Taking the plunge and flipping to my fixed

with two brakes (or even just one), not always necessary, I find it's easier to learn without foot retention to get the feel of it before getting clip and strap.

Actually I went without for the first few weeks. It was fine. No skidding possible though. And once I had foot retention it was sooo much better.
I built mine with a double-fixed hub, so no choice of riding a freewheel. I rode it round Victoria Park after I finished building it and within half an hour and bloody loved it. Within 30 minutes I was a fixed-wheel convert on my fixed-wheel conversion.