Are fat bikes now the mainstream, whilst single speeds are lurking in the niche?

Just a monday morning ponder…

I see that SpecialEyes now have 3 fat bikes on their UK website

but despite having a rather nice MTB SS in their portfolio, it’s not available in the UK, and nor are any MTB SS’s.

Seems like fat bikes are plowing into the lime light and the SS bikes remain in the shadows.

😕

What about SS fatbikes?

No, they’re both barely relevant and certainly both niche.

I like SS bikes as tools for practical UK winter MTBing, I mostly have disdain for Fat bikes, but both are a bit on the fringes of MTBing really TBH considered more novelty toys than proper bikes…

Most normal (non-beard wearing) people want bikes with gears, proper suspension, sensible weight and ideally close to the prevailing aesthetic norms of the day…

there were not masses of then at SSUK but there were plenty

Personally I dont see the need for one myself but i dont live in ALaska or by the beach

YMMV.

PS you SS haters need to MTFU 😉

In the words of ctbms bestest sticker-‘every time you change gear God kills a kitten’

Food for thought eh!!

I get the impression that most single speeders would scoff at buying an off the peg SS bike, whereas you might as well buy a complete Fat bike, seeing as you’d need to buy a lot of the parts separately.

I’d best most of us on here wouldn’t be far off a complete SS MTB with bits in the garage

Gary Fisher thinks the Fat Bike market will be 20%

It’s amazing how many people I know have suddenly switched on to Fat Bikes now that Specialized have one sitting in their local bike shop.
(North West MTB in this case).

I guess the hype is with them at the moment and buying a complete off-the-shelf bike that looks pretty smart and is under the £1000 point is pretty tempting.

Whereas singlespeeders tend to either like their American Hand-built bike porn, or just hack something together from what they’ve got.

Fat bikes have gears (usually, considering the complete bikes for sale) so they’re more sellable than SSs which IIRC never really had a huge market. Plus fat bikes look cool in an obvious way which SSs never did.

I like Fatbikes, no I do.
I like SS’ers though these have to be 29’ers, no I do.
I’ve been considering a FBike for about 7 months now and haven’t (yet) seen one in a shop that I could oggle at.

well fat bikes are just plain silly and single speeds for wierdy beardy attention monkeys with no riding skills and a deficit of social graces, so really both markets are dead in the water. anyone who rides an SS fatbike should be beaten to death with a sack filled with hipster beard clippings until they have a really nasty itchy rash.

but despite having a rather nice MTB SS in their portfolio, it’s not available in the UK, and nor are any MTB SS’s.

2wheels in amblecote had a SS cannondale for sale in the shop on Saturday

I own 2 bikes.

A ridgid singlespeed and a fatbike. 😆

Am I niche?

Dont know if they are niche or becoming the norm but fatbikes are awesome fun. Hence why I have a Mukluk.

I have however just purchased a Stooge in Plum Crazy that I will be building up as a single speeder. Why, because I love the raw feel of a single speeder and the no nonense approach to maintenance that they offer.

Each have their own merits and excel at diffrent things so appeal to diffrent people.

Saw a On-One fatty with an electric motor mounted under the DT in Paignton yesterday, looked like a right hoot. Still not sure I’d actualy want to pedal one myself though!

I love the raw feel of a single speeder and the no nonense approach to maintenance that they offer.

+1, I’d like to ride a 100mm FS bike wit 20 gears all winter, but the reality is that it was just a ball ache to keep it going 3 muddy rides a week. Whereas the SS I could leave in the back of the car caked in mud untill it went mouldy (both the back of the car and the bike), get it out and ride it again. Only ever had 3 mechanicals, a pair of CB pedals, a snapped chain and a crakced ProII hub, and the first 2 were preventable because I knew I’d re-joined the chain withotu the propper link, and I knew the pedal had siezed and free’d up a few weeks previously, only the hub was down to actual machanical failure (as opposed to being entirely preventable and my fault!)

That spec Spesh fatboy will stil be niche. £3500 rrp….

considered more novelty toys than proper bikes…

Most normal (non-beard wearing) people want bikes with gears, proper suspension, sensible weight and ideally close to the prevailing aesthetic norms of the day…

Mainstream stuff is popular for good reason. Like music, and fashion, right? ; )

ciderinsport – Member
I own 2 bikes.

A ridgid singlespeed and a fatbike.

Am I niche?

No, I’m afraid you’re an attention whore. 😉

Not even a very good one. The rule is that once Spesh does it, it’s no longer niche. 😉

The beards are onto 32″ wheels now.

Fat bike’s mainstream ? Not really, did the Brecon Beast Sunday 800 riders, I saw one. Not as many single speeds as there used to be either.

Not as many single speeds as there used to be either.

They all sobered up and/or realised it’s hard work and a bit crap in big hills.

Seems like fat bikes are plowing into the lime light and the SS bikes remain in the shadows.

Rubbish, there’s no way you could describe either fatbikes or singlespeed bikes as mainstream. Spesh have 24 different bikes in their MTB range for next year, most coming in three different levels (comp, expert, and pro.) That’s well over 60 bikes.

Most large manufacturers will have a fatbike and a SS somewhere in their range, but I doubt Spesh will sell many of them.

I doubt Spesh will sell many of them.

1 a month on average for last years model, according to the local concept store.

1 a month on average for last years model, according to the local concept store.

Smallfry for a company like Specialized who sell approx 16 million bikes per year according to industry figures.

I have been riding a SS Pugsley for years, it’s fab. Beach, trail centres, race bike, woods even did a 40 mile road ride the other day. It just gives another dimension to riding, oh and IT’S FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!

Smallfry for a company like Specialized who sell approx 16 million bikes per year according to industry figures

In 1 store, with no actual bike in the shop/promotion, I (and they) think thats pretty good.

tomhoward – Member

Smallfry for a company like Specialized who sell approx 16 million bikes per year according to industry figures.

In 1 store, with no actual bike in the shop/promotion, I (and they) think thats pretty good.

I agree, that is good but it doesn’t make fatbikes mainstream which was the original topic of this thread.

A bike is a bike, as long as it rolls it’s good for me

I’ve seen loads of people riding SS bikes… I’ve yet to come across a Fat Bike in the ‘wild’…

Fat bikes are a pointless waste of metal and rubber, riders thinking they look cool when they look like clowns. Legs spinning away just to keep a slow walking pace with gear ratios a granny could could up Hardnott on, lol. More pics please they always make me laugh.

How they think they look:-

How they really look:-

I saw my first one the other week at on one it looked great but **** pedalling that great big thing

pop larkin – Member

In the words of ctbms bestest sticker-‘every time you change gear God kills a kitten’

Food for thought eh!!

Well, now I am definitely sticking with gears. And also getting a really widely spaced cassette so i have to keep shifting all the time. If it means less poo in my garden from the neighbours cats I’m all for it!!

In the words of ctbms bestest sticker-‘every time you change gear God kills a kitten’

Food for thought eh!!

If it was a baby robin people on here would be concerned. Kittens less so.

Dobbo – Member

Fat bikes are a pointless waste of metal and rubber, riders thinking they look cool when they look like clowns. Legs spinning away just to keep a slow walking pace with gear ratios a granny could could up Hardnott on, lol. More pics please they always make me laugh.

You really haven’t seen many fat bikes ridden properly have you?

with gear ratios a granny could could up Hardnott on

I am happy to watch you try

Obvious troll is obvious etc

with gear ratios a granny could could up Hardnott on

I meant on a standard efficient bike with a riding purpose, not a bloated fatbike.

Watching someone on a fatbike is like big fat person struggling trying to squeeze in an airplane seat while still trying to maintain a smile.

I thought it was the fat bike riders who were attentions seekers…forgive me my error

Obvious troll is obvious and I have a bike to ride

You really haven’t seen many fat bikes ridden properly have you?

Let me know when you start Paceman!!

I thought it was the fat bike riders who were attentions seekers.

I like the way you agree with me then call me a troll, lol.