Tranny love and the mystery of the missing gears

You know those shit bumper stickers you see on the back of a clapped out Fiesta saying 'my other one's a Ferrari'?  Well I thought this bike would make me want one that says 'my other one's a normal bike'!

But I guess 'normal' is a subjective thing, some people think 29'ers are cool and fair play to them but I'm a fully paid up member of the 160/140mm sub 30lb smash it around the forest at top speed 'enduro' bikes that everyone is loving these days.  My bike riding has never changed that much, always fast up and down hills, sometimes ballsy, other times total wimp, depends which way the wind is blowing on a particular day, and my bikes have always reflected this approach!

So what the hell possessed me to get a stunning 3lb carbon hardtail frame and then build it up with just one gear?  I'm no hipster, I don't have a beard or drink coffee and this thing definitely has a freehub so no fashion fixieness happening here.  Still, something inside me decided that singlespeed was the way to go.

The Tranny in all its glory.  120mm Forks, Reverb Dropper and Super Tacky DH

 front tyre.

I guess the root of it was my mate John at university who built up the first singlespeed I'd ever seen.  The purity of it really caught my eye, no unsightly mechs or cassette and most importantly just brake levers adorning the bars.  Back then handlebar room was at a premium, even super skinny 500mm bars were considered a bit excessive and weight saving was everything, so having no shifters just made the bike seem so sleek.  Seeing the veins bulging out of John's neck on even the slightest inclines didn't look so cool though, his bike was light and attractive but just not very functional.

Fast forward 15 years (where the hell did they go?) and I found myself with a Chris King 16 tooth cog and a load of spacers in my hand ready to put the finishing touches to my own singlespeed project.  First impressions were good, very good!  The thing was so light it felt like cheating, even with 120mm forks and a dropper post (because EVERY bike should have one!).  I hit the trails and second impressions were even better.  In fact it was so easy to accelerate and throw around, like a really capable off-road bmx, that I could barely keep the front wheel on the singletrack.  And then I hit the uphill.....

I'm not stupid, obviously I knew that one gear only would mean a bit of grunt but this was a slap in the face.  I quickly discovered there were two approaches to climbing, either accelerate like mad and try to turn over the gear at top speed (worked great for about 50 metres) or stand up and gurn and turn over the gear at 4 revs per minute whilst nearly ripping the cleats out of my shoes.  I'd done my research and opted for a 32-16 ratio, I'm more Chris Froome than Chris Hoy so smaller gears were definitely the required approach, especially as it's so damn hilly around here.  I'd also applied the bullshit filter to the numerous comments on the forums along the lines of 'dude, I EASILY turn over a 42-11 and I only ride on obscene gradients...' when deciding what would work for me.  Turns out I was a touch wrong.

The new 30-16 set up.  Perfect for the hills?

Maybe I was missing the point?  Perhaps my mindset of never ever getting off and pushing ever ever is wrong for singlespeed.  On the rare occasions when I was actually on the right gradient for the gear it was incredible fun but I kept being reminded of the quote I'd read saying 'riding singlespeed is just like riding in the wrong gear all the time' or words to that effect.  I battered on for a few weeks but then decided it just wasn't enough fun and then relented and went 1x9.

At this point it's all going to get a bit advert and I won't apologise for that.  2Pure, the UK Ibis importers do support Rock and Ride but I can honestly say with complete impartiality that the following is true.  This is the best bike I've ever owned, and I've had some beauties.  It just makes everything so fun and can take on all but the most high speed techy trails (where it was ultimately my ankles that gave out before the bike did).  I had to put a Super Tacky High Roller on the front just to tame it a bit (which must've nearly doubled the overall weight!).  It really is the perfect bike for most situations.

So why return to singlespeed?!  It's all the fault of Rick and Davy at NIMBA, better known as the Trailbadgers, who somehow managed to secure the European Singlespeed Champs for Castlewellan this year!  They love having no gears and take on some pretty silly challenges so I felt obliged to give it another go.  I'm scoping out some routes for all the participants to ride on the days before and after the race so it'd be pretty poor form if I turned up with the 1x9.  This time I've gone for a 30-16, anticipating a hilly course and a heavy hangover and I'm about to go and test it out, wish me luck...


The Singlespeed European Champs are taking place on April 25th-27th in Castlewellan, County Down, Northern Ireland.  It's more of a festival than a serious race, more beers, less gears!  Check out this link for more details and I'll see you there.

Oh and the title makes more sense if you visit the Ibis website, http://www.ibiscycles.co.uk/.  I love the sensationalist titles!