Oh No there goes Toykyo Oh no Bike-Zilla!! The fixed-gear chronicles

I've groaned the last time I posted about wanting a fixed gear Cyclo-Cross bike. I just had to have blah blah blah.  Well, as most things do in my life, the answer slapped me right in the skull. I have a single speed 29er hard tail mountain bike. It has mechanical disk brakes and that is about it. It's  blast to ride. But I'm telling you ... she WILL get your attention! Big, heavy, no gears ... yeah, you know what I mean. BIKE-ZILLA!

So anyway ... during my most recent brainstorm, I figured out that I would convert my 29er into said fixed gear.

The first thing I did was strip off the sissy mountain bikes bars and put a pair of drop bars on. I'm going to add road bike brake levers. Yeah, I'm a wuss ... I need brakes.

The thing I ran into was you can't put a flip-flop hub on a bike with disk brakes! Ah but I have a work around. I'll build a fixed hub using an old wheel and just run a front brake. When i want a fixie .. on goes the new wheel. When I feel my age I'll pop on the wheel with the disk brake. Genius! And to think I used to party like it was 1979! But that was back in the late 70's.

So join me in my saga .. I'll post as I go.

Here is a picture in her raw state.

To Fixie or not to Fixie ... that is the question.

You know what a Fixie is right? It is a single speed track bike with a fixed hub and no brakes. That means that if the wheel turns, the cranks/pedals turn. Brakes are an option ... a smart option. They are a trick to ride. The second you feel like coasting it bucks you out of the saddle reminding you that yes, this is a fixed gear bike. 

This time of the year they make great training bikes. There is no way I would want to take one on a group ride ... but think about it. It would whip my sorry butt into shape in no time. No gears, always spinning, braking with your legs? Yeah that'll work.

Here is my thought: A fixed gear Cyclo-Cross bike! My wife likes rail trails .. so her eon a mountain bike and me on a fixed gear Cyclo-Cross bike! GENIUS!

I can see it now ... a sick, tricked out, colorfull Fixie! Yeah baby YEAH!

Now I need to figure the where and hows. Money doesn't grow on trees ya know. My thing has always been not to take money for toys out of the household budget.

So I'm hoping for a killer good 'Yard Sale Picker' year. There have been years where I've done 3 grand sitting on my hands! Last year was an off year, so I have high hopes for this year.

The other thing I would like to do is get rid of this PC and go MAC. Face it, a good sharp pencil is better than a PC. I'm tired of Mr. Gates and his 'Planned Obsillesense' It and he suck! Of course Mr. Jobs likes his money ... so a bargain priced MAC has never and will never happen.

Time will tell.

Ride on my brothers and sisters, ride on!

el Shiv