[Closed] What's the point of a Fixie?

If it's not on the track it's simply a darwinian mechanism to control the parts of the population that cant get anything in or out of their trouser pockets.

Same as with all bikes, they are fun?

They have a point, they are fun. I miss my Pompino as it was fun. I would have another in a heartbeat if I could afford it.

Gets you fitter, I use mine to commute on. an hour a day, of constant work, no way out if you come up against a hill either.

Improves your technique

Means you can wear your younger sisters jeans

I didn't ride very much until I got a fixed, then every day. I can now get up hills, I'm not very technical off road, but won Bikefest the other year in one of the team events and as yer man msays it's fun. I love my fixed Karate Monkey, it's brilliant for fire roads and tracks in France where I take it twice a year, it even makes a nice change from the SS riding it round the Ashton Court / Leigh Woods trails...........

I'm faster that you on my fixie,
That's the point.

DrP

It's often more fun to ride with a fixed wheel, and it certainly makes steep climbs a lot easier.

Reliability, control, fun.

When I was a gen-yoo-ine messenger I kept blowing up freewheels. So I went fixed. A lot of club riders use them in winter for the same reasons.

It gives you more control of the bike in traffic- just seems being connected straight to the back wheel gives you more control.

It's a laugh. Unless you're a peenarse with no brakes. Then it's dangerous.

Make riding on the road not boring

Because it bends peoples minds.
Especially offroad.

It also bends mine when I'm offroad but in a good way.

It's fun, it's a laugh, it's another skill that makes you feel good. It's interesting, messes with people's heads.
It's doing something a bit different.

All the reasons you started riding bikes in the first place.

Ride one! Had my 'Triggers Broom' for over 20 years and has been my bike of choice all that time. Use it for commuting, as a general run-around, winter club runs.. It kinda gets under your skin..

Fat bikes, I get you.

I sort of get the appeal of fixies for commuting purposes now, There's a couple of them now that I spot regularly along my own route to work...

Mechanical simplicity has got to be the major selling point IMO, especially during winter I would include low cost too, but it does seem possible to spend pretty astronomical sums on a bike which by many peoples estimation would be "Un-ridable"...

Personally I dislike the whole hipster/bleeding edge of "Fashion" associations they seem to have, but that fad will pass and TBH it's not the most terrible thing if poseurs in their sisters jeans want to ride bikes its overall better than if they suddenly all adopted huge 4x4s as the must have form of transport innit... and the flouro colours at least deter accusations of not making themselves visible...

Do I want to own one? not especially, I may still get a flip flop fixed/free job to give it a go or take it down the local track to try out...

I don't quite get fat bikes TBH, having ridden a couple bikes with slow, heavy, draggy 3.0" front tyres in the past I can't see why you'd want to go even further down that route really, but horses for courses, we can't all like the same things...

mikewsmith - Member
If it's not on the track it's simply a darwinian mechanism to control the parts of the population that cant get anything in or out of their trouser pockets.

warton - Member
Means you can wear your younger sisters jeans

Does it also mean that you can't pull your trousers up so the waist band is on your waist?

Answer is the three F's

FUN.. It's more fun cos it's more involving

FITNESS... It makes you super fit as you have to pedal 100% inc downhill

FFICIENCY... It's more fficient as there are less moving parts, very simple bike to own and maintain, and ride.

From over a year ago...
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fixed-a-niche-too-far

I never did try it. I still can't see any advantages and the novelty factor doesn't outweigh the disadvantages.

its a legitimate training methodology for winter road riding, with a simpler bike and much more tiring riding.

or.. it offers simplicity and ruggedness for couriers, commuters etc.

or.. it's bought into by a few ponces that wear ridiculous kit, ride their bike twice a year, and push it round the rest of the time.

and yet option 3 is the one everyone jumps on. but what aspect of sport doesnt have ponces? in fact option 3 could describe downhillers, 90% of the riders at glentress, 'pump track' builders etc. etc.

I've got one, rode it to work today in fact, I like it, that's all the matters. I don't ride it or any other bike for anybody else's benefit.

Not ridden it much recently and I'd forgotten how nice it is, always seems to really carry momentum well if that makes any sense.

Each to their own.

tracknicko +1

Same as anti-cycling motorists who always go on about the Lycra wearing Red Light jumpers endlessly, whether that's representative or not

I love the clean and simple look of them.
I can see the fitness and technique benefits of them.
I love the very few mechanical issues with them.
I own one.
I can't ride the thing! It scares the life out of me.

tracknicko +1

Same as anti-cycling motorists who always go on about the Lycra wearing Red Light jumpers endlessly, whether that's representative or not

cheers. it just seems very ironic for mountain bikers to take the piss out of other cyclists on the basis of fashion.

have we (collectively) taken a look at ourselves recently???

glass houses and all that.

can there be a rule in this thread that every person to pass judgment first declares whether they've ever owned or even ridden a fixed gear bike?

my answer - because it's an extremely pure sensation of riding that is very addictive. and fun.

+1 on the control thing, seems in my opinion to be much more suited to riding in traffic than a bike with a freewheel, definitely fun, definitely makes you fit, a bit shit going down big hills.

I hated the idea of a fixie, then I got invited to Manchester Velodrome for a taster day. And I flipping hated riding that thing. Then I realised I hated it because it felt so different to my regular singlespeed which felt so natural to me.

So when I got home I bought a cog and thought I would give it a go. (I still hated it at this point - I do this alot, forced myself to eat lime pickle until I enjoyed it - now I love it!). A few week later it started to feel natural and I began to enjoy it.

Now I would not switch back on my CX commuter. Its fun and efficient. In no way it is dangerous (I ride with brakes mind you!). I actually prefer it to SS. Covered 4k Miles on it now.

Its just different, not bad. Lime Pickle is good too.

In 3yrs of owning a fixie (Spesh Langster with flip-flop hub), I replaced about 3 sets of brake pads.

And that was it.

Reliable commuting machine.

I love lime pickle

Patak's or Geeta's?

One reason you should try it is that it's so different to a normal bike, you have to learn to ride all over again, learn new skills, and get the satisfaction of mastering something new.

Once you have on road sorted, go offroad, clip your pedal on rocks, get launched, pedal round corners, lock the rear to brake. Pedal whilst in the air.

What's the point of a Fixie?

It allows you take the moral high ground looking at some of the replies on here. I had a fixie when I was 6. They're pants & I won't be owning another one 😛

[ducks & runs for cover]

can there be a rule in this thread that every person to pass judgment first declares whether they've ever owned or even ridden a fixed gear bike?

On a SS, I can maintain 24km/h comfortably, or briefly sprint up to about 30km/h at the crest of a hill, then build up speed freewheeling down.
On a fixie I would be stuck at 24km/h.

Going down steps or short drops, I put the pedals at 3 o'clock/9 o'clock and hang off the back.
On a fixie, I would have to get off and walk.

Remounting at the top of a steep push up climb, I scoot along with one foot on the pedal and one on the ground to get the bike moving before jumping on.
On a fixie I would have to stop.

So, for me, it looks like a fixie would be slower down hill, slower up hill and slower over obstacles.
It doesn't bother me what other people ride, but I'm going to need a bit more persuasion to want to try it myself.

dont see the point in fixed offroad. i predict pedal strikes and crashes.

It's the bike Collin Chapman would probably ride if he hadn't been a petrolhead.

"Simplify and add lightness"

Fixies make sense to me when all corners are banked (i.e. on a velodrome). Everywhere else they seem a bit of a liability!

It's the bike Collin Chapman would probably ride if he hadn't been a petrolhead.

"Simplify and add lightness"

You've obviously not owned a Lotus or Caterham....They all came with gears !

Pointless

Fixies make sense to me when all corners are banked (i.e. on a velodrome). Everywhere else they seem a bit of a liability!

'proper' (as in designed to be) fixeds have higher BB.

Try one, you might change your mind, I did 😉

I too, miss my Pompino, for a simple do it all bike, it was great fun to ride, one day I will get another.

What's odd is going from riding a fixie for a length of time, then jumping on a freewheeled bike - it feels like your knees 'lock out' at the dead points! Weird!

DrP

Most fixed folks's riding is on road. It'll help increase suppleness and cadence, especially if you can learn to relax your legs on the downhills to let the speed build whilst still pedaling - as it would on your SS when freewheeling.

Earliest bikes were fixed, look at Ordinary (Penny Farthing) as an example.

Anyway, rather than agonising about it on the interwebz with the rainbow of opinion that it attracts just give it a go then make an informed decision for yourself.

p.s. Top Tip, chant "Pedal, Pedal, Pedal" constantly for your first few rides.

p.s. Top Tip, chant "Pedal, Pedal, Pedal" constantly for your first few rides.

ha! no need. the epic fear of the first time you forget will mean you never forget again!!!

They make you look badass when you drop a bunch of geared riders.

Fixies make sense to me when all corners are banked (i.e. on a velodrome). Everywhere else they seem a bit of a liability!

Track bikes have high BB's

p.s. Top Tip, chant "Pedal, Pedal, Pedal" constantly for your first few rides.

I found out the hard way, I used to freewheel over metal manhole covers on bends 😉

dont see the point in fixed offroad. i predict pedal strikes and crashes.

Yeah, you can expect that. If mountain biking was meant to be easy it would not involve mountains or bikes.

But look at downhill racing... I predict pedal strikes and crashes.

i have no idea what that post means.

i have no idea what that post means.

He means riding bikes offroad was never meant to be easy, or have a point to it. Therefore why not do it fixie? You'll still ride round in a vague circle and end up back where you started and it might be even more fun.

Offroad I suspect they're not suited but those that know their history will know derailleurs were only allowed in the Tour de France from the mid 1930's
Fixed is what bikes used to be, gears are the new kids on the block...
I've ridden a fixie on quiet roads and it feels great. But London & SE traffic feels too unpredictable to want to ride fixed regularly

What's the point of a Fixie?

What is the point of anything?

Firstly they are called fixed gear bikes or simply just fixed.

Secondly they are the most basic for of bicycle transportation and are something like 95% efficient at transferring human effort into forward motion

Thirdly they are very easy to maintain and a very good training tool

Fourthly good for inner city commuting - unless you live somewhere like Sheffield or Halifax etc.

Fifthly there does seem to be some very cute girls on them so why not get your leg over one (a fixed bike that is)?

Sixthly I want a fixed bike but can't justify one just yet.

[url= http://bikesnobnyc.blogspot.ch/2007/12/genuine-article-reporting-on-fixed-gear.html ]It's a Zen thing.[/url]

Part of the appeal of the fixed-gear bicycle to young people is undoubtedly its minimalism. State-of-the-art carbon fiber road racing bicycles with complicated gear-changing systems can cost thousands of dollars, whereas fixed-gear bicycles with handmade frames, top-end parts and colorful wheels and tires cost just a few thousand dollars. “The fact is, you just don’t need all those gears,” explained _____, an advertising copywriter, woodworker, filmmaker, and fixed-gear enthusiast. “Eddy Merckx won the Tour de France in the 80s like six times on a fixed-gear. All that other stuff is just marketing.”

MidlandTrailquestsGraham - Member

"I wasn't exactly passing judgement, I was just asking why I should try it."

"I still can't see any advantages and the novelty factor doesn't outweigh the disadvantages.

maybe you should just give it a go, then you'll know for sure. 🙂

Thisisnotaspoon. Yep, that's it.

Fixed offroad won't be the fastest or safest way over a mountain, but F me it will keep you focused. And you will remember it.

An adventure is something you look forward to and look back on with fondness, but during the actual adventure it can look and feel like dangerous suffering. If it does not feel like dangerous suffering, it's probably not an adventure you are having.

I would love a fixie, I think the simple lines are beautiful, no cables, zero noise etc but I love banging into corners as fast as possible, I don't want to hampen that by smacking my pedal into the ground, I'd be happy on a singlespeed instead.

Seriously, offroad, no thanks. Riding mountain bikes without a saddle is also challenging, or with just one foot on, I'm going to do it though...I bet it isn't more fun but you might be different

Also fixed offroad brings drama to the mundane.

If you are bored of trails, get on them on a cross bike, a single speed, a fixie... Just any other bike.

So many bikes are so very capable, it's truly challenging to ride on a basic machine. It's then YOU who is making it happen, not the springs and pivoty stuff.

I like the fact that some of the 'typical' riders of fixies seem to engender so much hatred from what are most probably podgy unremarkable middle-aged men on internet cycling forums who were never actually cool even when they were young, and have become bitter and resentful towards anyone who represents the sense of freedom and confidence they themselves never posessed.

it's all bikes, it's all good.

I still wouldn't ride one of the stupid things though,

i ride one, as I couldn't be bothered paying up for a new outer on my White industries Freewheel a few months back. Just passed the 1000 mile mark on it so feel suitably qualified as an expert in all things fixed 🙂

Personally for me - It's a nice ride. And it's cheap and simple. The end.

It does nothing for your fitness that riding singlespeed doesnt do. When going downhill your leg muscles are more often than not, REacting, not Acting. I've watched the heart rate monitor, I train with power on the geared bike. I know when effort is going in and when it isn't.

It also ruins your pedalling if you were any way decent before. The pedal drags your leg around the top of the stroke rather than you bringing it yourself. You can feel it back on a geared bike soon after an extended period on the fixie.

It doesn't do anything for your uphill fitness or climbing that you cannot do on a regular bike.
If you are inherently lazy (As i once was) then yes it is good to force you to grunt up a hill.
If you aren't a racer, then yes its great for fitness in the general sense of the word.

I still ride it, I still love it.
I can't see me going back to a freewheel any time soon as I mix up my riding and won't be riding the fixie alone for months on end.

so when you're going downhill your legs will be going ten to the dozen or do you just lift your legs off like a kid through a puddle?
Also, no gears? what about when you want to go stonkingly fast on a road hill? you're limited without gears.

“Eddy Merckx won the Tour de France in the 80s like six times on a fixed-gear.

Alright then.

It does nothing for your fitness that riding singlespeed doesnt do. When going downhill your leg muscles are more often than not, REacting, not Acting. I've watched the heart rate monitor, I train with power on the geared bike. I know when effort is going in and when it isn't.

i've heard some crap on here, but this is impressively nonsensical.

as was this...

“Eddy Merckx won the Tour de France in the 80s like six times on a fixed-gear.

...podgy unremarkable middle-aged men on internet cycling forums who were never actually cool even when they were young...

It does nothing for your fitness that riding singlespeed doesnt do. When going downhill your leg muscles are more often than not, REacting, not Acting. I've watched the heart rate monitor, I train with power on the geared bike I know when effort is going in and when it isn't.

You are Lance Armstrong and I claim my £5

Also, no gears? what about when you want to go stonkingly fast on a road hill? you're limited without gears.

I dunno, last evening ride I went on I did notice that five out of the first six to the top of the hills tened to be singlespeeders. The geared odd-one-out being the 'leader'. I'd agree if you'd said:

[i]Also, not gears? what about when you want to go really slow on a road hill? you're limited without gears. [/i]

I'm with Charlie and Mike C on this, if you can't see the point of a fixie then you're taking cycling far too seriously and should probbaly relax a little (unless it really is life/death or a race).

Hi graham. the comment wasn't aimed at you in particular, just that some on here seem to be very parochial when it comes to others who might differ slightly from themselves.

It's the fat MAMILs that make me laugh. Put it away; no-one wants to see that. And you're only doing 12mph max; you can't be working hard enough for lycra to make any significant difference. You do know we're laughing at you, not with you, right? Save your TdF fantasies for when you're in the priivacy of your own homes please.

Most of the 'fixies' in town seem to actually have freewheels rather than fixed cogs, i've noticed. very few genuine fixed bikes out there.

yeah but even on single speed non fixies, not having gears means on big hills you can only go as fast as gravity makes you, what do you do with your time? compose a sonnet? plan your weekend? sing a song? whistle a tune? la la la.

yeah but even on single speed non fixies, not having gears means on big hills you can only go as fast as gravity makes you, what do you do with your time? compose a sonnet? plan your weekend? sing a song? whistle a tune? la la la.

Take it easy and enjoy the view, maybe? It's not a race. Well, not for most of us it isn't.

Singlespeed bikes are ideal for London urban cycling, as there are very few really steep bits save for Muswell Hill/Highgate/Hampstead. Swains Lane is a bit of a chore with only one gear, but there's very little to cause any real issues.

I love it how people who've never ridden one have such an issue with them. Going up hill is never really a problem but man alive does it kill you on the way down. Bloke in my office who I sometimes ride home with rides fixed through the winter - 35 miles each way. Watching him go down hills is an art form, 160rpm plus is something to behold....I couldn't walk properly for days.

I've just put pink bar tape on my lime green pain machine just to upset all the purist idiots in my cycling club. It seems to be working...

No offence taken, Mike, I was only playing up. I think it's funny the way this thread is almost going the same way as all those "29ers are better/No they're not/Yes they are" threads.
I never saw the point of SS until I tried it.
If it was simply a matter of trying fixed, I'd give it a go. it's the perceived high risk of injury and embarrassment that puts me off.

I love it how people who've never ridden one have such an issue with them. Going up hill is never really a problem but man alive does it kill you on the way down. Bloke in my office who I sometimes ride home with rides fixed through the winter - 35 miles each way. Watching him go down hills is an art form, 160rpm plus is something to behold....I couldn't walk properly for days.

this. to say fixed is no harder than ss makes me think folks haven't ridden fixed.

going down/lack of coasting just tears you to shreds!

How is it so hard to get your head around the fact that your legs are reacting to the motion on the crank generated by the back wheel at high speed?

Some extra thought on the matter:
[url= http://surfabike.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/riding-a-fixie-gives-you-strong-legs-and-other-myths/ ]http://surfabike.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/riding-a-fixie-gives-you-strong-legs-and-other-myths/[/url]

I still stand by my opinion that it doesn't do anything for your race fitness.
How many Pro cyclists do you see or read about riding fixed gears to train all winter?

I ride fixed, did you miss that bit?
I enjoy it. Its fun and it is just nice to cruise along without any mechanical worries.
I don't feel the need to justify my choice of ride with common myths and misconceptions.

I suppose I was never a serial coaster anyway, so no, it doesn't feel any harder for me. Except in traffic when judging how many crank turns I have until I reach the bumper of the stationary car in front etc

It's the fat MAMILs that make me laugh. Put it away; no-one wants to see that. And you're only doing 12mph max; you can't be working hard enough for lycra to make any significant difference. You do know we're laughing at you, not with you, right? Save your TdF fantasies for when you're in the priivacy of your own homes please.

The great thing about the MA part of MAMIL is that you no longer care what people think, and can just choose the best clothing for the job.

For the record I'd quite like a fixie, although I couldn't see myself commuting on it - it's too hilly round here.

I love it how people who've never ridden one have such an issue with them

brilliant aren't they. i wear rapha when riding mine just to really get up peoples noses. i also sometimes midweek park mine outside cafes (who roast their own beans) and order an off menu piccolo coffee and lift up my little finger as i drink it safe in the knowledge that people with normal jobs would be wound up just a little bit more if they could see me from their desk or take their eyes away from their spreadsheet. 🙄

it's the perceived high risk of
injury and embarrassment that puts me off.

Ah, good old Perception.

120 - 200km per week of fixed commuting on rural roads per week. Keeps the weight off, gives you really ripped legs, and teaches you to spin like a dervish.

Oh yeah, and I'm middle-aged (52) and wear lycra on road.

it doesn't do anything for your race fitness

Then I get the geared bike out and try and keep up with the fast group!

1 - so when you're going downhill your legs will be going ten to the dozen or do you just lift your legs off like a kid through a puddle?
2 - Also, no gears? what about when you want to go stonkingly fast on a road hill? you're limited without gears.

Answer to question no 1 is to pedal really really fast.
Answer to question no 2 - see above....

DrP

so you can reverse or stop your cranking to brake?
does that work.

No, I use a set of dual pivot brakes. I also brake downhill when it looks like I'm going to exceed 30mph for long periods to reduce lactic acid.

But yes, riding fixed makes your spin much smoother and your cadence faster. It also helps with acceleration without changing gear, as all tempo changes are achieved by just pedaling faster and slower.

For general traffic duties, I find 68" a great gear. Cadence is 5x speed, and this is geared for 90rpm at 18mph. Hence riding in a group at 20-23 is fine. Riding in a group at 25-30 is torture.

The great thing about the MA part of MAMIL is that you no longer care what people think

Oh but they do. They really, really do. Hence the need to denigrate other groups, in order to try to make themselves feel a little better about their own inadequacies.

brilliant aren't they. i wear rapha when riding mine just to really get up peoples noses. i also sometimes midweek park mine outside cafes (who roast their own beans) and order an off menu piccolo coffee and lift up my little finger as i drink it safe in the knowledge that people with normal jobs would be wound up just a little bit more if they could see me from their desk or take their eyes away from their spreadsheet.

Ha ha! If you've got it, flaunt it!

It either works or you get punted over the bars and use the friction coefficient of your face against tarmac to slow you down, not very effective but rather spectacular to watch.

Watch this, especially at 40 seconds in where he skids 180, drops backward down steps then rides off and tell me truthfully, would you not want to have the skill to do that?, damn sure i would.

If that link doesn't work then search on youtube for "macaframa sf track bike promo" , you'll be astounded at what folk can do on a fixie and it's an incredibly well made video with a good chilled soundtrack