first go on a fixed wheel

[Chris Cowen]

Just been out on my 20-mile evening loop on my new fixed wheel bike.

My pedalling discipline has been poor, generally staying in a high gear,
it's been grind, grind, coast, grind, grind, coast etc... Possibly
because I've not done much proper cycling for about a decade, only a
couple of years scooting about the city on a dahon folder, which is just
a series of sprints between traffic lights and/or cars parked in the bus
lanes. I've probably always rode in a slightly too high gear though,
which I now understand is not actually as good an idea as I used to
think it was.

I thought getting a fixed wheel would be the best way to try to improve
my cadence, and general fitness. I'm not interested in speed at the
moment, just fitness, and I know the distances of all my usual circuits,
so I am also taking a break from the cycle computer as well as the gears.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed it, although the first 5 or 6 miles took a
little getting used to. It really showed up the lack of smoothness in my
pedalling, but I'm getting the hang of it now. I think the going down
hills thing is something I am going to have to build up (the speed that
is) gradually. One thing I did notice though, was that riding into the
wind doesn't seem nearly so demoralising, and actually seems much easier
on fixed. A couple of times I lapsed in concentration and tried to
coast, but you are quickly reminded that you can't. The two short climbs
were also more fun than usual.

 

[Zog The Undeniable]

Chris Cowen wrote:
> Just been out on my 20-mile evening loop on my new fixed wheel bike.
>
> My pedalling discipline has been poor, generally staying in a high gear,
> it's been grind, grind, coast, grind, grind, coast etc... Possibly
> because I've not done much proper cycling for about a decade, only a
> couple of years scooting about the city on a dahon folder, which is just
> a series of sprints between traffic lights and/or cars parked in the bus
> lanes. I've probably always rode in a slightly too high gear though,
> which I now understand is not actually as good an idea as I used to
> think it was.
>
> I thought getting a fixed wheel would be the best way to try to improve
> my cadence, and general fitness. I'm not interested in speed at the
> moment, just fitness, and I know the distances of all my usual circuits,
> so I am also taking a break from the cycle computer as well as the gears.
>
> Overall I thoroughly enjoyed it, although the first 5 or 6 miles took a
> little getting used to. It really showed up the lack of smoothness in my
> pedalling, but I'm getting the hang of it now. I think the going down
> hills thing is something I am going to have to build up (the speed that
> is) gradually. One thing I did notice though, was that riding into the
> wind doesn't seem nearly so demoralising, and actually seems much easier
> on fixed. A couple of times I lapsed in concentration and tried to
> coast, but you are quickly reminded that you can't. The two short climbs
> were also more fun than usual.
>
Do you want the bad news? Riding fixed lets you push and pull rather
than spin in circles. Going back to a freewheel feels weird, because
you lose "contact" at the dead centres.

 

[Chris Cowen]

Zog The Undeniable wrote:

> Chris Cowen wrote:
>
>> Just been out on my 20-mile evening loop on my new fixed wheel bike.
>>
>>
>>
> Do you want the bad news? Riding fixed lets you push and pull rather
> than spin in circles. Going back to a freewheel feels weird, because
> you lose "contact" at the dead centres.

Yes, I have heard that could be a problem, and that it is possible to
develop an even lazier pedalling style on a fixed.

I'm going to be riding both fixed and freewheel, with fixed for < 30
miles after work rides, and the geared bike for all day Sunday rides.
Plus I still prefer the little folder for going into town.

 

[Duncan Smith]

On Jul 26, 6:53 pm, Chris Cowen <[email protected]> wrote:
> Zog The Undeniable wrote:
> > Chris Cowen wrote:
>
> >> Just been out on my 20-mile evening loop on my new fixed wheel bike.
>
> > Do you want the bad news? Riding fixed lets you push and pull rather
> > than spin in circles. Going back to a freewheel feels weird, because
> > you lose "contact" at the dead centres.
>
> Yes, I have heard that could be a problem, and that it is possible to
> develop an even lazier pedalling style on a fixed.
>
> I'm going to be riding both fixed and freewheel, with fixed for < 30
> miles after work rides, and the geared bike for all day Sunday rides.
> Plus I still prefer the little folder for going into town.

Going downhill fast improved my stroke the best, you either smooth it
out or shake, rattle and roll. What sort of bike/gearing are you on
by the way?

To begin with hills are a bit of a challenge, but after a couple of
months you'll probably be ready for a step-up in the gearing. I
started on 42/17 last October, then went to 16t, and stayed there for
ages, 'till the fast spinning was more irksome than the climbing.
Today was my first day on 46/17 - seems like the best choice for now.

The best thing I've found for a fixie is a set of chain-tugs <<http://
www.hubjub.co.uk/mks/mks.htm>> Without these the rear wheel kept
creeping forward a few mil every hundred miles or so, slacking the
chain and causing noise.

Fixies should stay nice and quiet.

Enjoy!

Duncan

 

[[email protected]]

On Jul 26, 6:13 pm, Zog The Undeniable <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> Do you want the bad news? Riding fixed lets you push and pull rather
> than spin in circles. Going back to a freewheel feels weird, because
> you lose "contact" at the dead centres
>

Why would you ever go back ? ;-)



--
Dan

 

[bugbear]

Chris Cowen wrote:
> A couple of times I lapsed in concentration and tried to
> coast, but you are quickly reminded that you can't.

You'll probably have this issue a couple of times
when you suddenly see a pothole (or other obstacle),
or try to "jump" up a kerb.

Your freewheel trained reactions will try
to stop pedalling at this point.

It won't work

BugBear

 

[Chris Cowen]

Duncan Smith wrote:

>On Jul 26, 6:53 pm, Chris Cowen <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
>>
>
>Going downhill fast improved my stroke the best, you either smooth it
>out or shake, rattle and roll. What sort of bike/gearing are you on
>by the way?
>
>
It's a Langster (the new green one, not the special edition one - I
didn't like that) - not something the couriers would approve of I know,
but it's for the b-roads of Essex and Suffolk, so I want two brakes, and
want it to be like a tourer/road bike rather than a minimalist track
machine. I probably will have mudguards through the winter.

It comes with 42/16 as standard, but I may want to go a bit higher soon
because it's pretty flat round here, and the high spinning may well turn
out to be bad for my arthritis. The knee joint was pretty angry this
morning, but I think it'll settle down the more I ride it. On my road
bike I tend to spend 95% of the time in 53/17, although that's way too
high for even the gentlest climb.

I costed up converting my old Dawes Tourer, Reynolds 500 cro-mo frame,
and it seemed more economical to by the ready made bike, which weighs
about the same as my old frame on its own.

>To begin with hills are a bit of a challenge, but after a couple of
>months you'll probably be ready for a step-up in the gearing. I
>started on 42/17 last October, then went to 16t, and stayed there for
>ages, 'till the fast spinning was more irksome than the climbing.
>Today was my first day on 46/17 - seems like the best choice for now.
>
>
Did you buy another chain, or add some links to the old one?

>The best thing I've found for a fixie is a set of chain-tugs <<http://
>www.hubjub.co.uk/mks/mks.htm>> Without these the rear wheel kept
>creeping forward a few mil every hundred miles or so, slacking the
>chain and causing noise.
>
>
>
Thanks. I was wondering about where to get those (and a little surprised
the bike didn't come with them). I think they'll be well worth while. I
used to have them on my BMX in the early 80s.

 

[Duncan Smith]

> It's a Langster (the new green one, not the special edition one - I
> didn't like that) - not something the couriers would approve of I know,
> but it's for the b-roads of Essex and Suffolk, so I want two brakes, and
> want it to be like a tourer/road bike rather than a minimalist track
> machine. I probably will have mudguards through the winter.
>

Just seen the Langster 08 spec for the first time (mine was an 07),
the new Kerin style handlebars look pretty good too, you'll have a lot
of fun together, the geometry/handling is really nimble, fast and fun.

Unless it's changed though, the clearances can be a little on the
tight side for the winter. You're talking 700x28c tops for the front
and rear and that doesn't leave any room for permanent fenders so
you'll be looking for a saddle mounted job. To get around this last
year, I changed the front fork for a cheapo Kona-PII and ran a 35mm
studded tyre and disc brake when the ice was about. Pannier racks fit
well, but watch out for the threads on the mounting points - managed
to strip one just by looking at it and the other didn't last when it
was bearing load, A bag of 5mm nuts and bolts from B&Q have done an
admiral job though.

It comes with 42/16 as standard, but I may want to go a bit higher
soon
> because it's pretty flat round here, and the high spinning may well turn
> out to be bad for my arthritis. The knee joint was pretty angry this
> morning, but I think it'll settle down the more I ride it. On my road
> bike I tend to spend 95% of the time in 53/17, although that's way too
> high for even the gentlest climb.
>
> I costed up converting my old Dawes Tourer, Reynolds 500 cro-mo frame,
> and it seemed more economical to by the ready made bike, which weighs
> about the same as my old frame on its own.
>
> >To begin with hills are a bit of a challenge, but after a couple of
> >months you'll probably be ready for a step-up in the gearing. I
> >started on 42/17 last October, then went to 16t, and stayed there for
> >ages, 'till the fast spinning was more irksome than the climbing.
> >Today was my first day on 46/17 - seems like the best choice for now.
>
> Did you buy another chain, or add some links to the old one?

First failure was the lock-ring thread on the track-hub (down to skid-
stops, I'd double check the assembly if you plan on doing these for
fun), after that I went for LeVeL hub which has a bolt-on cog and
tried a new £8 KMC chain, always seemed noisy though (due to chain-
line maybe) so I then got an up-market track chain and the tugs - did
the job.

Hope the knee holds out for you!

Regards,

Duncan

>
> >The best thing I've found for a fixie is a set of chain-tugs <<http://
> >www.hubjub.co.uk/mks/mks.htm>> Without these the rear wheel kept
> >creeping forward a few mil every hundred miles or so, slacking the
> >chain and causing noise.
>
> Thanks. I was wondering about where to get those (and a little surprised
> the bike didn't come with them). I think they'll be well worth while. I
> used to have them on my BMX in the early 80s.