was briefly in leeds last weekend on a visit to a pub and saw a beautiful white brakeless fixie being balanced at a a traffic light for a good few minutes outside hyde park corner...

anyone on here? skinny dude with facial hair?

Okay, so who respects traffic lights?

Only 'gars'

noddies?

By the way, what is a 'gar' ?

wow you could see a bloke on a bike at hyde park corner from leeds

20 20 vision OR WHAT !

Tynan, you're so metropolitan! 'Gar' is clearly Yorkshire speak for gear - read it in a Yorkshire accent and it all makes sense.

According to Chambers, an acceptable abbreviation for garfish - a pike-like fish.
Also a northern (chiefly Scottish) verb - meaning to cause, to compel.

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there must be some fixie riders in leeds other than me (although i am technically in harrogate)

i only ever see harcore lycra-ed up dudes on winter training fixies around my neck of the woods... anyone else around?

I've ridden fixed all over Yorkshire. Though it still seems to scare most local bike shop workers up there.

What ratio did you ride around in Yorkshire Object?

Going to go up there for a long weekend soonish, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to need to drop down for some of the hills.

They've moved Hyde Park Corner? What was I, asleep! How am I supposed to get home now?!

Hang on a second.....its a trick isn't it? I simply have to fly to Leeds, then I'll know my way to Fulham. Ah ha! And you thought you could trick me eh?

Where about's are you going?
I grew up there so I'm somewhat used to the crazy hills but freely admit that sometimes you just can't use the same gear for the up and the down hills (I'm brakeless so riding downhill on my climbing gear is doable but fucking sill)

i have the same problem, i have to avoid downs which is quite hard!

i run 44/18 or 44/14 depending on how i am feeling currently 44/18 as i've been riding in the dales a lot. i am quite tempted to whack on a freewheel on one side just for mega long days out when the downhills kill me

we met three fixed riders on the last Rollaplauza tour, whilst in Leeds.

A Polish guy and a nice guy from a bike shop and one guy on a flourescent framed brakeless monster who quite literally COULDN'T stop, not even when Jos stepped out in front of him shouting "stop".

oh yeah, and JOE from this forum....(Joe S or Joe B, can't remember which)

"one guy on a flourescent framed brakeless monster who quite literally COULDN'T stop"..

Who just moved from East Lundun to Leeds then? Come on, own up!

44/18 is a nice gear for Yorkshire.
Basically anything mid 60s seems to work quite well. I've been known to drop down to 61 when riding around dentdale and the like.

I can almost smell an FGSS attack on the Yorkshire Dales Cycle Way happening?

doo it.

i will be up for that, as ong as we have a a few beer stops along the way!

damn it.. i keep missing out vital letters from sentences.

I'm a skinny dude with facial hair from leeds, but my frame is metalic green/chrome but with white velocity, and find myself stuck at hyde park corner way too often. Just replying as I havent seen a white fixed gear here apart from a langster (union jack stickers) which i think had brakes.

yep that was me.
i have only met one fixed rider in leeds but seen a couple more about.
did see some suicide bike that was green with deep v's and flat clipless bmx pedals without breaks on the parkinson steps. didnt see a rider and wasnt locked up???

First post on here, so 'hello'. Felt obliged to inform others of the stealthy Specialized chained to the railings near Bikology in Leeds I spotted today. And does anyone on here own the absurdly beautiful, red, no brakes Olmo that is (or was) regularly chained up outside the Rupert Beckett lecture theatre at the University?

yup... bump... come ride with us! we had a whole 8 people out last night

spotted the olmo a while ago, tis a beauty. Anyone who fancies a ride in leeds can either join the fixed gearleeds facebook group or email fixedgearleeds@hotmail.com.

hello sam,

sorry i missed thursday, good ride? i will be out tomorrow,

i also have a half day off on wednesday if you fancy joining me for an afternoon of the tour and some beers? any pubs in leeds where we could watch it?

Samuel, are you by any chance my brother? If not, then you have a lot in common with him!

unless I have a long lost sister, then I dont think so...does he ride fixed in leeds?

I don't think he rides fixed (but wouldn't put it past him to be secretly practising in order to out-do me), but he's "a skinny dude with facial hair from Leeds", is called Sam, and has a vaguely similar turn of phrase. I'll bring him out for a ride next time I'm Oop North.

Hi guys, just to confuzzle matters, I know you Emilia via your sister and I ride with Sam and tilover!!!

I've told your Sam about these cool guys at FixedGearLeeds but he seems uncertain as he has gears. But as you say he's just the type of guy to have a great time with us lot riding in Leeds no matter the bike.

I was talking to him yesterday and after the velodrome experience, he badly (not as much as myself I think) wants a fixed bike. He has a spare wheel so I said he could just get a new chain and sort out that the wheel.. with the horizontal dropouts, he can have a road bike and fixie in a matter of seconds! sweet

I know who YOU are!

Tell him gears are for wimps, etc., and that I am currently waaay more butch than him. That ought to do it. I need to come up and play in Leeds at some point, don't I?

P.s. Did anyone ever identify the skinny dude with facial hair on the white brakeless fixie?

nope not seen him. I've only ridden twice and only know a of one who rides brakeless.. a very mad Polish guy!

Yeah come up one time and get yer bro out if I've not dragged him out by then.
How's about next critical mass? I think a few of us are planning to go for the 1st time..