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Surly Steamroller - Fixed Gear

I just converted my Steamroller to a fixed gear bike.

Surly Steamroller enjoying the countryside

I have a flip flop hub and I wanted to try what riding a fixie feels like. I've never ridden a fixed gear bike before, even though my previous bike had a flip flop hub as well. I was always happy with a freewheel but I guess now curiosity got the better of me.

I rode about 60km this weekend on my fixed gear Steamroller. Here's a few observations from my first rides:

I wasn't immediately "hooked" as some people have been
It's great workout (cannot coast downhills and trying to backpedal to slow down uses different muscles than riding forwards)
The feeling of connection to your bike is very nice but I notice it mostly when I'm riding on a low cadence and low effort
Going uphill feels surprisingly nice
I never realised how much I actually coast.

Now I've learned not to coast when

adjusting my seating position,
turning around tight corners,
going downhill,
trying to lift front wheel over a pothole.

Am I going to stick to riding a fixie? I really can't tell yet. I'm going to try it for a few more weeks and I'll decide then. Or maybe I will just ride a fixie every now and then and then flip the wheel back to the freewheel side.

But wether or not I will stick to a fixie I'm already very happy I did try my bike with a fixed gear. I feel like I've already learnt new skills and learnt something new about biking. I only had to spend about 12€ for the fixed cog and I think that was money well spent.

April 20, 2020 - surly, steamroller, fixed gear, biking

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