Living just blocks from a large university, I have watched fixies evolve through many phases, and none is more evident than the change to those very bars pictured in Bob Hansen's post (see below). It's rare to see a drop bar fixie in this town. It seems that everyone switched to that short, upright bar overnight. My preferred bar is a Nitto moustache with a tall Nitto stem. I ride mainly through residential neighborhoods and a green belt, and the raised bar lets me keep my head up to see where I'm going. My fixies have brakes, I stay away from curbs, stay out of traffic, don't lay the bike down on corners and leave the 180mm cranks where they belong...in a box. My first fixie was a sad looking cheapo steel frame that was sooo ugly. So I salvaged the parts, placed the frame carefully next to the dumpster in the alley, and transformed my mid-80's Eddie Merckx into a great looking, great riding fixed gear. Then I built up others...R. International, PX-10, a Super Course. I even rode my 1950 Holdsworth Cyclone (thanks Ken Wallace) as a fixed gear with mudguards for a while.
No file, no hammer, no hacksaw, no drill, no paint, no tattoo.
Pat Moffat Tempe AZ USA Think I'll put off brushing my teeth, skip the shower and go ride my fixie.....
----- Original Message ----- From: Stronglight49@aol.com<mailto:Stronglight49@aol.com> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org<mailto:classicrendezvous@bikelist.org> Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 11:22 PM Subject: [CR] Pista epidemic in Asia
Here is a photo I stumbled across which someone has just uploaded onto yahoo's photo host site. A whole herd of Pista bikes locked to a hitching post outside a Japanese night spot. So, that's where all the Yellow and White vintage saddles have gone...
Note the short conventional stems and narrow upright bars. At least these kids understand the concept of "Traffic" And, these are NOT the typical US garbage-bike fixies.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/
Oh my god, what's happening to my righteous indignation... help!
BOB HANSON, ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO, USA
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