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Benefits of mountain biking singlespeed?

35K views 95 replies 68 participants last post by  Jack Burns 
#1 ·
Hi guys, im new to this forum. Am doing up a SS setup right now but wondering whats the benefits/fun/advantages of riding a SS in the trails?

Do you guys really take on the climbs well after experiences of riding singlespeed? Im starting to miss mountain biking with plans of doing a road only SS, so im considering going mountain biking with my SS like many of you do.

Im not that confident of my ability. Just want to hear the tips, suggestions, and reflections of riding singlespeed here :)
 
#37 · (Edited)
Brainspace: In answer to "What's the point?"

I've posted this elsewhere before, but it holds true:

Singlespeeding isn't about a point for me so much as it's about a mindset.

My wife, job and 4 year old daughter use up most of my spare time, I'm not racing, I'm just heading out to ride the local singletracks and chill out. When I ride a geared bike, the climbs are easier (but slower). Most of the flat out sections aren't much faster (even my gearie runs 1X9). And I've got chain slap, derailleur adjustment, cable stretch, cadence, should I change up, am I slacking off, blah blah blah blah blah going on in my head.

When I ride my singlespeed I'm just riding. When the track points upwards I can feel how much steeper it is, when it levels off even though it doesn't look like it, I can feel it, I don't hear anything but the buzz of my tyres or my breath going in and out. I don't think about what gear I should be in, I just ride.

I never understood the point of singlespeed before I rode one. I never understood it while I rode one first up (I was just doing it as a weight weenie to shave grams off my Yeti ARC), when I finally "got it" was when I switched back to gears and all of a sudden found so much extra crap going on in my headspace.

You don't have to understand the point. I don't do it for you. I don't do it to be cool or accepted (I'm a 37 year old museum scientist, I've never been cool or accepted and it ain't about to change now), I'm not going to be in the "in crowd" because of it, I don't want to race in SS class.

I ride to clear my head, my head is clearer when I'm riding SS. Therefore, for the moment, on trails that it suits, I choose to ride SS.
 
#66 ·
I've posted this elsewhere before, but it holds true:

Singlespeeding isn't about a point for me so much as it's about a mindset.

My wife, job and 4 year old daughter use up most of my spare time, I'm not racing, I'm just heading out to ride the local singletracks and chill out. When I ride a geared bike, the climbs are easier (but slower). Most of the flat out sections aren't much faster (even my gearie runs 1X9). And I've got chain slap, derailleur adjustment, cable stretch, cadence, should I change up, am I slacking off, blah blah blah blah blah going on in my head.

When I ride my singlespeed I'm just riding. When the track points upwards I can feel how much steeper it is, when it levels off even though it doesn't look like it, I can feel it, I don't hear anything but the buzz of my tyres or my breath going in and out. I don't think about what gear I should be in, I just ride.

I never understood the point of singlespeed before I rode one. I never understood it while I rode one first up (I was just doing it as a weight weenie to shave grams off my Yeti ARC), when I finally "got it" was when I switched back to gears and all of a sudden found so much extra crap going on in my headspace.

You don't have to understand the point. I don't do it for you. I don't do it to be cool or accepted (I'm a 37 year old museum scientist, I've never been cool or accepted and it ain't about to change now), I'm not going to be in the "in crowd" because of it, I don't want to race in SS class.

I ride to clear my head, my head is clearer when I'm riding SS. Therefore, for the moment, on trails that it suits, I choose to ride SS.
Could not agree more, I ride a 6x6 all mountain bike and love it, noting compares when ripping downhill. Now after 7 years of MTBing I purchased a SS 29er. My winter trails are a bit mucky and a little steep, at first I hated my decision. But after you get over the initial pain, its one of the most rewarding experiences that you will ever have. When you clean more and more climbs with better routes, body positioning, knowing when to give it, you feel fantastic. And when you do go back to the full suspension, you have SO much more power and strength. SS has changed my riding for the better, and I am one of the last men standing... riding both on Flats!
 
#3 ·
Benefits? Hmm. It's fun as hell. If you're a mechanic like me and you're tired of working on bikes in general, you can add yours to the "doesn't need much, ever" list. And all "zen" hoopla aside, I really do just like the feeling of being out on an eight-hour ride, in the middle of nowhere, with a map, lunch, and a bike that I'm not too worried about ripping parts off of on forgotten trails.

If you've never done any MTB SS before, though, be prepared to hurt for a few weeks/months. At first you will probably want to quit, because if you're used to gears, SS just feels stupid. Stick with it, though, and you'll learn how to climb, descend, hit technical sections uphill, keep up on the flats, etc. Soon you'll be killer!
 
#4 ·
You are in the wrong gear most of them time, spinning like a hamster on the flats and then mashing at about 2 rpm up some steep hills
Rides often include much more pain and suffering than geared riding. Occasionally self loathing too for even choosing SS in the first place
You'll finish most rides with jello legs

Oh... benefits? ;)

Without gears and shifting constantly changing things, you have a 100% connection between effort and speed that creates a very pure feel to the rides. Hill coming up? Don't worry about what gear you're in or shifting, just pedal harder.

There are lots of other benefits that people will post for you, but that one is my favorite. Coming in a close second is not having to adjust or fiddle with anything on my bike, like JoeyDurango mentioned.
 
#9 ·
simplicity.
great workout.
less $h*t to break.
peace and quiet.
make you pick better line ups.
make you an all around better rider.
I feel more in tune with the trail and nature. kind of hard to explain unless you ride on one for some time. I guess it's the simplicity and quietness that creates this.
 
#13 ·
SS will make you a better/stronger/smoother rider, just ease into it. Without the choice for gears, you will ride faster and attack hills like you've never before. You will get an upper body workout like you never would on a geared bike.

Also you can make SS as easy as you want, just change cogs.

It's also the most fun I've had on a mountain bike in years. So quiet, so simple, and so much fun.
 
#14 ·
Ride, Ride and Ride. I have both, one for the road and one for the dirt, both Bianchi`s. My Specialized S works are staying very clean from being neglected in the garage. You will find you can push yourself to new levels when you cannot down shift on the hills. You will learn to spin on the flats. You will pass your friends up the hills, eventually. They will be blown away by your new found fitness levels. I think I can, I think I can, I know I can. Repeat this mantra. Saddle up regulators and move out!
 
#15 ·
It differs from person to person, but I find myself to be more efficient on a singlespeed. I can't really tell you the benefits, you just gotta' give it a shot. Get a frame with a (replaceable) hanger and throw a tensioner on. If you don't like it, throw a derailleur on. I did this to a Niner Air9 and realized I liked it. I ride singlespeed most of the time, but I do have a geared full squish bike too. Infact, that bike is on the classifieds here.
 
#16 ·
Wow.. thanks guys for all the sharing! :thumbsup: Am really pretty inspired to get my SS running on the singletrack. The bike still need tires, fork and a couple of tweeks here and there :D

If you've never done any MTB SS before, though, be prepared to hurt for a few weeks/months. At first you will probably want to quit, because if you're used to gears, SS just feels stupid. Stick with it, though, and you'll learn how to climb, descend, hit technical sections uphill, keep up on the flats, etc. Soon you'll be killer!
I will be mentally prepared. Thanks alot for sharing. What I feel is that, once I manage to complete my local trail without stopping to push, the sense of satisfication will definitely motivate me to ride my SS more.

Without gears and shifting constantly changing things, you have a 100% connection between effort and speed that creates a very pure feel to the rides. Hill coming up? Don't worry about what gear you're in or shifting, just pedal harder.

There are lots of other benefits that people will post for you, but that one is my favorite. Coming in a close second is not having to adjust or fiddle with anything on my bike, like JoeyDurango mentioned.
Yes. Even now before I have even started riding my SS, i wonder whether I have made the right choice. All I can say is that this forum really inspires and motivates me. I believe that, once I master SS and grow stronger legs, I may never turn back ;)

SS will make you a better/stronger/smoother rider, just ease into it. Without the choice for gears, you will ride faster and attack hills like you've never before. You will get an upper body workout like you never would on a geared bike.

Also you can make SS as easy as you want, just change cogs.

It's also the most fun I've had on a mountain bike in years. So quiet, so simple, and so much fun.
The last line is really quite inspiring. :)
 
#17 ·
I'm going to second everything that the above posters have said! Especially the parts about making you a better rider. You will learn to be smooth or fail. Very quickly.

When you get to really tough hills and just want to get off and hike it, just yell out "yah, Mule" and dig a little deeper! helps every time.
 
#19 ·
Physically, SS has made me MUCH stronger, and put me in much better shape. It's made me a stronger rider mentally, as well, because now I know what true pain feels like. Now, when I'm doing anything, from hiking a trail with a 30lb pack, to hammering my geared bike down the trail, I know, no matter how much I hurt, it could definitely hurt more. So I keep pushing, and it makes me faster.

As far as riding skill, SS and rigid has made me much stronger. I can pick better lines faster and I've learned the advantage of speed through the scary stuff and how it actually makes things easier.

Plus it's fun. It's really fun. And when you show up to a group ride on a super difficult trail and you're the only SS'er, and almost always the only rigid, you kind of become a small hero in the group. The last ride I did like this, we took a group picture, and the group wanted my bike in the shot "because it was so cool!" That was awesome.
 
#22 ·
Personally, I find that ss rides are more about the experience and less about the "highest possible average speed", which is something I can't be bothered with. In fact, that's the core of mtb for me: an experience like no other, riding (or pushing, running, walking) places that are, somehow, essential. Does that make sense to anyone?

Put differently: I really like writing, but usually it's only ss rides that put me in the mindset for it. Somehow, I see and feel more.
 
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