No, I am not talking about Greg's status and wondering how many cute girls he could realistically rent out rooms, closets, and bathrooms to in his house. Rather, I rode a Single Speed Mountain Bike for the first time last night and was curiously aroused. Hmmm...TMI? All of my past forays had been short lived attempts that didn't really result in getting the fire going. And each one left me shaking my head..."I just don't get it" which I think is EXACTLY what single speed riders LOVE when a geared guy hits the lone chain line.
However, yesterday something was different. It wasn't necessarily any easier, but maybe I just had a different mind-set. Now that the big bad Anthem is up for sale (I guess, I will have to do another post on that here shortly) I didn't really have any options for riding other than my original $400 Marin Indian Fire Trail to ride. So in some ways I didn't have a choice. But, what happened is that during the ride I figured out a way to actually relate to this sort of riding and that was all it took.
When I used to ride dirt bikes on a regular basis, I absolutely loved 125 two strokes. For those of you who don't know, NOBODY loves 125 two strokes! They are under powered, demand precision, and with one mistake you are at the back of the buss. Essentially, every time I got on the bike I thought to myself "Ride this sucker until IT breaks OR YOU Break". That was really the only way to do it. All out. Absolute war with the machine and the surroundings. That's what I found to be the case pushing one gear. Sand Pit? Attack or walk. Hill? Attack or walk. Flats. Attack...coast...thank god, the "easy part" :)
Much like a SS, the advantages of a 125 come almost exclusively from their lighter weight, flickability, and ease to maneuver. Even the mental sensations were the same. Pass someone on a 450 or geared bike and think "I own that biaatch!" Get to the top of a hill on a 125 and people just stare at you with a dumb look on their face. It's awesome.
So basically, I KIND OF get it now. However that could all change when I have to actually ride up a hill lasting longer than 15 seconds...
Mr. Todd Park, you were once again correct. 1st with the circus hoops and now with the gearing or lack thereof. Perhaps you could share some other advice that will be more pertinent to my bank account rather than just my riding activities :)
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