Fixed-Gear

I've become utterly convinced that a fixed-gear bicycle is the ideal way to traverse a city.

I’ve explored group rides, recreational cycling, mountain biking, and touring, but cycling as transportation was my way into bikes, and it still feels like the purest application of the bicycle. Cycling on a fixed-gear bike advances that further in a way that feels refined in the way that simplicity lends itself to sophistication.

For years I had dismissed the whole category of single-speed bikes with a twinge of confusion and mild horror, but it takes very little exposure to anyone who rides one to hear zen-like declarations of cyclists feeling “at one” with a machine in a way that one has to experience to understand.
And I wanted to understand.^[1][2]

I bought a secondhand vintage Univega that had been converted into a fixed gear bike by Peter, the owner of my neighborhood bike shop, and he sent me off with the words, "Welcome to the cult." After years of experimenting with bikes, my least expensive bike immediately became my favorite and most-ridden.

It's astonishingly simple. It's unexpectedly lightweight, even with a steel frame. I never have to worry about derailleurs going out of alignment or getting bent, and routine maintenance is a breeze.

Riding it feels special. I love coming up to speed and feeling perfect cadence of my pedals spinning. I love accelerating into a hill and getting out of the saddle to crunch my way up, dancing from side-to-side as I mash on the pedals. I love not losing any efficiency to a freewheel or chain serpentining around a derailleur. I love the degree of control I have over modulating my speed, particularly decelerating at a stop sign without ever needing to touch my brakes, or dismounting by locking my left knee and letting my pedal lift my body up to a height where I can step over the top tube and land on my feet.

I love that the subculture is a niche of a niche in a way that makes me feel part of a small club, and I love the practicality and utility of this simple object that has connected me to the city in a brand new way.

I've aspired to become a "bike person" for almost a decade, and through fixed-gear riding, I've found exactly what I've been looking for.