22nd
For TheMattSmith, who is in need of a primer regarding Fixed Gear culture:
A fixed gear bike is a bike with only a single gear and a direct drive train. There is no freewheel, only a fixed cog, so when the bike is moving you have to be pedaling. No coasting allowed. Fixed gear folks believe you have more of a connection to the road, similar to the feeling you get when driving a standard transmission car versus an automatic.
The single gear ratio means that you have to find the correct gear ratio for your environment which can be difficult in hilly areas. If your ratio is too low your legs will be spinning like crazy on the downhills. If your ratio is too high you’ll be killing yourself on the uphills.
In an area like Milwaukee, with only a few steep grade hills, I run a ratio of 44 teeth in the front and 16 in the back.
The first bicycle was fixed, but even after further developments it was apparant that the direct drive was still ideal for track racing. Short distances around the velodrome didn’t require more than one gear and the races were more like sprints…go as fast as you can…and less like marathons in which strategy and energy need to be taken into consideration. Fixed gear culture started it’s rise to popularity within the bike messenger scene. Long hours in constant traffic make a fixed gear ideal because of the relatively few parts that can break down. Because you can stop yourself by pedaling backwards you can ride without handbrakes. Because it’s a singlespeed you don’t have to worry about front and rear derailleurs. It also makes the bike significantly lighter.
Fixed Gear culture has kinda gotten a bad name because of the elitism as well as the priviledge that has turned it into a fad. Fixed gears rose it popularity because they were cheap, but the market eventually got to it and some deluxe parts have turned it into a pricey venture. For some riders it’s about finding a discarded bike and converting it. For others it’s about riding a track bike on the street. And yet others ride stock fixed gears specifically designed for city riding. For some reason fixed gear riders also like to color coordinate their bike. This is probably mostly due to hipster vanity, but it also kinda makes sense. If you love your bike, you want it too look good. It’s easy to get over-excited about a fixed gear. It’s a zen-like ride that is also fun so it’s easy to believe that it is the pinnacle of bikes.
Then trick culture started up and people started treating their track bikes like BMX bikes. This kinda pisses off the BMXers, who believe Fixed Gear tricksters are actually taking a step backwards. BMX bikes were designed for tricks; Track bikes were designed for the track. Nevertheless this hasn’t stopped local darlings like Ben’s Cycle/The Milwaukee Bicycle Company coming up with some very cool innovations. Doublewide reinforced chains and internally threaded front brakes (so you can do barspins without getting your cables all tangled up).
I didn’t understand the point of the bike until I got one myself, but now I love it. But I also love my singlespeed Bridgestone mountain bike with big fat tires and fenders. And I love my Ten-speed Univega…but I love and understand my Univega more now because I spent a few years on bikes without gears.
There is a lot more specific elements I could talk about, but I’m not entirely sure what you’re curious about or if I’ve bored you already, so if you have any other questions let me know.Thanks so much! That was EXACTLY the kind of primer I needed.
Gotta be careful with a fixie folks. You may lose a finger changing a flat. Really.
