Saturday, December 27, 2008

Singlespeed or Gears?

For the last few years, I have struggled trying to decide if I should race gears or SS. This year is no different. I love riding my singlespeed and the ride feels fast to me. I climb better on a SS than a geared bike, I get less tired on a SS (because I can control my pace and recover on the flats as I spin), and I enjoy riding the one gear more than the many gears. Yet a part of me feels that I could be faster on a geared bike.

I just put some SRAM shifters on my bike and got out for a ride on the frozen tundra on Friday. The bike (Niner Air 9) is almost identicial to my SS (Niner One 9) - same control points, size, etc.

I still do not know. If I were smart, I would do some timed trials on the two bikes and make an educated decision. I do know that in 2008, I got burnt out trying to ride a geared bike and ended up switching to my 29er SS and was much happier as a result. Time will tell. I know I seem to have a lot more fun on the SS and I will have a teammate in the SS Sport class this year.