It is a Mercier Kilo OS. Not a super well known brand. I got it online from Bikes Direct. Bikes Direct is an online store that offers super discounted fully built bikes. This is the first bike I have purchased from them, and so far I am impressed. Lots of people ask if I regret buying online rather than at a local bike store. Not yet. Of course, on down the road when I might need some work done to it, I might have wished I had bought one from an LBS.
More about the bike. It is styled like an older styled British or European bike. Two top tubes, fat tires. It is a fixed gear. If you aren't familiar with fixed gear bikes, check out this Wikipedia article. Long story short, there's no coasting on a fixed gear. A huge change from every other bike I have owned. I keep wanting to stop pedaling and coast, and she tells me NO! It's a great feeling though. This bike feels a lot like driving a sporty little car with a manual transmission. Compared to my Schwinn 5 speed, or other bikes I have owned, which feel like driving a four door sedan with an automatic transmission. If that makes sense. Well, enough with this babbling, here are a few pictures. (Not taken with my Nikon)
Glad to see you are still around.
ReplyDeleteNo coasting? I don't know about that one...what if you cramp, or your leg spontaneously detaches from your body?
That would kind of hurt if you have those shoes that lock into the pedals...your leg would 'wap' you upside the head.
Ha, yeah, I guess I didn't think about that one! Lets hope that doesn't happen. I would hate to be beaten to death with my own leg.
ReplyDeleteI'm a big fan of fixed gear bikes. I'm down to one - a converted MTB frame - track fork ends (dropouts)added - Phil Woods rear hub. Challenging but more enjoyable than one might expect.
ReplyDeleteI used to race on the Velodrome - THE most FUN you can have that close to PUKING! The travel made it impractical but I sure miss it.
My coach said riding a fixed gear improved your cycling ability by three fold. I would tend to agree with him.
Stepped on the scale yesterday, YIKES! 40 pounds over my old race weight. NOT good. My last race was 11 years ago. I guess I got lazy.
Curious about the double top tube on your new bike. Benefits?
Looking forward to the ride report!
Mo, as far as I know, it's just a style thing. It's 4130 CroMoly steel. I guess it might add a little rigidity to the frame. I bought it because I liked the old school look to it.
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