a safer helmet would be a gigantic lump of polystyrene, but that would look stupid, so I don't wear that.
The Ferrari thing was a bit far to compare, I see that now. As obviously a pedal powered bike is not a Ferrari on a track.
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I think that the fact that people immediately think that brakes aren't necessary is a good example of how some headline facts about fixed gears get quite over exposed. I find it quite weird that I have overheard people who don't look like they're really into cycling talking about fixed gears while locking my bike in front of them - it's a big change from a couple of years ago.
I'm not sure whether that many newbies will ride brakeless in reality. When I built my first fixie I ran it brakeless for a day or two while waiting for a front brake to arrive from Chain Reaction (was too tight to buy a pair in London). I'd read that you could use resistance braking but found that it was a) hard and b) ineffective and so rode very slowly for a few days. I think most people have a good sense of self-preservation and so will ride pretty slowly if they don't have a brake. Then they'll realise that riding slowly is no fun and put the brake back on.
Bit of ramble but I agree that the whole thing is interesting/worrying. I guess it's once of the side effects of the increase in popularity of fixed gears. Will we have a Bike Snob London writing about hipsters in Shoreditch who crash into things cos they don't have a brake?
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I wouldn't consider riding with a brake on my surly anymore. But that's surely the point, I rode that bike (My first fixie) for a year with a brake so I could get used to every aspect of it before venturing into brakeless (I've ridden BMX and mountain bikes seriously for over a decade, I know how to control a bike regarding spatial awareness, positioning, etc so it's not like I don't understand how to control a bike).
I'm quite scared of the concept of a total newbie riding brakeless. Most of them will undoubtedly ride slower and be a little more sensible about it, likely adding a brake when they realise it is difficult to slow down or stop. But, it's the minority that don't do this that will cause any problems, I've had a brakeless chav looking guy hit my back wheel because he couldn't stop in time (Hopefully his new bike rather than his newly "acquired" bike). It's only going to take one or two nasty incidents/pedestrian deaths or whatever to fuck it up for the rest of us.
/rant
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Object17 I've had a brakeless chav looking guy hit my back wheel
That reminds me that about half the kids in Brixton ride mtbs without brakes so we should be fine with people riding brakeless fixies. Mind you, they probably all have a bit more of the "laugh-in-the-face-of-death attitude" than the average newbie fixed rider
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i forced myself to keep a brake for at least a year, that and being able to easily skid stop/skip with either foot forward.
i said once i had mastered this i would bin the brake, i ended up ditching the brake a few months shy of a year cause i felt confident in my ability -
peejay78 "(I've ridden BMX and mountain bikes seriously for over a decade, I know how to control a bike regarding spatial awareness, positioning, etc so it's not like I don't understand how to control a bike)."
er...
it's not rocket science.
I'm not saying it is, however, my point is that many of the people who seem to be buying into the fixie-craze are not cyclists. They're people jumping on a bandwagon and just don't have the confidence that a background in cycling provides.
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SMEEAR i forced myself to keep a brake for at least a year, that and being able to easily skid stop/skip with either foot forward.
i said once i had mastered this i would bin the brake, i ended up ditching the brake a few months shy of a year cause i felt confident in my ability
Just done the maths. It was 9 months I rode with a brake. -
Object17 [quote]peejay78 "(I've ridden BMX and mountain bikes seriously for over a decade, I know how to control a bike regarding spatial awareness, positioning, etc so it's not like I don't understand how to control a bike)."
er...
it's not rocket science.
I'm not saying it is, however, my point is that many of the people who seem to be buying into the fixie-craze are not cyclists. They're people jumping on a bandwagon and just don't have the confidence that a background in cycling provides.[/quote]
i know what you meant :P
to be fair though, i really really don't think that people 'jumping on the fixie-craze" are riding brakeless. i really don't. i'm not saying the conversation you overheard didn't happen, it clearly did. but i very much doubt if anyone new to fixed gear riding would ride brakeless for more than the time it takes them to either realise it's a fast-track to darwinian oblivion, or actually die a messy, articulated death.
there is the minority, but i have yet to see them. and even brakeless experienced riders can be dangerous. if we're not careful this topic (not this thread per se) will end up as the lgfss equivalent of the C+ RLJ debate, where posters confuse the objective with the subjective on a post by post basis.
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Object17 [quote]SMEEAR i forced myself to keep a brake for at least a year, that and being able to easily skid stop/skip with either foot forward.
i said once i had mastered this i would bin the brake, i ended up ditching the brake a few months shy of a year cause i felt confident in my ability
Just done the maths. It was 9 months I rode with a brake.[/quote]That's nothing. I've ridden with a brake for over a year now. And before that, I had TWO brakes. You can count 'em if you like.
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Apologies Peejay, the lack of sleep over the weekend, mixed with caffeine withdrawal has dulled my sense.
Firstly, to ensure I highlight you of my stupidity, what's the "C+ RLJ debate"?
Secondly, I'm sure most people will end up with brakes, it's the minority that don't when they're unskilled that I worry about. The last thing that we need is more bad press for doing something we love.
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Whats with all the newbies all wanting to ride brakeless?
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Overheard a few normal looking folks in a shop this weekend discussing the Langster and talking about how they thought it was so cool that you didn't need brakes. But in that scary, confident, matter-of-fact tone that the fixed wheel naturally and easily confers all the braking power you need.
And this is no means an isolated incident. Read/heard a lot recently from people looking at their first fixed bike and making similar claims that no brakes are needed. Even my sister's husband stated that he thought it was cool that you didn't need a brake and is looking into getting one.
Its all starting to make me very nervous.... there seems to be a reality distortion field settling over track/fixed culture.
And while I know people will learn soon enough that they just don't have the chops or the laugh-in-the-face-of-death attitude needed for brakeless riding, the fact that its almost becoming pervasive 'fact' is causing me a little anxiety.
Thats all, you may go about yer business now... its probably just me being over-sensitive and hyper-aware about this issue that makes it seem like suddenly `everyone' wants to do it.