Do you know what a fixed gear (also known as fixie) is? It’s a bicycle with only one gear, and mostly without brakes. When its rear wheel moves, the pedal will move with it. It sounds really dangerous to ride a fixie, and in fact, it is! Fixie can definitely satisfy those who want the speed and thrilling experience, and I guess I am one of them! Recently, I bought a second-hand fixie and have ridden it for a month, and I want to share three difficulties I met when I switched from the traditional bike to the fixie.

The first problem appeared when I crossed over the top tube and started to pedal on my fixie for the first time, it seems like there’s no difference from riding a normal bicycle. Even though it’s easy to get on it, when I wanted to get off the bike, I could only put my feet on the ground hurriedly. It’s because of the feature I mentioned above that the pedals will move if the rear wheel is still rolling, and that means no coasting on the fixie. You have to calculate how much you need to crank back or forward to get a pedal position you like when the bike stops. But who says your feet need to stay on the pedal the whole time? Jumping backward off the bike at low speed is my solution to this problem, but just remember to grab the saddle or the bike will fly away from you.

The second problem appeared after I started to gain some speed on the fixie. Sometimes I subconsciously wanted to coast, so I stopped flexing my legs. As soon as I did it, the spinning cranks would forcefully remind me “NO COASTING ON FIXIE” and lifted my relaxed legs. Before I got used to it, it sometimes could be scary. Another scary thing was going too fast to stop. Even though I have tried to crank backward, yet the strong inertia just kept the cranks spinning. To prevent hitting something straight, all fixie riders must learn a skill called skid. To start skidding, the rider needs to exert his/herself to stop the pedals all at once. If it succeeds, the rear tire will slide (or skid, that’s how it got its name), and the biker’s velocity will slow down. It took me 3 days to learn how to do this useful trick, and I can also do it to impress folks.

The third problem appeared after I skidded too much. You see, if the tire slides frequently, it definitely will wear out soon. So as soon as I found out my rear tire was worn out, I decided to replace it myself. Few questions though. Firstly, unlike most modern bicycles equipped with quick release, fixies require wrenches to install and move the wheels. Secondly, unlike geared bicycles, the chain tension of fixies needs to be adjusted manually. For these, I went to the tool shop and bicycle shop, to get the 15mm box-end wrench and a brand-new Continental Grand Sport tire. Also, I learned a wheel installation class from the bike shop owner. Fortunately, the tire replacing process wasn’t too hard for me.

        The concept of fixie is simple, but it takes time to master it. For me, it’s a great chance to accumulate different bicycle experiences. Now, I can ride the fixie with ease. Just like other things that I have never experienced, I may feel panic at the beginning. But with the constant working, I believe every challenge won’t be a challenge anymore.