Fixed Gear/Track Bikes

K Williams

K Williams

Gold Member
Joined
Nov 17, 1998
Messages
3,284
Does anyone here own fixed gear bikes? Which companies make good ones? I'm looking for one that doesn't cost the price of a used motorcycle. Thanks.
 
In my old Bicycling Magazine stuff, they showed a fairly easy method of converting a freewheel to a fixed gear, just by welding the freewheel. (You'd use an old one, so you could swap out the whole wheel.) Not really necessary to remove all the regular bits using this method.
 
Bianchi makes the Pista which is a great buy. Around $500 for a new fixie with a steel (chrome plated) frame and decent parts. Decent bike. The best deals are in old ones though, just start looking at ebay and such. We had a guy come into the shop I worked at selling an old Atlas track bike with a full Campy track groupo. The thing was beautiful and I would have bought it had it been a 58cm or 60cm but it was about a 63cm.

I'd like one, but don't currently have one. Have you ever ridden one? They are quite fun, but a little tough to get used to. If you forget that it's a fixie it'll buck you real good.
 
Originally posted by slide13
If you forget that it's a fixie it'll buck you real good.
Click to expand...
I forgot one day as I took off through a busy intersection. I stood to take off then about half way across sat down and got thrown half way over the bars. Rode it across the other two lanes on the front wheel. Finally the rear came back down and off I went embarassed as hell.

A block later this guy pulls up along side me in his car with his kid and says " hey that was awesome, how'd you do that?". I just smiled and said "practice, lots of practice".

:D
 
Do you guys ride these on the street? If so, how do you make emergency stops?
 
Originally posted by slide13
Have you ever ridden one? They are quite fun, but a little tough to get used to. If you forget that it's a fixie it'll buck you real good.
Click to expand...

Nope. I've never ridden a fixed gear bike. I think I'll probably get one with a front brake. :D
 
Originally posted by K Williams
Nope. I've never ridden a fixed gear bike. I think I'll probably get one with a front brake. :D
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You may find some of these links interesting. http://www.singlespeedsanonymous.com/links.html

I've never rode a track bike either but have a lot of interest in cruiser bikes. I sold my Electra Hawaii single speed last summer and bought a new Electra Sunny Garcia 7-speed.
 
Originally posted by BigDeeeeeeee
I forgot one day as I took off through a busy intersection. I stood to take off then about half way across sat down and got thrown half way over the bars. Rode it across the other two lanes on the front wheel. Finally the rear came back down and off I went embarassed as hell.

A block later this guy pulls up along side me in his car with his kid and says " hey that was awesome, how'd you do that?". I just smiled and said "practice, lots of practice".

:D
Click to expand...


Big Deeeeeeee,

Thanks for a good laugh. Little moments like that make life richer.

K,

Let us know what you go with. I've been wanting a single speed to play around on. I'm afraid I'm too much of a wuss to ride a fixed gear on the roads.:rolleyes: Besides Cinti is nothing but hills and people that don't know how to drive.
 
I ride 'em... Although I just got rid of my third one a while ago... :( They're really addictive and if you are just starting out, you wanna put a front brake on it or you run the risk of injury and death. They are really no joke, but don't let that discourage you. As a Messenger, the topic of fixed gear and track bikes is a sensitive one. They are EXTREMELY fun, and are en vogue right now, which is a topic of ridicule where I hang out all day. It's really painful to see some kid who is new to fixed gear riding, riding aroud without a brake. I didn't, because I like to learn the hard(read painful) way. Now that my obligatory disclaimer is over with, I can tell you that you should TOTALLY get one!!! It is a whole new way to learn to ride a bike!:D I love 'em and the Knut(not the messenger) in me likes to get people into them as much as knives! To stop suddenly, you wanna hop-skip, to have fun and show off, you wanna SKID. Don't ever let anyone try and convince you skidding is THE way to stop. While riding, slow your legs down and then lock 'em up with one pedal foward and one pedal back. How long you keep 'em locked and how far forward you shift your weight determines if you will hop-skip, or skid(and how far). To stop suddenly on a fixed gear bike, you absolutely MUST have toe cages and straps(I prefer the double wide ones) or clipless pedals you can bet your ass on(I only trust Time ATACs). You can also use your foot on the tire bmx style. I posted somewhere about my disdain for Bianchi Pistas, and it is primarily because I am bitter that they are made in Taiwan(a whole 'nother topic for ranting and debate). Slide13 is right on about Ebay for track bikes, which is why a lot friends of mine are ebay addicts. There is however some differences between fixed-gears and track bikes which stem from geometry mostly. Converted fixies usually do not have horizontal dropouts(where the wheel meets the frame) and IMO, are ghetto. Riding a converted fixie is like carrying one of those CS axis rip-offs; It's janky, you're not foolin' anyone, and it will most likely fail.:)

Slide13, I ride a 58cm too:D
 
I've ridden bikes on and off for a lot of years. Looking at the scale in my bathroom mostly off these days. I did look into this once before and I'm really happy you guys brought up the subject. Starting to get the itch and bet I'll pick something up soon.

Keep up the info like the websits lots of good info,

Joe
 
From reading a lot of older material, (and being a bit older myself) it's apparent that the fixed-gear was a standard training item for road racers for many years.
Old-time coaches would have thier riders start out the season on a fixed-gear, emphasising high leg speed and rpms. Riding would be done mostly on level or at best, rolling terrain. The idea was to build up the capillary structure in the large leg muscles prior to putting out extreme efforts.
These are older training methods, and I don't really know if they're considered valid today. As the guys say, fixed-gear and single-speed bikes have become somewhat of a fad.

For us older, non-competitive riders, I say the more gears the better!
I'm riding one of those Trek 2120 models (carbon-fiber main tubes, aluminum rear end) with the triple in front. I have no problem going "granny" up the big hills.....
 
My first bicycle was one of those, only they didn't call it a track bike for some reason ... they called it a sidewalk bike. It cost less than the ones with a coaster brake.

It worked okay for me except I would have liked to be able to coast down steep hills. Braking wasn't a problem because like all kid's bikes it was fitted to me so I could put both feet down flat -- that was my braking method.

The trouble was the only way I could go down a steep hill was to take my feet off the pedals and let them spin. Then I could go as fast as the kids on bikes that could coast -- but I had to come to a stop, or nearly, before I could put my feet back on the pedals.
 
Track bikes are SO hot. When I think about them I go into drool mode as if I'm looking at a carbon-fibered, Titanium bolstered, S30V custom mega-folder... You can dig and find 'em on ebay or at bike swaps and obsess over the little details like polished lugs or chromed rear triangles, carbon fiber this, that, the other... And then the parts! Oh man, there is nothing like scoring track wheels, deep-dish with NO brake surface... And then chain rings and cogs!Knives and bikes kill me financially, but track bikes are the easiest to get rolling and into. They are also the easiest to take care of and "fix-up". When you ride, it's like you and the bike are one- that sounds really cheesy, but it's true. You become more aware of your surroundings as you have to always make sure you have enough room to brake. You also never have to set your foot down at a stop light, and instead "track-stand". You really will feel like a kid again riding one.:) :)
 
Yeah, seeing the messengers here in NYC is what started me thinking about getting a fixed gear bike. They look like they'd be fun to ride. I don't think I'd try the Brooklyn Bridge though. The down hill portions would probably kill me. :D What's the correct way to figure out the correct size?

EasEWryder, I don't know how you all ride one on those steep hills of San Francisco. I saw a guy a few days ago emergency brake on one in NYC. His method was to jump off the seat and slide both feet on the ground. Seems like a sure way to go through a bunch of sneakers.
 
EasEWryder- Have your fixie's been true track bikes? How does that geometry work for standard riding? The bike I looked at buying was a track bike, but since it was too big for me anyway I couldn't really get a good comparison. It felt kinda twitchy, but not too bad. If only it had been my size!!! Campy track parts are beautiful!!! I would just get on it at the shop and work on my trackstands. I got ok at them but it was hard because the bike was set up for track riding so it had a really tall gear.
 
Trackstands....I'm one of those rare individuals who could probably fall off my fixed trainer!

At best, I can come to a full stop for a few seconds. I attribute this to numerous inner-ear infections as a young child, rather than occasional falls on my head.
 
How to impress friends and coworkers. When you get regular trackstands down it's time for the no handed, left foot on the back of the front wheel, bars turned to the right, right foot on the pedal in the 2 o clock position, bars turned to the right version. Also good is the no hands, left foot on the handle bar, one footed version. And last but not least would be the no handed, bars turned 90 degrees, both feet on the front wheel version. Have fun. :D
 
Originally posted by BigDeeeeeeee
How to impress friends and coworkers. When you get regular trackstands down it's time for the no handed, left foot on the back of the front wheel, bars turned to the right, right foot on the pedal in the 2 o clock position, bars turned to the right version. Also good is the no hands, left foot on the handle bar, one footed version. And last but not least would be the no handed, bars turned 90 degrees, both feet on the front wheel version. Have fun. :D
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Nice. Tricks are a definite bonus of Track bikes and if you time it right you can almost run into a hot chick, startle her, pretend to fall, catch yourself and score a phone number;) Seriously though, I've been to fixie competition alley-cats(Messenger local competitions) where insane stuff goes down. Last year at the Messenger world championships, my buddy held a know handed trackstand and stripped off his clothes to reveal his GF's lingerie underneath. He's my buddy, but a weirdo. REALLY good on his track bike, but an ego the size of the national deficit. Our block(where we kick it at work) disses on him all the time, but he's still one of us so it's all in fun...sometimes:rolleyes: He can do no handed trackstand bunniehops for like 10 minutes if he tried. After a while though, the tricks get old to messengers who've been around for a while, and it's usually the rookies with fire under their ass and something to prove that perpetuate the fixie circus performances. It's all good though, and personally, I never got into tricks other than skids and trackstands. The movie Quicksilver, has a nice little bit of ticks in it, but thos were done by BMXers with special gear ratios. And of course, it migrates between SF and NYC and Kevin Bacon's bike mysteriously switches from fixie to freewheel and back again(and don't bring up anything about a flip-flop hub) Mwerner don't even trip, I am KING of bicycle accidents and everyone thinks I am down to like -2 lives:cool: All my fixies have ALWAYS been true track bikes as I am, I will confess, a Track Snob;) Hey, It's like knives to me guys:D Track bike geometry is tighter, and generally not as comfortable as regular road geometry, but then it isn't meant to be ridden on the street. The handle bars are narrower and deeper. The stem is (for the Track NERDS) supposed to be at the steepest angle you can comfortably ride to prove your 'Trackness' and generally convey your devotion to Trackdom. I personally set my bike up for floss factor, comfort, and then speed as I am tired of being the corporate bitch of a$$holes. At this point in my messenger career, the package gets there when I am done eating, smoking, cleaning my knife from my recent snack, reading whatever article in the new Tactical Knives issue, and talking to girls. In that order. Unless I like the receptionist at the drop or pickup. Or if they have good candy at the next office. I'm a pretty simple guy.:D Also, a lot of messengers like to ride a Track bike a hair smaller than their normal size to 'throw it around' easier. I think that means maneuver, but personally I like 58's. I've ridden a 57 and 59, but for some reason never a 58. My next one WILL be a 58 so help me... Slide13, it might felt twitchy due to you not being used to it(as in you haven't ridden that particular bike long enough to get to know it). Whenever I ride ANYONE else's bike, it always feels twitchy to me even if it's a 58. There are exceptions though. I am a Shimano guy, but am about to try out campy, as EVERY track part they make is as hot as a Darrell Ralph custom stiletto. As to riding fixies on SF hills... Skills baby, skills;) Mostly, it's only the suckers that take the hills, 'cause they're too new to know how to get around 'em:p, but hills can be fun 'cause you get to fishtail down 'em and it feels like yer floatin'. Going uphill is easier too on a fixie, 'cause the momentum makes it feel like the bike is doing all the work! And then their is the IDOLS of track bike afficianados, the Keirin riders... Basically these guys are like bicycle samurais. They go to a VERY exclusive school where they eat, $hit and breath Track Racing... Check 'em out. They are featured in the movie "Kikujiro" with Beat Takeshi. Ride safe and drink Pabst!

EasEWryder
 
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