Minus Ten Review- 9

My very first fixed gear attempt/bike.

Ten years ago on the blog I was talking most of the week about this fixed gear thing. I had gotten a Tomi Cog, the cog that attaches to a six bolt rotor interface, and I was riding my '03 Karate Monkey through another Winter. I think this was the last time I ever had a flat bar on it as well.

I ran it this way until Spring broke then I am pretty sure I went back to drop bars and a free wheel set up until maybe in '09 when it got parked and I pretty much quit riding the bike until I got it repaired last year, but that is another story........

Riding fixed was absolutely alien to me. I had never done it up to that point in 2008. I wasn't very proficient at it either, but going slow and learning the ropes was probably the best way for me to pick up on the nuances of the ways of the fixie. I remember being pretty clunky, but amazed by the traction I was able to get on ice.

I eventually set up a Raleigh Grand Prix fixed and used it for errands and what not for several years, which taught me even more about riding fixed. I started to become a lot more confident and comfortable riding that way. Then I kind of let that go for a couple of years. This year I started back up, only now I am using my 1X1 commuter rig with the 2.5" Extraterrestrial tires set up tubeless. Now it feels even more natural to ride over curbs and stuff than it ever has before.

It all started with this old Karate Monkey set up in '08.