today i saw yet another blog ripping on the fixed gear community listing out reasons as to why the "fixie" (oh i hate that word) movement should halt. well, im pretty sure cyclists of higher calibers are up to this- but i just believe there's a large amount of haterism going on around fixed gear bikes. as i read his 13 reasons as to why this "fad" should end now, i thought- no one has wrote about the opposition. there are good things about this you know.
1) it's an introduction into other forms of cycling
let's take garrett chow for example. most people know him from the mashsf fame that stood as sort of a bible of urban fixed gear cycling. now, most would connect him with track bikes and whatnot but he is actually a very good road cyclist. alex from king kog- he's a bike messenger by profession but became a very profound track cyclist.
2) bicycle advocacy
once i got off my skateboard and onto a bike, i realized that along with skateboarders, cyclists dont get respect. especially in california where roadrage is a statewide pasttime, cyclists still arent being treated within the laws. therefore, more people on bikes equals more people practicing bicycle advocacy and hopefully people read up on their rights as a cyclist.
3) at least these dudes are on bikes (and learning about them too)
there's an epidemic called laziness sweeping the nation lately. its nice to see a bunch of kids on bikes....even though they might just be hypebeasts out on the grind, or hipsters flaunting their sh*t, theyre on a bike and i cant really say anything bad about that. hopefully, these riders will learn something about their bikes- hell, i knew people whe had no idea what the difference was between a chainring or a locking before they got into fixed gears. the result of all this leaning: more people who have basic knowledge of bikes who can maintain them.
4) greener planet (whatever that is)
in school they taught me about the ozone layer and how cars are bad for the environment blah blah blah. then i realized that schools are institutions where innocent students believing what they're leaning is verbatim are brainwashed for the progression of a political agenda. putting my conspiracies aside and using logic: bikes are not cars and cars are bad for the environment.
5) it's new as a mainstream idea, so haters wanna hate. (ballers wanna ball, i dont even want none of it at all)
(im sorry, i had to.)
so the bicycle has been around since the 1800s. early bikes were fixed gears. bicycle messengers utilized fixed gear bikes to keep their legs warm during cold runs. however, urban track bike riding for commuting as well as for recreational purposes did not come around until very recently. and since alot of young dudes are looking at it as a new thing, all the more accomplished riders are looking down at this movement. it's no surprise either- when snowboarding came around, skiers didnt like them. but look at it now, snowboarding has probably surpassed skiing as a sport. it's still relatively early in the fixed gear game and progression is being made. speaking of progression...
6) the progression of fixed gear riding
it started small. basic skids. riding backwards, wheelies. then people started getting tricky. complex skids (no hand over bar through frame skid? i mean wtf man?), keo spins, bar spins. with you tube and vimeo on fire, there is constant progression. inspired by bmx tricks as well as freestyle, fixed gear riding has become almost a separate entity from bmx freestyle. being from a bmx background (sorta, i just know alot about 80's bmx) i used to say "leave the tricks to bmx, just ride your track bike" but now the progression in tarcking (fixed gear freestyle) has gone so far that ive been seriously praising it. sh*t, i just saw this pic of ed wonka doing a tailwhip on his bike. A TAILWHIP. dope!!!!! plus, components are becoming specialized for this type of riding and i feel as if that's a great sign of the times in fixed gear riding.
7) the cycling economy.
if these kids are investing in bikes, then that would mean the money goes to the cycling industry. i'm no economist, but thats an amazing thing considering the hole the nation is in. more and more local bike shops are carrying fixed gear parts: why? because thats what sells. to the dismay of the experienced cyclist, these dudes on fixed gears are keeping shops in business. and thats a beautiful thing.
hopefully this is an insight to many.
jmik.
1) it's an introduction into other forms of cycling
let's take garrett chow for example. most people know him from the mashsf fame that stood as sort of a bible of urban fixed gear cycling. now, most would connect him with track bikes and whatnot but he is actually a very good road cyclist. alex from king kog- he's a bike messenger by profession but became a very profound track cyclist.
2) bicycle advocacy
once i got off my skateboard and onto a bike, i realized that along with skateboarders, cyclists dont get respect. especially in california where roadrage is a statewide pasttime, cyclists still arent being treated within the laws. therefore, more people on bikes equals more people practicing bicycle advocacy and hopefully people read up on their rights as a cyclist.
3) at least these dudes are on bikes (and learning about them too)
there's an epidemic called laziness sweeping the nation lately. its nice to see a bunch of kids on bikes....even though they might just be hypebeasts out on the grind, or hipsters flaunting their sh*t, theyre on a bike and i cant really say anything bad about that. hopefully, these riders will learn something about their bikes- hell, i knew people whe had no idea what the difference was between a chainring or a locking before they got into fixed gears. the result of all this leaning: more people who have basic knowledge of bikes who can maintain them.
4) greener planet (whatever that is)
in school they taught me about the ozone layer and how cars are bad for the environment blah blah blah. then i realized that schools are institutions where innocent students believing what they're leaning is verbatim are brainwashed for the progression of a political agenda. putting my conspiracies aside and using logic: bikes are not cars and cars are bad for the environment.
5) it's new as a mainstream idea, so haters wanna hate. (ballers wanna ball, i dont even want none of it at all)
(im sorry, i had to.)
so the bicycle has been around since the 1800s. early bikes were fixed gears. bicycle messengers utilized fixed gear bikes to keep their legs warm during cold runs. however, urban track bike riding for commuting as well as for recreational purposes did not come around until very recently. and since alot of young dudes are looking at it as a new thing, all the more accomplished riders are looking down at this movement. it's no surprise either- when snowboarding came around, skiers didnt like them. but look at it now, snowboarding has probably surpassed skiing as a sport. it's still relatively early in the fixed gear game and progression is being made. speaking of progression...
6) the progression of fixed gear riding
it started small. basic skids. riding backwards, wheelies. then people started getting tricky. complex skids (no hand over bar through frame skid? i mean wtf man?), keo spins, bar spins. with you tube and vimeo on fire, there is constant progression. inspired by bmx tricks as well as freestyle, fixed gear riding has become almost a separate entity from bmx freestyle. being from a bmx background (sorta, i just know alot about 80's bmx) i used to say "leave the tricks to bmx, just ride your track bike" but now the progression in tarcking (fixed gear freestyle) has gone so far that ive been seriously praising it. sh*t, i just saw this pic of ed wonka doing a tailwhip on his bike. A TAILWHIP. dope!!!!! plus, components are becoming specialized for this type of riding and i feel as if that's a great sign of the times in fixed gear riding.
7) the cycling economy.
if these kids are investing in bikes, then that would mean the money goes to the cycling industry. i'm no economist, but thats an amazing thing considering the hole the nation is in. more and more local bike shops are carrying fixed gear parts: why? because thats what sells. to the dismay of the experienced cyclist, these dudes on fixed gears are keeping shops in business. and thats a beautiful thing.
hopefully this is an insight to many.
jmik.
2 comments:
Good post man. Wonka isn't doing tailwhips yet. He just goofs around and hucks it up.
as a skateboarder for 15 years I'm too looking for something to move on to. reading this has sealed it for me, time to get a bike
cheers
Jonny
P'boro UK
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