Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Fifty Plus (50+)
Reload this Page >

Over 50 Fixed Gear Riders

Notices
Fifty Plus (50+) Share the victories, challenges, successes and special concerns of bicyclists 50 and older. Especially useful for those entering or reentering bicycling.

Over 50 Fixed Gear Riders

Old 07-28-19, 09:03 PM
  #51  
takenreasy
Full Member
 
takenreasy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 435

Bikes: ’83 Bianchi Special ’96 Specialized Stump Jumper Comp ’09 Gary Fisher Paragon ’09 Surly Cross Check ’11 Surly Long Haul Trucker

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 71 Post(s)
Liked 76 Times in 50 Posts
Originally Posted by 1AvidCyclistCat
Excellent set up!
Thanks!
takenreasy is offline  
Old 08-05-19, 08:06 PM
  #52  
1AvidCyclistCat
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 68
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 29 Post(s)
Liked 13 Times in 12 Posts
Twin brothers

Originally Posted by takenreasy
I too started riding fixed gear at age 56 and I'll be 60 in a couple of months. It is truly the way to be one with the bike. When I hop on a geared bike it seems dead compared to my fixed gear bike. Hear's what mine looked like quite a while ago. Today (don't have pictures at the moment) it's a lot less townie looking. It's got a high BB so pedal strikes are zero.
I think that starting FG riding after 50 saved us from taking too many risks of younger, say wild 20’s, he he.
1AvidCyclistCat is offline  
Old 08-05-19, 08:12 PM
  #53  
1AvidCyclistCat
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 68
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 29 Post(s)
Liked 13 Times in 12 Posts
Fascinating

What a ride that would be!
Originally Posted by 79pmooney
I hadn't seen that quote before, but, yup! I got started late for yesterday's ride. Did 46 miles instead of closer to 60. But as a disciplined fix gear ride, it was quite real!

One change I did about 8 years ago that I love is flip-flip wheels. (My term. Flip-flop wheels are fixed-singlespeed. Flip-flip are fixed on both sides.)

I run a normal cog on one side and a big one on the other when I go climbing. (And strap a custom, lightweight chainwhip to the TT and bring a tiny cog to go down.) Or, for flat rides, I put on two cogs a tooth apart. Yesterday 16 and 17. 17 the first 6 miles to my espresso/ride start stop then 16 until a mile from home. (44 in front)

I'd love to see the ancient tradition of flip-flip hubs brought back. I knew an Englishman who raced the grass tracks of that country many years ago. Would ride a big cog to the races, flip the wheel, race, flip and ride home. A common practice.
1AvidCyclistCat is offline  
Old 08-06-19, 06:03 AM
  #54  
Bandera
~>~
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: TX Hill Country
Posts: 5,932
Mentioned: 87 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1112 Post(s)
Liked 180 Times in 119 Posts
I think that starting FG riding after 50 saved us from taking too many risks of younger, say wild 20’s, he he.
Oddly enough cycling is a pedaling sport. "Back when" getting new club cyclists on fixed gears early in their careers for winter base miles was considered crucial in developing Supplesse, the supple smooth pedaling style that had both spin and grunt on demand. Part of the reason that I still ride FG on the road is to retain what I can of that pedaling technique. A fixed gear bike is a relentless feedback device that provides instant negative/positive feedback for slagging-off, L/R imbalance and generally poor pedaling technique.

-Bandera

Last edited by Bandera; 08-06-19 at 06:17 AM.
Bandera is offline  
Likes For Bandera:
Old 08-26-19, 09:41 AM
  #55  
rustystrings61 
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Greenwood SC USA
Posts: 2,340

Bikes: 2002 Mercian Vincitore, 1982 Mercian Colorado, 1976 Puch Royal X, 1973 Raleigh Competition, 1971 Gitane Tour de France and others

Mentioned: 55 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 822 Post(s)
Liked 1,387 Times in 690 Posts
Just for fun, an updated photo of my '71 Gitane TdF fixed-gear conversion, now wearing Weinmann Carrera sidepulls. It's my rattiest looking bike. It also gets more mileage than all my other bikes combined.

rustystrings61 is offline  
Likes For rustystrings61:
Old 12-12-20, 08:20 PM
  #56  
belacqua
Full Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Kansas City
Posts: 427
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 101 Post(s)
Liked 49 Times in 34 Posts
Originally Posted by 79pmooney
Humbling. I'm just a newcomer. Didn't ride my first one until 1976. But I was sold that first ride, have had one ever since and done more than half my lifetime miles fixed. And yeah, I started my first season of racing when the club vets told me i needed to set my second bike up fixed to learn to pedal smoothly. Thank you! my Mooney is a (rather differently geared) very traditional English road fix gear and wonderful! My TiCycles is what we might have raced in the '80s as a top of the line road bike in a fictional world where gears never happened. If I were to put light sewups on, that bike would be pure race.


Fix gear bikes:

~1983 Trek 400 set up with an enormous stem, centerpull brakes, fenders, LowRider rack and a U-lock mount. Winter/rain/city bike. The bike I will always have. All parts, including frame, subject to wear, crashes and replacement. 28c Paselas. The Trek is about to roll 20,000 miles, all fixed. ~75,000 with all five frames it's been through.

2011 TiCycles ti fix gear with custom super long dropout (yes, not track ends), fenders as appropriate and two brake/"cockpit"s. Dual pivots, deep, wide pista bars and V-brake levers for the climbing setup and traditional Nitto road bars with regular levers and Superbe sidepulls for flat rides. 5 minutes to swap. Tires to 25c. Bigger at the expense of the biggest (23 and 24 tooth) cogs. Can run all cogs, 12 to 24 on one length chain. 17,000 miles. Never seen a freewheel.

And in part time fix gear use, my Mooney running a triple in front with super low Q-factor and 1/8" rings. In back a single or double cog on one side, a single on the other so I can run either a true mountain fix gear (95", 70" and 46" with the option of going to a 41" if I carry a chainwhip) or simple fix-fix two speed for the flat, say 72" and 67". Brakes of course and fenders as appropriate. Tires to 35c. Part time fix gear use because this bike is also the one I will take for serious gravel or touring. A newbie. Only 3200 miles fixed.

Ben
I would like to know if you always replace the frame with a trek 400? I would also like to see a picture if you have one handy. Bike of Theseus!
belacqua is offline  
Old 12-12-20, 09:44 PM
  #57  
79pmooney
Senior Member
 
79pmooney's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 12,825

Bikes: (2) ti TiCycles, 2007 w/ triple and 2011 fixed, 1979 Peter Mooney, ~1983 Trek 420 now fixed and ~1973 Raleigh Carlton Competition gravel grinder

Mentioned: 128 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4742 Post(s)
Liked 3,860 Times in 2,509 Posts
No. That bike is my workhorse. I'm now retired but before, when things happened, I went to the local shops and picked up a usable used frame. It started as a Peugeot UO-8; turned fix gear in 1976. Shortened it on a car door in 1982. Picked up Japanese built sport Schwinn frame. (fun ride!) That got stolen 4 years later but the key part, the Campy track hub rear wheel was not on it so a Sekine got built around that. Broke that frame and picked up a Miyata 610 frame. 27,000 miles later, I shortened that in a crash 2008 and picked up the Trek frame that now has a 20,000 miles, powder re-paint and repairs on the seatstay caps.

Sorry, no photos or ideas on where to find a frame like mine. I don't even know exactly what it is. A Trek store owner told me it was a 2003 420 as I recall, but it doesn't look like the 420s I've seen pictures of. I got the frame with no decals, just the Trek head badge. It is (I think) high tensile stays and fork, butted main tubes. Again, I think that it is, at least in part, Japanese built.
79pmooney is offline  
Old 12-12-20, 10:22 PM
  #58  
Doohickie
You gonna eat that?
 
Doohickie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Fort Worth, Texas Church of Hopeful Uncertainty
Posts: 14,723

Bikes: 1966 Raleigh DL-1 Tourist, 1973 Schwinn Varsity, 1983 Raleigh Marathon, 1994 Nishiki Sport XRS

Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 164 Post(s)
Liked 67 Times in 44 Posts
36 miles today on my 2009 Schwinn Cutter


__________________
I stop for people / whose right of way I honor / but not for no one.


Originally Posted by bragi "However, it's never a good idea to overgeneralize."
Doohickie is offline  
Likes For Doohickie:
Old 12-12-20, 10:35 PM
  #59  
Doohickie
You gonna eat that?
 
Doohickie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Fort Worth, Texas Church of Hopeful Uncertainty
Posts: 14,723

Bikes: 1966 Raleigh DL-1 Tourist, 1973 Schwinn Varsity, 1983 Raleigh Marathon, 1994 Nishiki Sport XRS

Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 164 Post(s)
Liked 67 Times in 44 Posts
By the way, I did just about 65 miles on it in October to commemorate turning 58.


__________________
I stop for people / whose right of way I honor / but not for no one.


Originally Posted by bragi "However, it's never a good idea to overgeneralize."
Doohickie is offline  
Likes For Doohickie:
Old 12-13-20, 01:45 PM
  #60  
belacqua
Full Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Kansas City
Posts: 427
Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 101 Post(s)
Liked 49 Times in 34 Posts
Originally Posted by 1AvidCyclist

[QUOTE=79pmooney;21830210
No. That bike is my workhorse. I'm now retired but before, when things happened, I went to the local shops and picked up a usable used frame. It started as a Peugeot UO-8; turned fix gear in 1976. Shortened it on a car door in 1982. Picked up Japanese built sport Schwinn frame. (fun ride!) That got stolen 4 years later but the key part, the Campy track hub rear wheel was not on it so a Sekine got built around that. Broke that frame and picked up a Miyata 610 frame. 27,000 miles later, I shortened that in a crash 2008 and picked up the Trek frame that now has a 20,000 miles, powder re-paint and repairs on the seatstay caps.

Sorry, no photos or ideas on where to find a frame like mine. I don't even know exactly what it is. A Trek store owner told me it was a 2003 420 as I recall, but it doesn't look like the 420s I've seen pictures of. I got the frame with no decals, just the Trek head badge. It is (I think) high tensile stays and fork, butted main tubes. Again, I think that it is, at least in part, Japanese built.
Thanks for the detailed response; I love your taste in bikes.
belacqua is offline  
Old 12-15-20, 12:59 AM
  #61  
5 mph
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Posts: 283
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 177 Post(s)
Liked 66 Times in 50 Posts
This is my Bianchi Pista. which I ride everyday out here in the Pacific Northwest. I have it at 46/16 but I'm going to take it down to 44/16. You would think 46/16 would be just a hair higher than 44/16, but for me it was a big change. It took all the fun out of riding this bike and I started to dread riding it. So I'm going back to 44/16.
I tend to be very careful going downhill on this bike, especially on rainy days,. since I only have a front brake. The weather here can be really unpredictable. It can be 40 degrees one moment and ice up the next moment especially when you get into the hills.
It hasn't happened yet, but when I see it I'll just get off and walk, because those 25 mm tires would be like ice skates.
I like the simplicity of the bike. In the summer when its warm and those tires stick like glue you can really have some fun. Unfortunately I took such a liking to it, that I still use it in the rainy winter up here.
5 mph is offline  
Likes For 5 mph:
Old 03-13-21, 04:51 AM
  #62  
Karunix
Newbie
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 3
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 1 Post
First fixed gear bike

Hi All
Just bought my first fixed gear bike second hand cheap and cheerful, tightened everything and gave it a clean, any advice from the more experienced fixed gear riders appreciated I am an experienced cyclist and have rode my bike the few km from where I bought it no issues, starting or stopping i have a front brake, it was tougher than my mtb freewheel bike for sure so fitness will have to be built up I am more for the smiles than miles these days I am 59 years old and live in SE Asia.
Karunix is offline  
Old 03-13-21, 05:37 AM
  #63  
Trakhak
Senior Member
 
Trakhak's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Baltimore, MD
Posts: 5,337
Mentioned: 15 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2428 Post(s)
Liked 2,880 Times in 1,645 Posts
I think there are only a couple of people on Bike Forums who have been riding fixed gear longer than I have. Got my first track bike in 1964 at age 13, a few months before I raced it in the Track Nationals at the Kissena Park Velodrome in Queens, NY. I'll be taking one of my two aluminum track bikes out for a hilly ride in Baltimore County later today.
Trakhak is offline  
Old 03-13-21, 06:53 AM
  #64  
Swampthing 
Old and rusty
 
Join Date: Apr 2019
Location: In the swamps of South Florida
Posts: 228

Bikes: 1983 Lotus, 1989 Haro Escape, Quax muni, KHS?, Nishiki Olympic 12

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 110 Times in 63 Posts
Mid 50s here and have been riding fixed since I broke the derailleur of my MTB back in about 2004 in MD.
I really liked it right off the bat and didn’t use a brake for a while, but these days most my bikes have at least a front brake to save my knees if I decide to ride too fast or need to ride where/ when quick stops will be needed.
Swampthing is offline  
Old 03-13-21, 06:26 PM
  #65  
takenreasy
Full Member
 
takenreasy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 435

Bikes: ’83 Bianchi Special ’96 Specialized Stump Jumper Comp ’09 Gary Fisher Paragon ’09 Surly Cross Check ’11 Surly Long Haul Trucker

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 71 Post(s)
Liked 76 Times in 50 Posts
Fixed gear is the best gear
takenreasy is offline  
Old 03-16-21, 03:24 PM
  #66  
thehammerdog
Senior Member
 
thehammerdog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: NWNJ
Posts: 3,704

Bikes: Road bike is a Carbon Bianchi C2C & Grandis (1980's), Gary Fisher Mt Bike, Trek Tandem & Mongoose SS MTB circa 1992.

Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 722 Post(s)
Liked 353 Times in 226 Posts
Originally Posted by 1AvidCyclistCat
Hello to all fellow cyclists! Are there any other fixed gear street riders out there? I started riding fixed gear bikes for fun at 56, and now at 59 still riding pure adrenaline pumping fun.

me and my bike 55 yr old fella
thehammerdog is offline  
Likes For thehammerdog:
Old 03-16-21, 08:25 PM
  #67  
Speedway2
Senior Member
 
Speedway2's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Thornhill, Canada
Posts: 747

Bikes: United Motocross BMX, Specialized Langster, Giant OCR, Marin Muirwoods, Globe Roll2, VROD:)

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 236 Post(s)
Liked 400 Times in 242 Posts
I would need big cajones to ride my SS in Fixed.....but then they'll be hitting my knees so not gonna happen.
Speedway2 is offline  
Old 03-17-21, 06:30 AM
  #68  
y0x8
Ups!
 
y0x8's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Kirovo-Chepetsk
Posts: 235

Bikes: SE, Polo&Bike, Forward Indie, New Fixed Gear

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 47 Post(s)
Liked 164 Times in 79 Posts
My fixed gear



y0x8 is offline  
Likes For y0x8:
Old 03-17-21, 10:16 AM
  #69  
y0x8
Ups!
 
y0x8's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Kirovo-Chepetsk
Posts: 235

Bikes: SE, Polo&Bike, Forward Indie, New Fixed Gear

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 47 Post(s)
Liked 164 Times in 79 Posts
My fixed gear



y0x8 is offline  
Old 03-17-21, 12:25 PM
  #70  
sshakari
Senior Member
 
sshakari's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Tarzana, CA
Posts: 700

Bikes: Canyon Endurace, Merckx liege 75, Cinelli Vigorelli

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 167 Post(s)
Liked 114 Times in 61 Posts
Nice bikes!
I ride a single speed Cinelli Vigorelli
sshakari is offline  
Old 03-17-21, 02:33 PM
  #71  
y0x8
Ups!
 
y0x8's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Kirovo-Chepetsk
Posts: 235

Bikes: SE, Polo&Bike, Forward Indie, New Fixed Gear

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 47 Post(s)
Liked 164 Times in 79 Posts
Originally Posted by sshakari
Nice bikes!
I ride a single speed Cinelli Vigorelli
Also a good bike! Is "single speed" a single (freewheel)?
Urgently rearrange the fixed gear and you will plunge into a completely different world!
y0x8 is offline  
Old 03-17-21, 02:55 PM
  #72  
sshakari
Senior Member
 
sshakari's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Tarzana, CA
Posts: 700

Bikes: Canyon Endurace, Merckx liege 75, Cinelli Vigorelli

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 167 Post(s)
Liked 114 Times in 61 Posts
Originally Posted by y0x8
Also a good bike! Is "single speed" a single (freewheel)?
Urgently rearrange the fixed gear and you will plunge into a completely different world!
Thanks!! it is a freewheel single speed. I thought about going with a flip flop. I may do it!
sshakari is offline  
Old 03-17-21, 03:00 PM
  #73  
79pmooney
Senior Member
 
79pmooney's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 12,825

Bikes: (2) ti TiCycles, 2007 w/ triple and 2011 fixed, 1979 Peter Mooney, ~1983 Trek 420 now fixed and ~1973 Raleigh Carlton Competition gravel grinder

Mentioned: 128 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4742 Post(s)
Liked 3,860 Times in 2,509 Posts
Originally Posted by y0x8
Also a good bike! Is "single speed" a single (freewheel)?
Urgently rearrange the fixed gear and you will plunge into a completely different world!
Yes, single speed refers to a bike with no gears and a freewheel.

The term is used like the term "freewheel". The pawl mechanism in a cassette hub turns it into any engineer's definition of a freewheel but in the bike world, that freewheeling hub is always called a cassette hub and "freewheel" always refers to the screw-on assembly. Likewise, yes, fix gears have only one single gear (or the hub can be flipped or if you are me, additional chainlines added) but in our cycling world, fix gears are never called single speeds.
79pmooney is offline  
Old 03-19-21, 06:18 AM
  #74  
1AvidCyclistCat
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 68
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 29 Post(s)
Liked 13 Times in 12 Posts
Deep blue

Originally Posted by thehammerdog

me and my bike 55 yr old fella
Where did you get those deep rims? Sweet colors
1AvidCyclistCat is offline  
Old 03-19-21, 07:44 AM
  #75  
thehammerdog
Senior Member
 
thehammerdog's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: NWNJ
Posts: 3,704

Bikes: Road bike is a Carbon Bianchi C2C & Grandis (1980's), Gary Fisher Mt Bike, Trek Tandem & Mongoose SS MTB circa 1992.

Mentioned: 9 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 722 Post(s)
Liked 353 Times in 226 Posts
Originally Posted by 1AvidCyclistCat
Where did you get those deep rims? Sweet colors
it was a local craigs list find..$200.​​​00
i love it but iate the wheels going to get shallow black ones to upgrade.
thehammerdog is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.