Singlespeed

Simplicity

The beauty of singlespeeding lies in its simplicity - no gears and fewer 'knick-knacks'. There is also less abstraction of the chain line. Singlespeeding is an aesthetic and practical ideal that involves less clutter in favor of a more simple, but not less involved, riding experience. I believe that singlespeeding frees the rider from the tyranny of gear selection. Whatever gear you are in, you are in the right gear; so don't even worry about it. I think that singlespeeding reconnects a rider with some of the essentials of bike riding: the fun, the pleasure, the unpretentiousness of it all. A common misconception about singlespeeding is expressed in the worry about what happens when the hill becomes too steep. Well the answer is simple, you keep pedaling until you can't turn your legs anymore and then you get off and walk. In reality one is more likely to actually run out of top end than bottom end - i.e. you are more likely to feel the need for a higher gear on the flats than for a lower gear in the hills.

With a 'singlespeeder' the thing is to spin

If you haven't tried singlespeeding yet - give it a go. Less can be more and it's a (quiet) revolution to discover that one doesn't need a minimum of 21 or more gears to have fun or to 'make it' to the end of one's street. Gears aren't needed for small rides any more than they're needed for long rides. So ride into town or climb that hill - you'll be surprised and possibly satisfied when you complete these simple tasks.

When I worked in Japan I rode a singlespeed almost every day. In fact if I didn't ride to work I felt somewhat diminished. That's how it is with some things in life; they just get under your skin. By now I've mentally cataloged all those riding experiences into the hazy locker of memory. The reality of riding everyday is that you get wet when it rains, cold when its snowing and sticky in the heat of the summer. But one also gains time to think a great deal about life and about living - something that's harder to do when you're hunched over and fretting about gearing and position. So spin away friends, spin away ....