Can or do people use track bikes outside as fixies? Is the only difference between a track bike and a regular fixie, is the bottom bracket is higher? And some may or many not have a hole to have a front brake mounted?
I’m using a Windsor track bike on the street. Quite a few track bikes come pre-drilled for brakes.
By regular fixie, do you mean a conversion? I really like a nice clean converted road bike but unless you just happen to have most of the parts on hand, it can cost as much as buying a new low end track bike.
No was thinking like a specialized langster until i saw the felt TK2. I want to put aero bars and a front brake on it and ride it at fiesta island. I was looking at building a bike, but i came to the same conclusion you did, it cheaper just to buy a complete bike. track bikes don’t have freewheel right?
track bikes don’t have freewheel right?
A lot of them have flip flop hubs with a freewheel on one side and fixed on the other. That’s the way mine came although I only use the fixed. However you could put a gear on each side and switch between single speed and fixed just by flipping the wheel.
Just ask any of the hundreds of idiots riding Pistas in Chicago with a shorty bar, iPhone, and knickers, but no helmet, lights, or brakes. A Pista with Deep Vs is the new VW Jetta for this crowd.
I have a pista that has a flip-flop hub and a pre-drilled hole for a front brake. I don’t have a freewheel on the other side of my hub though
I do have a Langster that I ride outside all the time, its a great off-season bike for me. I like working the cadence on it, encourages me to keep the rpm’s higher. Haven’t ridden the Felt, but I can vouch for the Langster it is a great setup right out of the box and very comfortable.
I had a track bike for a while in my youth, the geometry was reall uncomfortable for riding around on the road. I think a bike with horizontal dropouts and TT geometry would be better for riding a fixed gear TT or any of the new purpose built (and cheap) road fixed gear bikes. Track bikes are kind of dumb to use on the road for most people.
I was one of those “idiots riding Pistas in Chicago” (but before iPhones,) and I wore a helmet. I mean, come on! No helmet without brakes?
The bike was a Serotta CPI, no holes drilled for brakes at all, and back then I had never even heard of or seen a flip flop hub. In fact, now that I think about it, a flip flop hub would have been suicide on that bike. I loved that bike and I would ride it outside more than my road, mountain, or TT bike combined. However, with a steel frame, I had to ride one of the others in the rain or snow. Training benefits were unparalleled. It was a true track bike. The geometry was quite aggressive and took a few weeks early in the season to get my body flexible enought to deal with riding it the whole day. Unfortunately, it was stolen right out of my basement. I hope thief didn’t realize it was fixed gear before trying to stop short of a semi.
A pista or fixie on the road forces you to look ahead at least twice the distance you normally would on a geared or freewheel bike. In the days before “smart” traffic lights, you were able to estimate the duration of the green lights, especially at familiar intersections. If that light was green for some time, you knew if you should start slowing down of start sprinting like a madman.
Many fixie riders claim that the simplified drive train makes for an ideal commuter bike, especially in the snow, but I don’t get it. Also, with the amount of intersections I have to cross, a road bike actually gets me to my destination faster.
High BB, steep seat and steering tube angle, handling is really totally different than what you want for the road. Pretty harsh ride since they’re designed to only be ridden on a smooth surface in good condition.
But none of that will stop you if you really want to be hip.
Oh, almost forgot… Usually a lot of toe overlap.
I’m not really looking to commute, or look “hip”
i just want to improve my pedal stroke. there are no lights at fiesta island, its a 4 mile loop. So it sounds like a track bike would be fine and i could to to the track if i wanted to.
thanks.