Mountain Bike Reviews Forum banner

Do you only ride SS?

6K views 58 replies 55 participants last post by  40er 
#1 ·
I just recently really got into mountain biking when I got a SS this spring and have been loving it since. It was my first real bike since I was a kid and is currently my only bike. However, I'm starting to think that having a geared bike on hand for more technical trails and exploring trails I don't know wouldn't be a bad thing.

I know you guys can't really answer this, but am I just looking for the easy way out? Should I just keeping hitting the trails on my SS and wait for my skills to develop more?

I'm curious what other SS riders out there are doing.

Thanks!
 
#30 ·
1x 10 is awesome :thumbsup:

I was only riding SS and i built my fatbike with 1 x 10, some people look at it and comment on the 1 ring up front being hard.... i think it unreal having 9 more gears than im used to.
 
#31 ·
I rode SS only for almost 4 years. It is immensely fun and effective.

I left the SS thing for two reasons:

- started using the bike for communting, etc. Since I don't want two have two bikes, the one I have needs to go well on road, off, etc.
- And the most important, I only find SS enjoyable when I can ride/train enough to keep my shape up. It's not fun to have to stop riding for 2 months and then start again and not be able to do your usual loop. With gears I'll get there, doesn't mater if faster or slower. SS has only one speed: FAST
 
#32 ·
Just sold my FSR 29er so I am currently living the single life only for MTB. I have the ability to add gears if I like (possible future 1 x 10) but we'll see how it goes.
 
#34 ·
bikes I have owned:
mid-90s to last year: BMX bikes, several. all SS of course
converted road bike "fixie." fun but it hurt my knees after a while
a few years ago- GT hybrid. rode to work and back a bunch of times. got bored and bought a mtb.
converted Gunnar geared-SS mtb with rigid fork
Redline Monocog, SS of course
Karate Monkey, SS of course (current mtb)
Masi road bike. really nice bike but I somehow got bored with it. traded it in for...
On-One Pompino- current road/commuter with 39/17 gear

maybe it's all the years of riding bmx, but I have tried and tried to appreciate gears but commuting to work, riding trails, and long road rides around town always end up more fun without them.
 
#37 ·
I like both but it seems that I like ss more. I have ss 29er, sscx, two fixies(road), geared fs and a road bike. Road bike hasn't seen much use during past year but the full susser I really do like (tracer vp). It seems to go in phases as far as mtb goes. During the summer I rode mostly my full suspension but now I don't think that I've touched it for last two months.
 
#39 ·
yes
 
#43 ·
Went to a 1x9 set for the last year, started out strong and enjoyed the break from SS . As the season wore on I found myself getting lazy and using gears to spin. I realized in a late season race when I was dropped by a group of SS I had lost my SS mindset. With that being said sold the gears and back to SS rigid, took me about 8 weeks to find my strenght again to mash.
 
#47 ·
Well, my only mtb is a SS and I love it though I do some times wish I had a full squish/geared set up. It would be nice to get out and ride some of our more technical trails but since the majority of those are a minimum of 45 min away I can't support the purchase of said squish/geared bike as I know I wouldn't head out to these places often enough. Instead I bought and basically rebuilt a road bike...I know, I know, but that is what started it all for me some 25 yrs ago or so and its one of the few things my father and I used to do together (rip).

I can say that riding on gears is totally different when it comes to climbs. I have figured out how to do it again and pretty much know what gear to jump into and the transition between the two bikes has become much easier now days. I still have a blast out on the SS and don't plan on getting rid of it any time soon and the road bike seems to be calming my need for speed if you will.
 
#49 ·
I've been on SS for two seasons. My gears FS is a loaner now. The only time I miss gears is on long sustained uphills, steep enough where I have to stand for long parts.

I ride with geared riders. At first they told me I better stick to easy trails. I now laugh at the top of the hill when I am waiting for the "gerbil wheels" to make it up.
 
#50 ·
I ride both. SS beater for pavement and geared for trails. Just picked up another SS for trails and I'm just waiting until I figure out a way to transport it on the long drive from my parents house to my apartment.

Also I never understood how you can ever have a hard time picking the correct gear on your geared bike. I've never had a prob with it. I blame that on riding only SS for my first couple of months of riding.
 
#53 ·
FYIW, I ride my SS Monday thru Friday on lunch or after work rides that are between 60-90 min rides. I keep my 5" travel greared bike for longer rides on the weekend and 12hr races. I do throw in a few rides on the geared road bike when I can but also commute a few time a week on the SS road bike.
So, I guess I ride both depending on the day of the week.
 
#54 ·
I actually just sold my last geared mtb this weekend (Salsa Spearfish). My only mtb's right now are my rigid SS Karate Monkey (the mtb I grab 90% of the time), and my rigid fixed gear 1998 Rockhopper.

I've been riding exclusively SS for cx and gravel for about a year now after having sold my geared race bike (Chili Con Crosso running Sram Force 1x10), and putting nicer SS parts on my Cross-Check, the bike I now ride most of the time for city, gravel, and cx.

My touring bike is also a SS (and has S&S couplers for very simple and worry-free travel).

Obviously, my track bike is fixed for getting down at the velodrome.

The only geared bikes I have at the moment are my road bike (Soma Smoothie with Sram Force) and my Salsa Vaya (running 1x9 right now). I don't ride either much at all, but I don't want to sell or get rid of either.
 
#55 ·
Singlespeed ONLY since getting back into mountain biking in Feb. 2011

I may switch back and forth between a rigid and suspension fork. And sometime clipless, sometime flats. But I never ride more than one gear at a time. :thumbsup:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top