New Old Bike!

Princess Buttercup ... I meant to say how impressed I am that you ride a fixed-gear bike... it is something I don't think I could do...

Enjoy your time with Wesley - i always did have the hots for him... ;)

Deb, yes, he's a grand prix. the brakes were something at discount at the LBS which suited better the originals which came on him. You could be right in that they were meant for something else, but they are definitely hoods. Seeing how skittish I am, I can't imagine removing the rear brakes. Maybe. But I'm still dealing with trauma from my accident series. I have a rather intense fear of falling, sometimes almost creating a fall in and of itself. :( :(

RR, why not? the fixies are fun, the bike pretty much handles exactly the same, except you can never coast - and that means not for turning or slowing down:eek: . Also, you can't gear up, one must use cadence...:p but there's something enticing about the bike, I can't explain it. You'll know once you ride one :)

I don't mind the idea of only one gear on the flats - I pretty much do that anyway

I don't mind not having a low enough gear going up the hills - thats how it often is for me anyway and I am used to grinding

What scares the p*** outta me is the descending with legs flying and them not being able to keep up with the pedals and eventually flinging me off into space - no doubt at such a velocity I would be able to report on the twelfth moon of Jupiter! :eek:

understandable. I went out riding yesterday. 87 miles on a bike that i discovered still needs some fit tweaking - and a new saddle!! owwie. mile 50 I knew it, but also had no choice but to continue.
On the way back we hit a few mild hills. going down brought me up to 26mph. You never know how bad your pedal stroke is until you hit that speed on a fixed gear. i think i had a cadence of 115 or so. i then learned, it is all about the feet. forget the legs, they follow the feet, just twist those little appendages at the end for a smoother ride.

and thank God for breaks! :D