Quantcast

Why SS?

darthvader

Chimp
Aug 4, 2010
14
0
so ive been reading tons of reviews and stuff, and i see a lot of singlespeed 29ers, most of which have regular front forks not shocks. so my question is, besides low maintenance, why would u get a single speed mtb with a stiff fork? i dont understand theres climbing and decending, so thats what gears are for, and rocks and bumps and stuff which is what shocks are for! also they are usually more expensive, when they come with less parts! can someone please alleviate my confusion.
 

Senorfrog

Chimp
Dec 29, 2009
37
0
It's just a vcompletely different riding style then with gears, you gotta pay a lot more attention to the trail when you ride. It all comes down to keeping your momentum; never using your brakes, pumping every little hill, making sure when you jump a log your back tire boosts off it as your coming down, just trucking through the uphills, stuff like that. Plus they are a lot lighter, especially in the rear wheel from not having all that extra hardware, making it feel a lot more nimble while in the air and easier to bunny hop. Basically its one of those things that you don't fully understand until you try it, plus it gets your legs BEAST.

Also most of the time they are more expensive because the other components they come with are much nicer (don't focus your attention so much on shifters/derailuers when looking at a bike, they are one of the first things to break and the cheapest to upgrade).
 

miatagal96

Chimp
Feb 7, 2007
54
0
What Senorfrog said and IT'S FUN!!! You feel the difference in acceleration when the chain line is perfect and the chain doesn't have to go through all those derailleur pulleys.

Also, it helps you improve your riding technique.
 
Nov 7, 2008
44
0
i built up a single speed because i couldn't afford to build up a geared bike yet.

other than weight, gears are superior if setup and used correctly.

although i do rather like the looks i get at the top of the hill when everyone realizes that i was on a single speed.
 
Apr 6, 2006
3
0
Albuquerque, NM
Single Speeding is the "Zen" of mountain biking. All you do is point and pedal. No shifting, no missed shifts, no dropped chains. Not going to fast too smell the flowers or see the views. I ride a ridged 29r SS... not because I have to,,,, because i want to.
 

NorseManiac

Monkey
Mar 15, 2006
492
0
The North Shore, MA
I use mine as a training tool and a back to basics rig. It teaches you fundamentals and really is nice to get to a climb and make it with a much smaller gear then the geared guys. Its like being back on a 20" as a kid.
 

woodsguy

gets infinity MPG
Mar 18, 2007
1,083
1
Sutton, MA
although i do rather like the looks i get at the top of the hill when everyone realizes that i was on a single speed.
That sums it up right there. It's a challenge thing. People want to see if they can ride with only one gear.

Any so called "benefit" of SS can be had by simply not shifting. Weight? Take a cup of water out of your camelback. Noise? The wind is rushing too fast by my ears and I'm too focused on the trail to hear anything. Plus I have a chain stay guard. Efficiency? A slight breeze can spin my cranks.

Downsides of SS? Blown knees, slower descents, and shorter rides due to fatigue.
 

Leppah

Turbo Monkey
Mar 12, 2008
2,294
3
Utar
I'd like to try one, but i don't think i'd ever buy one. Hard to justify the money on one when i have a full suspension 29er that'll take me further and faster than a single speed. I think you SS guys are masochists. But, to each his own. Maybe one day when i have some extra money freed up I'll get one. But then again, i don't want more than one XC bike. I guess it's just hard for me to justify.

I do like how "ninja quiet" they are.
 

MMcG

Ride till you puke!
Dec 10, 2002
15,457
12
Burlington, Connecticut
That sums it up right there. It's a challenge thing. People want to see if they can ride with only one gear.

Any so called "benefit" of SS can be had by simply not shifting. Weight? Take a cup of water out of your camelback. Noise? The wind is rushing too fast by my ears and I'm too focused on the trail to hear anything. Plus I have a chain stay guard. Efficiency? A slight breeze can spin my cranks.

Downsides of SS? Blown knees, slower descents, and shorter rides due to fatigue.

Tell us how you really feel. :rolleyes:
 

woodsguy

gets infinity MPG
Mar 18, 2007
1,083
1
Sutton, MA
Tell us how you really feel. :rolleyes:
Sorry if I sounded harsh. I don't mean to put down ss'ers. You are all better riders than I am because I can't imagine giving up my gears. But don't say that having only one gear is somehow superior than having 9, 18 or 27. It just doesn't make sense.
 

MMcG

Ride till you puke!
Dec 10, 2002
15,457
12
Burlington, Connecticut
Sorry if I sounded harsh. I don't mean to put down ss'ers. You are all better riders than I am because I can't imagine giving up my gears. But don't say that having only one gear is somehow superior than having 9, 18 or 27. It just doesn't make sense.
I didn't really see any posts blatantly saying it was superior in this thread.

did you?
 

Dethklok

Monkey
Jul 4, 2008
149
0
Rochester, NY
Zen is a good answer...same reason some people ride fixed gears, its back to the bare essentials of riding no ultra trick custom carbon ti digga-ma-doods (although I am a gadget nerd at times) 1 man, 1 bike, 1 mind set, 1 gear if that makes any sense.

I picked up an SS to force myself to be a better rider, ya simply gotta work harder. They are also lighter and less maintanence.

on some trails around me a SS rider has to ride faster otherwise u just loose your intertia and fall over the next climb (this is a daily occurence for me lol) there are accomplished SS riders that will lap geared rigs with decent riders on them all day.

I have personally regressed recently, I like single speeds on trails and brakeless fixies on streets. I dont even like the fact that my 29er hardtail has a suspension fork on it right now lol its just a personal choice and its fun!
 

MikeD

Leader and Demogogue of the Ridemonkey Satinists
Oct 26, 2001
11,669
1,713
chez moi
I switched to SS, variously rigid and suspended with a 29 and 26 front, 2 years ago. Moved overseas and didn't have too much time to mess with stuff. The utter simplicity is really appealing.

Feels like riding a bike as a kid again. Just you and this really simple, clean machine with very little to think about in technical terms. Exactly what I needed to clear my mind on the rides I manage to get in. And it made me strong and gave a good upper-body workout.

is it faster or more efficient? Asking the question mosses the point. It's about something else entirely. But blind devotion and pseudo-mysticism are bull**** turnoffs that can keep people away from singlespeeding as much as anything else.

(Terrain also plays into it--I was riding up huge mountians, then back down. It was easy to do with the one gear ratio--set for the hardest I could climb sitting and the easiest I could still climb standing. Pedaling wasn't necessary on descent.)
 

cujo

Chimp
Aug 4, 2009
11
0
Lakeland, FL
SS'ing will make you a stronger rider. It forces you to stand up and hammer rather than to just shift to an easier gear. I am way faster on my hardtail SS than my full squish. I came off of a 6" carbon fiber FS rig and went to a hardtail 29er SS. I haven't looked back. I live in Florida, so my hills are short but steep. Great terrain for a SS. I do use front suspension. I'm not a fan of full rigid. I went with a SS hardtail to simplify things. I was tired of creaky suspensions, pivot bolts coming loose, moss getting hung up in the rear derailluer and ripping it off, etc... To each their own.
 

BikeGeek

BrewMonkey
Jul 2, 2001
4,573
273
Hershey, PA
It started as a new fun for me, but SS quickly became a necessity. 2 kids, one income, and a huge pay-cut to pursue a career I love and I found could no longer afford to maintain my geared bikes, especially with the planned obsolescence crap it seems a lot of the major companies are doing in their component lines these days. I still love the challenge of riding and the simplicity of maintaining my bikes, but if I had the coin, I'd probably have gears on most of them.
 

armada

Monkey
Aug 27, 2010
196
0
It started as a new fun for me, but SS quickly became a necessity. 2 kids, one income, and a huge pay-cut to pursue a career I love and I found could no longer afford to maintain my geared bikes, especially with the planned obsolescence crap it seems a lot of the major companies are doing in their component lines these days. I still love the challenge of riding and the simplicity of maintaining my bikes, but if I had the coin, I'd probably have gears on most of them.
srsly? the diference betwen ss and gears is what 100$? so you have multiple bikes but can not aford gears? :D
 

Leppah

Turbo Monkey
Mar 12, 2008
2,294
3
Utar
I think more than anything, it's just different. I can never say that having a SS bike in Utah would be more fun or more efficient, or that it'll teach me to be a better rider. We have steep hills, lots of rocks, and long rides. I think working on my skills will make me a better rider as opposed to riding a bike that has no travel. I'm sure I could become stronger, but I wouldn't have the endurance and long rides just wouldn't be as fun anymore.

Technology is there to make things better. Riding a SS is like buying a horse and carriage to drive to work. It's uncomfortable, has hardly any advantages, and it's old skool technology. Would a carriage make me a better driver?
 

Uncle Stalin

Chimp
Feb 26, 2011
9
0
Englewood
The use of a single speed bike is cathartic. There's much less to think about or worry about. If you're riding a fixie, its just you and the bike, connected to the surface your riding on. You realize your limitations very quickly, although those boundaries expand every time you swing you leg over that top tube, you get stronger quickly. Riding a SS 29'er has given me a different perspective on riding a mountain bike. Instead of hammering my way up a hill sometimes I see how slow I can ride it without stopping and having to walk. Knowing you will run out of gear quickly on a downhill lends itself to a more relaxing ride, sometimes. That's not to say 29'ers are slow, I regularly keep up with people on geared bikes, who sometimes don't notice there a SS rider there with them.

Plus its super fun!

-Stalin
 

C.P.

Monkey
Jan 18, 2004
547
8
SouthEastern Massachusetts
Challenging, Emotionally Purging, Fun, Simple, Pure, Lucid, Intense, Reliable, Minimalist, Addictive...

Some of these reasons can be used to reason why you ride a MTB with gears, it's just another way to ride.
 

KavuRider

Turbo Monkey
Jan 30, 2006
2,565
4
CT
I started out mountain biking on a singlespeed.
I am about to pull the trigger on a 29'er singlespeed next week.

Why?
I'm broke. My first SS was cobbled together from cheap parts. And this new one will be far cheaper than anything I can buy with gears.
Singlespeed is different, it can be challenging, it can be fun. I'd never say its superior, except in terms of maintenance. Also, here in AZ, our bikes get pretty beat up on our trails, so not having to worry about smashing a derailleur is nice.

I doubt I would ever pay big bucks for a singlespeed - personally, that is defeating the purpose (in my mind) which is for something cheap and low maintenance. But that's just my opinion :)
 

Leppah

Turbo Monkey
Mar 12, 2008
2,294
3
Utar
Lol, Im not satisfied until I pull myself in the front door by the frame, skin burning, veins pumping battery acid, knees knocking and potentially barfing. Then I feel awesome.
-Stalin
I can't do it. I'm one of those people that likes a bit of pain, but because there's relief short after. But you SS/rigid dudes are nutty.
 

golgiaparatus

Out of my element
Aug 30, 2002
7,340
41
Deep in the Jungles of Oklahoma
I have a hardtail 29 SS. I also have a 29er FS race rig. One is for racing and hauling ass. The other is for building muscle, and learning how to ride better lines.

Also great when it rains... better to get a 1 gear/$50 drivetrain dirty than to get $500 worth of moving parts all crunchy.
 

4xBoy

Turbo Monkey
Jun 20, 2006
7,016
2,849
Minneapolis
Well I have been running a 29 SS for a while now,...

Friday I get to go see the Doctor about the pain in my knee that won't go away.