Hondo Gravel

dregsfan

I'm thinking maybe he didn't realize it was a quote.

TimothyH

102 miles
2900 ft elevation
16.8 MPH average
6:02 moving time
48x16 fixed

Plenty useful for me.


-Tim-

stevedaytona

Interesting thread. I am just getting ready to buy a bike after some years away and living as I do in very flat terrain (central Florida), it's crossed my mind about getting a fixed (which I used to ride constantly many years ago in England). I probably won't do it for my first bike back but certainly in my mind.

Koyote

I ride geared bikes, but I commute on a SS. Even though some of our hills are a challenge, the simplicity and low-maintenance make SS a great commuting option.

Colnago Mixte

Isn't the SF Bay Area an awesome place to ride? The endlessly hilly terrain makes even a trip to the store fun. It no wonder you see so many people on bikes there, it bike Valhalla as far as I'm concerned, too many uber-classic routes to even list, though Grant Peterson tried. He's going up Mt. Diablo on the cover photo:

Doohickie

Do it. Just get the fixie and be done with it. You won't be sorry.

Clyde1820

Old injuries preclude getting away from gears, if there are any hills to speak of (even very modest grades). That said ...

A handful of years back, I ran a single-speed "big box" type bike for awhile. Given that I only need to do handle flat terrain, that was fine. Simple, reliable, and it worked well in all weather (with the right tires, fenders, lighting).

I do like the simplicity of a well-made single-speed bike. Probably even prefer it. If I were to live in a spot completely devoid of hills, I might well consider doing it again ... though, with a better frame/fork. Until then, it's still gears for me, out of simple necessity.

davester

Hey, that was a fantastic book! I bought it when it first came out but it got misplaced at some point over the years since. I never realized that Grant Petersen was the author.

DiabloScott

I'm pretty sure I still have my copy somewhere. It was interesting and fun, I wouldn't call it fantastic though - mostly just maps and elevation profiles with brief descriptions. OK, I'm going to look for it tonight.

Might be fun to re-create that cover photo.

davester

I mean that it was fantastic for the time (i.e. pre-internet, pre-GPS). It really helped me discover rides that I wasn't aware of.

That cover photo looks very familiar, perhaps the north gate approach to Diablo in the springtime.

Koyote

You'd be surprised - I was. I recently moved to a very hilly area (Western PA) and have seen people riding SS bikes in some very hilly gravel races. (e.g., 72 miles with 7700' of climbing). And the Pittsburgh Dirty Dozen has a SS category- the event includes hills with grades up to 37 degrees.

'Course, those riders may not be "normal persons"!

davester

I think you mean 37%, since 37 degrees would be 75% and only ascendable using ropes and mountain climbing gear. You are correct that only non-normal persons would be ascending a 37% grade on any kind of bike. Actually, I don't understand how that is even possible since I can't keep my front wheel on the ground while ascending grades over about 25%. Perhaps they do it by weaving back and forth to reduce the actual grade.

Koyote

Thanks, yeah, 37%.

I'm hoping to be a "non-normal person" under your definition. We'll see this November.

I think the really competitive riders go straight up, but apparently it is a challenge to keep the front wheel planted on the pavement and NOT have the rear wheel spinning - especially if the roads are wet.

GhenghisKahn

Been riding fixed for well over 15 years now. Did a conversion to ss(not Waffen SS, btw). Then when getting used to my local climbs I flopped the wheel to fixed and never looked back. Find fg gets me fitter faster after a layoff.

Fuji Del Rey conversion. 48x15 Sugino Messenger cranks and bb. Wellgo dsc pedals, Tektro calipers and levers, Raceblade fenders Topeak Mini Morph fp. Sold it upon moving to NZ.

Viva Legato from EvoCycles NZ. 45x18 Steel frame and fenders. Upgraded saddle to a Brooks B17. Leather grips. Added a seapost rack. Used mostly for utility runs.

Lazyass

A month before I turned 50 I bought my first single speed out of curiosity more than anything and on the first ride I was hooked. My Wabi Special is now my main bike and my Swobo Accomplice is my rain bike. I run a 46/17 and average speed is about the same as my geared bikes.

Three months ago I ordered a tubular wheelset with Paul hubs for the Wabi. The hubs were supposed to be on back order for six weeks but I'm still waiting.

pbass

At around 50, for a couple years my sole bike was a ss rigid 29'r mountain bike. Despite the fact I live where it's very hilly and steep (SoCal mountains), I loved the zen-like simplicity of having just that. I learned really good offroad bike handling skills with it as well. 61 now and I have both a geared and a ss gravel bike, and ride the ss around 50% of the time. I like the different workouts I get with them, especially offroad.

Speedway2

Well....I'm in my 60's and my two SS get ridden the most....

ofajen

I’m 58 and have two bikes, both SS. I haven’t made a shift in well over a year.

Otto

ZIPP2001

One is a standard chain drive single speed, the other is a carbon belt drive single sped.

rsbob 

Many of the hills around here go from 6 to 9 and up to 16%. I applaud the lovers of the fixies who can tackle those climbs over a half mile or more.

As I get older, I appreciate even more gears to help me over the hills, but if you can do it on your single speeds, hats off to you. You guys are beyond strong.

Cyclcist11023131

This is all about gearing. On the Course full of rollers, you can run a pretty low gear to grind the hills and it is mostly a gravity assist on the way down. On flats I ran a 52 20. A little ponderous to start but gets you right into a nice cadence at about 18 mph but you can still get a fast Sprint.

rootesgroup

I inherited two 1964 single gear bikes and overhauled them completely. They are fun to ride on the flat trails. I decided to give up my old 1970s Columbia 10 speed because I liked the single speeds so much. Then I had to go up a hill. This was not a problem in my youth. I would have just muscled through the hill. However, I am 65 now and it is not as easy to muscle up hills. So, I invested in a bike with a Sturmey Archer (AW) 3 speed internal gear rear hub. Problem solved. Those internal gear hubs are pretty amazing. I'd like to try a Sturmey Archer 5 star hub with the built in coaster brake some day.

GhenghisKahn

Try doing switchbacks on difficult hills. Cuts down the angle of the climb. Takes longer, but saves on the knees.

Sorcerer

Let me see, I think I got my first single speed mountain bike frameset in 2009, a red Soul Cycles square tubes aluminum thing. I'm 62 now, and still single speed mostly.

Living in the west Santa Clara Valley, there are hills right out the door, and I ride all the trails up and down on rigid single speeds, and geared bikes too.

I have SS bikes with specific gearing, and actually most of them are dingles.Made me stronger.