Cornering - Fixed vs Singlespeed

There is only one thing stopping me from ditching the freewheel and go fixed and that's cornering.

I usually cycle pretty fast, and corner pretty sharp also, and since on a fixed, the pedals would keep turning, it would put me at risk of flopping off my bike when leaning.
That really puts me off.

I did just that on a fixed BMX years ago on a quiet road and i went friggin flying.
It just seems to me way dangerous on London roads with all the killing machines around you i.e. cars

There is only one thing stopping me from ditching the freewheel and go fixed and that's cornering.

I usually cycle pretty fast, and corner pretty sharp also, and since on a fixed, the pedals would keep turning, it would put me at risk of flopping off my bike when leaning.
That really puts me off.

I did just that on a fixed BMX years ago on a quiet road and i went friggin flying.
It just seems to me way dangerous on London roads with all the killing machines around you i.e. cars

Most fixed gear bikes have shorter cranks and higher bottom brackets so its not a problem...and fixed bmx? that would be interesting?!

yep... you've gotta have 165mm cranks & a lofty bb shell to corner at speed. pedal strike can be nasty in london

Most fixed gear bikes have shorter cranks and higher bottom brackets so its not a problem...and fixed bmx? that would be interesting?!

yes, so people converting a normal bike with regular cranks and regular frame geometry should be warned about it then i guess.

out of interest how much extra clearance do you get from a specially built fixed bike ?

ye the fixed bmx old dog even back in 94 when it happened.

as for the picture of the damaged person ? what's the story and relevance ?

htf and ride fixed, i never caught a pedal, even with 175s on an old road conversion. just keep the stroke even, and approach the turn with the pedals in the right place.

. . . and approach the turn with the pedals in the right place.

How ?

skid, or resist the pedal motion to get them set up for the corner.

Or use one of these

There is only one thing stopping me from ditching the freewheel and go fixed and that's cornering.

I usually cycle pretty fast, and corner pretty sharp also, and since on a fixed, the pedals would keep turning, it would put me at risk of flopping off my bike when leaning.
That really puts me off.

A few factors are important as already mentioned, amongst them the most critical are crank arm length, BB height and pedal choice.

I have 165mm crank arms + high bottom bracket and Bebop clipless pedals on my Electron and the angle I have to lean the thing over to make my shoe touch the ground is frankly ludicrous ! (I could take a picture if you want?)

I would have to cornering practically on my side to strike, I would loose the tyres way before a strike at these kinds of angles. If your set up is sorted it is practically impossible to pedal strike on level ground (weird pot holes and curb strikes aside).

skid, or resist the pedal motion to get them set up for the corner.

Skid = yes, I agree, but what would resisting the pedal motion do ?

Or use one of these

Not a bad idea, GPS directional self extracting cranks that remove themselves on corners.

I want in on the patent.

for slight adjustments

problem solved

http://www.pusha.com/gallery00.html

........ the colour scheme does it for me as well

for slight adjustments

Won't work ! You either skid or stop there is no magic in the middle.

Skidding will work, like you say, but here we must apply the law of excluded middle.

Resist the pedal motion but continue forward traction lost - we call skidding.

Resist the pedal motion but slow (or stop) no traction lost - we call stopping or slowing.

I think that both the fixed gear and single speed advocates need to accept that both systems are inherently flawed and join the no gear, no crank, no pedals, I'm a cunt brigade.

resistance is futile.

Won't work ! You either skid or stop there is no magic in the middle.

Skidding will work, like you say, but here we must apply the law of excluded middle.

Resist the pedal motion but continue forward traction lost - we call skidding.

Resist the pedal motion but slow (or stop) no traction lost - we call stopping or slowing.

i meant the second one, with out coming to a stop. just slowing your pedal circle to make it through the turn.

i meant the second one, with out coming to a stop. just slowing your pedal circle to make it through the turn.

So your idea . . . approach the turn with the pedals in the right place. simply means slow down a little in the corners ?

no, it means understand the pedal stroke, and where your feet will be given your cadence, and adjust accordingly. you want to pass the tightest part of the turn with the pedal at 12 o'clock (the highest point), you then figure where your pedals are now, where they will be if you make no adjustment where they will me, then adjust them by skidding (to hold position as you approach) or resisting on the pedals (to slow your cadence, and adjust foot position).

though a high BB and 165s make life easier it can be done other wise.

Resisting the pedals will do nothing other than slow you down - do it slowly enough and you will come to a stop - do it fast enough and you will skid.

That is all there is, resisting the pedals without skidding will not allow you to adjust the crank arms position in relationship to the corner.

:(

Sad but true, your magical 'third way' (neither skidding, nor slowing) has not effected this basic feature of fixed gear drivechains.

i'm not saying you don't slow down, in fact i'm saying the opposite, you change your cadence, so when you reach the corner your pedals are in a different place

your pedals would be in the same place, you'd just get there at a different pace. on a fixed gear the ratio of pedal strokes to wheel rotations (ie distance) is the same no matter what speed you're going, so for a given distance the number of pedal stroke is the same no matter how fast. ie, your feet are going to in the same position if you cover the same speed at 15mph or 20mph.

you could try riding in a wiggly line to alter the distance to the corner.

as tynan say, my bike is a old track frame with really high b/b, i also would have to lean the bike well over to strike, but on a conversion you'll be better off keeping the bike fairly upright through the corner, resisting will do nothing.
get the bike,(not on it) with a pedal down and see how far you actually have to lean it for the pedal to touch the floor.

+1 to badtmy's point - he is exactly right.

Crank length + BB height is all important. If you have long cranks and a low BB then you may have to slow through corners.

Does anyone on here have to slow in corners on fixed?

another mitigating technique is to lean your body (out of the saddle) into the corner, so that the bike can remain upright.

I think that both the fixed gear and single speed advocates need to accept that both systems are inherently flawed

I agree, though 'not perfect' might be better than 'inherently flawed'. Different tools for different uses - which is probably why a lot of us have more than one bike, with and without freewheels.