Tuesday, September 16, 2008

nice day to ride for an errand


Started painting the house exterior last week. Needed more gas to mow the lawn. Combine the errands into one trip and enjoyed the ride!

4 comments:

brady said...

Hi Dale - I was riding behind you while spun down that hill on State St this past Sunday. Did you go the full 100 on your fixed gear?

dale said...

I did! My first fixie century.

A short write-up with some pics of the ride are here.

brady said...

1st Look: He's doing a century on a mountain bike!

2nd Look: He's doing a century on a single speed mountain bike!

3rd Look: He's doing a century on a fixed gear mountain bike!

All of that and your ludicrous-speed cadence made quite an impression on me.

dale said...

mtb with road gearing (48x18, 73" gear) and touring tires (35c Schwalbe Marathon Supremes) made it possible. Also finding a group I could ride with and share the headwind load.

The body is pretty adaptable when the mind is committed to it. Key is enjoying the fixed ride for what it is, not trying to make it fit geared expectations. Fixed has a unique quality and enjoyment; just as rigid keeps you one with the ground vertically, fixed keeps you one with the ground horizontally.

Winter is a great time to try fixed. Because of the pedal braking pressure, you get a more accurate feel for how icy it is, no freewheel or deraileur to freeze up, and speed is slower.