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Well i bought a 29er inbred one of the slot drop " hearing-aid" beige ones ( my description , not on-one's !!) and have built it up singlespeed with salsa forks and a selection of bits I already had for the winter. I absolutley love it. fantastic for wet, muddy slogging and is great at speed. The plan was to build up another bike to go along with it for more technical riding and drier conditions, was looking at a surly Krampus or singular buzzard. neither of these bikes are yet available so either purchase would be on a wing and a prayer....no test ride.
As with most other people at the moment I seem to be skint. So here it is , i have decided to go the whole year with the one bike. The above mentioned " hearing-aid beige " inbred with no gears and no suspension. I will do all my usual riding and just get on with it.
so far the Inbred has coped very well. A bit of a change from last years Transition Bandit 26er.....
words of encouragment greatly accepted here. 😕
Next year [s]might be better[/s] you will be flying up the trails on a geared bike with plush suspension.
You know what some times I recon its not a bad thing to take away the options simple and pure!!! Oh and get some ice packs in for those long saddle days for the knees 😀
Good luck and enjoy it.
You know what some times I recon its not a bad thing to take away the options simple and pure!!! Oh and get some ice packs in for those long saddle days for the knees 😀
Good luck and enjoy it.
Hearing Aid beige interesting comparison????
I only ride a rigid SS,
On group rides, I wait for them at the top of the hills, they wait for me at the bottom,
All is right,
flippinheckler, I think on-one call it "sand" but my description is more accurate 😀
I went two years on my old DeKerf singlespeed - regret ever selling it so that says it all really!
Sounds great. When I built up my cotic soul years ago I ran it rigid and it put me back in touch with the trails again. It was very strange when I eventually put some suspension forks back on. I recon one bike is a beautiful way to go, would love to reduce to that!
Do it!
I had one bike, rigid ånd single speed, rode The same kind of bike for 25 years, Always had The right bike with me.
It had 20 inch Wheels.
Now its a different story, which bike to take, dj, freeride, xc or ss..
Where do you ride Nimo?
I've been running a 29er SS rigid for the last few months, it's fine in this mud when suspension would be wasted anyway.
I really like rigid but couldn't be doing with singlespeed... There's been a couple of places I've ridden this year that I'd have probably not got on well without suspension but there's been tonnes that I'd have done murder to anyone trying to take away any of my gears!
Thinking about doing the same because i am loving the rigid SS. Not sure a rigid would be much fun in the lakes or on very techy and rocky trails but then 80% of my riding is in the Surrey hills or swinley.
Another rigid only SS rider here as well, I do have 2 bikes but they are both technically 29er singlespeed rigid bikes.... It's a great way to do it!
Had to sell all my other bikes due to debt reduction so know the feeling. Enjoy the year of (not so much now) nicheness!!
Edit, you will now be more attractive and be able to grow an epic beard, its a good side effect
but then 80% of my riding is in the Surrey hills or swinley.
SS/rigid is fine for both (in the mud at least), and I am only a mid-paced mid-aged rider.
Took the nephew out today, me on a singlespeed jumpbike and the young fella on the bells and whistles bike. He ended up on the singlespeed cos it was so much easier to ride - there may be something in riding singles after all!
I live in the new forest, this bike is genuinly the best type of bike to have for my local riding, short sharp ups and downs, lots of sandy bike wrecking mud. I also ride swinley , queen elizabeth country park and the south wales trail centers. For these trips I would previously have used something else but for this year I am in for a penny in for a pound. After over 20 years on mountainbikes, all sorts of bikes from an early Intense M1 when I used to race,to DMR trailstar ( the original trailbike?) and more recentley a transition Bandit I am loving the low maintenance simplicity. I have had singlespeed bikes before but always with others available. The 29er bit has really helped the ability to use this type of bike as an all rounder.I will let you know how it goes.
Singlespeed is pretty damn good for Hampshire reiding. QECP can be a bit tricky when really muddy mind but then it is still a slog with gears sometimes.
My FS has been tucked away since October, enjoying the SS so much that I think it will stay there until I go somewhere with 'bigger' riding.
and the south wales trail centers
Bear in mind you can always rent for the odd day when your SS rigid isn't up to the job. At CYB renting is about 50 quid a day for a nice double-boinger, that seems a lot until you realise you're saving the cost of 2 grand or more (plus maintenance) to buy one (especially if it's just a few days a year).
Riding will be a bit limited this year then with no uplift days, rides in proper mountains, etc etc? 😮
Think I'll stick with having choice of hardtail, full suss and DH bike according to what I fancy myself....
At this time of year its the fully rigid bike that gets ridden the most. Although it has gears and my knees would say NO! to SS.
Not giving up discs though. 😆
Mad pierre, there will be uplift days and riding in proper mountains ete. etc. that is the point.....
I am not trying tp persuade anyone that it is the best way to go, I am just going to give it a go. This is a sport that can quite easily become all about the bike and the bits on the bike. My other sports are the same ( kitesurfing and surfing ) quite easy to get obsessive about all the bits. I will have another bike when funds allow..... 😀
Hmmmm... each to their own but rather you than me hitting any big drops without some purchased ability!
I'm just imagining how many runs I'd do somewhere like Antur Stiniog or Morzine without suspension? My old body would be ****ed pretty quickly! But maybe you're younger and harder than me?
By the end of the year I imagine your fitness will be up and your tech skills will improve. If you plan on doing dh stuff then line choice and flow are going to be at the fore to make the stuff rideable, when you jump back on the full sus then everything will sing 😀
Rode all of last year on one gear. First on a 29er slidey Inbred, then my SIR.9. I ran the Niner with bouncy forks for a few weeks but once the steel rigids went on I was happier. In fact both ran the best with steel rigids. (Swift ones in the Inbreds case).
There were a couple of times on Cannocks Moneky Trail last summer, when I would have liked some gears & bounce. In fact I did actually build a FS up but only managed one & a half rides. I'm thinking of building another up for the summer. They are such a contrast they actually compliment each other, ideal if you can never make up your mind like me & end up changing bikes ona whim then regretting it.
ss rigid brakless 😉
Changing bikes and regrettting it - i do it all the time.
I want a new ss rigid this spring, but this time im keeping my geared, so no regrets:)
Love my ss inbread 29er, not sure i'd cope around peak district on it though.
Complete the oneness and run rear brake only, mines been like that for over a year, makes the downs more interesting when all beaking is lost on wet grass.
Rigid ss 29er was my only mtb for 6 years till I got the yelli last year.I still pick the scandal up first when I go riding and have to convince myself to choose the Yelli a lot of the time.Live in north wales and if not riding here then its the dark peak or the lakes.
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Only ever have one bike running at a time, went from steel rigid to cross links then to RockShox on ally, heading back to rigid - all SS.
Didn't the Austin Princess have that hideous hydrolastic suspension?