Paul Petch

Single speed riding – an introduction

This is my first post in a series about my experiences on the single speed. If you are interested in how to tackle trail rises on your one geared friend, you can check my second post here.

I’ve received a few emails recently asking about what tyres and gear ratio is suitable for single speeding around here in Christchurch and it has got me thinking about dedicating some time to some single speeding articles. I’d love to share my limited single speed experiences with you all and would really appreciate any questions that you might have! Post them up here as comments and I’ll try my best to answer them.

My story

It has only been 7 months or so since I hit the dirt on a single speed and from the very first turn of the cranks it just felt “right.” The reason why I started riding a single speed was that the winter turned real nasty in 2008 and in an attempt to save my drive train I built up a clunker from parts that I had laying about. Quite quickly I worked out that the lack of gears required a different approach to riding, not just as a mind set but also in technique.

The instant benefits of riding a single geared bike were clear in that I was able to ride in the wet and slop and then once home late into the evenings I could just rinse and forget! After just a few weeks and before I knew it, I was faster than on my geared bike and it totally blew my mind. Seven months on I’m still single speeding weekly on dirt as well as a daily commute and I truly believe that it has really helped my fitness as well as my overall technique (and mind set) when I get back on my geared trail bike. I now have a higher cadence, attack the trail with more determination and generally focus on riding the bike rather than worrying about what gear that I’m in. I’m hooked!

Single speed basics

As you may have already realised, I tend to make assumptions that my visitors are switched on a little (and also refuse to write articles aimed at Google bots and rankings rather than people) so we will skip the obvious question of “what is a single speed?”. The question which I’m sure is burning the tip of your tounge though is “what makes a good single speed bike?” well…..I’ll tell you… ANY BIKE that has the correct ratio and fits you! :D

For the “average” mountain biker a setup of 32 x16 (2:1) seems to work just fine, but each trail/ commute is different…. so some trial and error may be in order. Go talk to other local single speeders, bike shops, forum trolls and then go try a few ratios out on your local trails. One thing to keep in mind while working out what works for you is that tyre choice can also effect the resistance generated on a single speed so again be careful to match the ratio to the terrain AND tyre choice. For the trails I ride here in Christchurch (Bottlelake and Mcleans Island) I run a 32 x 14 setup and over summer a pair of Maxxis crossmarks which seem to be perfect for both commuting as well as the “not to hilly” forest trails close to the city.

One other thing to consider when it comes to the gear you run on a single speed, is that it will take a right royal hammering through some nasty conditions! A good chunky chain (a BMX one works well), and stainless steel cogs and a beefy well sealed bottom bracket is well advised to increase the life span of your bike. I’m also an advocate of no fuss wheels and hubs that may carry some more weight but ultimately will save you a heap of hassles when other “lesser” sealed weenie hubs fail. Basically, a no fuss single speed should be exactly that…..so sensible is key!

If you want more information on building or setting up a single speed I recommend that you check out this excellent resource at MTBR. As for building inspirations and some down right sexy steeds, MTBR also has a fantastic thread that shows off hundreds of single geared mountain bikes.

Suspension or not?

One clear difference that you will see out on the trails (or road) is that single speeders either love or hate rigid setups. I will suggest that the terrain and personal preference should determine the choice of “boing” or “non boing” rather than trends or what the KoolKidZ are riding. Personally I’m partial to riding my single speed (Gt Peace) fully rigid as I love the way it rides and the simplicity and pure power forward it offers. If I was to ride it more on rocky tracks then I’d look to add some squidge up front…. or at least a larger bagged set of tyres.

I tend to want to put my Rebas up front one week (when I’m having a bad week) and then when I come good I forget about it… hah! One thing is for sure though, technique is key when it comes to riding fully rigid and body language can make or break your experience (literally!). Tense upper body and GrrrRRrR! usually results in some detachment from the trail through the bike and some serious aches and pains, while relaxed and all zen equates in a “connection” to the trail and considerably less aches and pains. Not directly related to suspension is frame/ fork material choice and put simply, aluminum is harsh while cro-mo (steel) and carbon fibre are generally more forgiving when it comes to comfort.

Summary

Single speeding is cheap, fast, helps technique and fitness as well as providing a perfect way to enjoy wet weather riding…..what more do you need to know exactly? :D

Next article I’ll be talking about some important aspects of single speed technique out on the dirt….. so get your questions ready!!

Related posts:

1. Single speed riding – trail rises
2. The GT Peace single speed is for sale
3. Kona Unit 29er – my first single speed
4. I’ve popped my singlespeed cherry!!
5. Port Hills on my single speed!

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 19th, 2009 at 11:38 am and is filed under Bike Stuff and tagged with bottlelake, gt, gt peace, rigid, single speed. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.