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Having found little info on the web regarding riding long distances fixed, i thought i would share my experiences of riding the 2015 Roubaix challenge fixed wheel. Firstly, this was my first century ride and loved it, really hard but believe it or not, the pave breaks up the monotony of the roads which is essential for a fixie. Second, these are my impressions (not facts) of riding the route, happy to hear other experiences but i haven't found many on the web.
Riding pave goes from one extreme to another - Arenburg was like riding on ice cubes, back wheel all over the place but as my old east european ski instructor used to say..."commitment but with a gentle touch" is the way to go. Push through the pave, the moment you slow down or get nervous, you are ****ed. So many people in front of me got scared and slowed down rather than ride though it and they all crashed. Other pave like Carrefour is long, gentle uphill gradient and a head wind, you just have to grind it out.
Few things to clear out of the way for general purposes:
its really well organised
its really well sign posted
feed stations are great (especially if you like sweet stuff, though i can't even see a waffle without feeling slightly queasy now), so you don't need to carry loads of food or 2 water bottles.
Technical back up is great if you crash or run into trouble (i somersaulted on the pave and was well looked after)
it is not flat, undulating is probably the best i can say
pave grades over 2 are hard
double tape handle bars is essential
Vittoria open pave tyre at 90 psi worked well for me (6 of us rode that day, and the only guy with a puncture rode a different tyre)Fixed essentials:
I used a cinelli gazetta with 48x18 gearing (70 inches) and this is the most interesting area of discussion since i spent weeks thinking about this. Fixed gearing is a very personal thing though given size and weight and experience you can make some generalisations. I am 6ft and 180lbs and been riding fixed for 5 years. I had just done the black legend (purple patch, well organised and nice views) 80 miles around wessex 2 weeks before which was hilly on the same gearing and thought i should go with this. I had heard the riding pave is like interval training, hit the pave as hard as possible and ride through it into zone 4/5 heart rate for a couple of km and recover on the road (i had a wahoo heart rate monitor on)..well to be honest you can forget this on a fixie. You choose a compromise gear that can get you through the gently undulating tarmac route without losing too much on the others and when you hit the pave, you just have to grind it out - its brutal. When you drop below a certain speed (and after 75 miles fixed, you slow down!!), you get bounced by every cobble rather than glide over like the pro's do. If you've been riding fixed for years then you may have a different view but i haven't seen it on the web. Maybe next year i'll go 48x17 and see if i can ride through the pave better....not sure.So you have 27 pave sectors to ride (50km) and the first few you hit with great relish especially on a fixed because you can control the slide and bumps better than a geared bike. To be honest despite wiping out on one of the early sectors, i loved Arenburg and probably thought i had better control than most. My wipe out came from something that most blogs don't cover. Riding pave you choose to ride the crown or look for smooth stuff on the edges. I found a smooth patch on the side but there tends to be grass verges, and riding fixed, you can't coast your pedals over some of the sharper verges which is where i think my pedal got stuck and flipped me over.
75 miles in and i hit a low point, its difficult riding fixed in these events unless you have a pal as you end up riding on your own given the constraints of fixie gearing. I rode the whole 103 miles on my own and you have to pull yourself together occasionally. On the flats i would try and find a group to hide behind and get a tow but eventually you get dropped. Anyway, you just have to get through the mental dip and at 80 miles, I realised that I only had 20 miles to go so its like a count down. What helps though is the friendly nature of other riders passing you by especially the Dutch and Belgium riders who seem to respect someone riding fixed.
Coming into Roubaix was great despite the rain (again) and then once round the velodrome, medal pick up and then a beer.
Final thoughts.
Great fun and the camaraderie will get you through if nothing else.
I saw 2 other single gears but no fixed which is a shame
I was amazed how much time i lost on the pave (down to 8-12mph)
Gearing is still experimental and i might go double fixed (17 and 18) next year.
Loved it and even thinking about Tour of Flanders next year. But anything over 100 miles fixed is really tough, you're body never rests.bullhorn handle bars (probably go drops next year)
Hi...to follow up on some kit used.
Cleats were speedplay zero's, great at staying clipped but with quite a lot of float (which I prefer) Only time I came out was on the somersault and that was only one cleat.
My gazzetta is not drilled to hold a bottle cage so I used an M-Wave universal bottle cage quick release. I was quite sceptical since it cost so little but was surprised at the firm hold on the frame without scratching and how it kept the bottle in even through the somersault.
Knowing that the food stops were good, I only took some Nuun for electrolytes and jelly babies for the morale (they don't really help with your body)
Can't say my wrists hurt as I barely held the handlebars, just guided them but my biceps were sore. Used double wrapped handle bars (mike giant tape) and giro x Cinelli gloves for the grip (awesome).
Open pave are 25mm and was impressed with them, didn't feel like I lost too much on the Tarmac.
Agree with Arvy, this is not recommended for your first century ride but if it is...way to go.