Fixed gear was fairly common on road bikes in the UK right up until the 60s, and many riders kept riding fixed as winter training bicycles. "Your knee cartilage shrinks in cold weather so you need to pedal fast to soften it up" I was told by a Stockton cyclist. Another fixed rider I knew, Norman Taylor (of Jack Taylor Cycles) preferred the simplicity of the setup, "fewer things to go wrong". But I suspect that he found the bicycle frame under him 'talked' more while riding fixed. Since you must stay on top of the fixed gear, the frame becomes much closer to your effort with your need to sychronise and plane becoming more important.
In reference to the College kids you mentioned, The secretary of the Cycle Touring Club (CTC) during the 50s, Reginald C Shaw MBE, remarked in his book "Let's go Cycling!", "Young and energetic riders may be satisfied with one gear; other people may need the greateest possible choice."
Mark Lawrence Oxford United Kingdom
Sent: 02 May 2010 14:53 To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: [CR] Fixed Gear-When and Why
Listmembers; Was the fixed gear originally designed for racing on the wooden velodromes and when was it designed. I am pretty sure it was not designed for college kids to be riding around the inner city with no brakes. But at my early aging mind I have been wrong many times, just ask my wife.
Mike Larsen
St. Paul, MN
USA