Yes, it can, provided you are using a gear that is not too big. I have found that going 24-26 mph on a long flat stretch of road (drafting a group of course) with a 42-16 gear smooths things out relatively quickly. I do the fixed gear all winter, and it keeps me warm and helps my technique alot.

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"Maybe you should just run faster..." TM

Wow, 42-16 is not much gear for 24-26MPH. On the track, my basic gear is 49-16, putting 25MPH at a higher than average cyclist's cadence already. I've used the same gear for motorpacing up to 30, but then you are really spinning your brains out.

I ride 42-15 currently that gives:

22.1 mph at 100 rpm, 24.3 at 110, and 26.5 mph at 120.

A 42-16 combination not quite 2 mph slower at each cadence.

I have been able to keep up with a relatively quick group, but it really hurts on the downhills, and when the paceline got up to 28 mph, i was barely holding on. The think the fixie it better suited to solo training, and for more casual rides with friends.

i do believe that the fixie does help improve cadence, and smooth out the pedal stroke, but the best reason to do it, is that it is as fun as hell!

If it ain't fixed, its broken.

I ride my fixie all the time and I am still trying to figure out how one is meant to smooth out my pedal stroke. I liken it (if possible!) to having someone move my arm for me if I were swimming - it doesn't do anything but move my arm for me and allow me to relax my muscles a bit more. By having an extra external force (i.e. the rotation of the cranks by the wheel) working on a system, how is this meant to enable my muscles to coordinate better? I would have thought that having the opposite of a fixie, something like *shhhhhhhh* p-o-w-e-r-c-r-a-n-k-s, would be better at soothing out a pedal stroke?

Or does it have something to do with the crazy cadences? In which case any bike could achieve this?

I would love to hear a physiological reason behind this cause my puny mind has no freekin idea.

Regardless, I have a blast on my fixie and I ain't gonna stop riding her. I'm kinda regretting going back to a normal geared bike.

Vaughan.

Really?! Hmmm, lets look at that:

42x16 gives you 70.09 gear inches, and with a 700c wheel (with an average 26.7 inch diameter) you're pedaling at 115 rpm to achieve 23.9 mph and 125 rpm to achieve 26.06 mph...

Check out: http://sheldonbrown.com/gears/ Great tool for fixie riding. It will calculate speed and gear inches for any given gear combination. It also factors in your wheel size and your crank length.

BTW: I usually ride a 42 x 16, 172.5 cranks, 700c x 23 = 61.3 gear inches. Spinning at 100RPM I get 18.2 mph, not speedy by any means but I like to ride hills and this allows me to climb a little easier, and it works well for commuting to work 18 miles each way.

Tucker

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Shop at: TriSports.com

"Stick to the facts man, they are good enough, no need to go making stuff up." - STP

I trained on a fixie for a few winters, but didn't have it this year. I've noticed that I am favoring my right leg a lot this season and that's never been the case in the past. I'd say it helped me quiet a bit and when you want fresh legs for the run an imbalance in fatigue, I've discovered, is a bad thing. Rollers work really well too, but are much more boring than being outside.

-dk

Yup, that sounds about right. I moved up to the 42-16 because the 42-17 was getting a little tough, I would break at about 25 if the effort lasted more than a minute or two. I sometimes ride a 45-18, which is somewhere around a 68. There my limit is about 26, but only for a 2-3 minute span. My training partners got sick of waiting for me when they started to get a little unwound on the local lake road, and I got sick of getting a little detached if someone surged above 25 for a minute or two. The lake road is 8 miles dead flat, we do a couple laps to finish rides during the season. With the 42-16 I suffer a little more on the hills, but can keep up with them on the lake. Is it so hard to believe? Come and ride with us this winter. I learned how to spin on the track, early season motorpacing with a 48-16 translated to great midseason form in the 50-15. I also had a coach who enjoyed downhill spinning intervals on the fixed gear without brakes (no, he wouldn't make us take the brakes off the bike, he would ride next to us and yell). My max on a downhill was 43mph in a 42-17 for a minute (yes I was clipped in, toe straps even). Figure it out. You either fight the bike, or learn how to spin. I can offer you my word, that is all, unless you want to come see it for yourself. I am sure there are plenty of other people on this forum who have done similiar if not more difficult things on the fixed gear.

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"Maybe you should just run faster..." TM

I ride and race on a fixed gear but I am not sure it helps your pedaling technique unless you plan on racing in it.

Not possible... and crank length has nothing do to do with gear inches...

Ok, so my brain was fried when I originally posted. I ride a 42 x 18, 700c x 23 = 61.3 gear inches.

And you are correct, cranks length has no bearing on gear inches, but needless to say, Sheldon Brown has great info for fixed gear riding.

Tucker

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Shop at: TriSports.com

"Stick to the facts man, they are good enough, no need to go making stuff up." - STP