Bought a Trek 29er singlespeed today and promptly went out to Blanket's to let the bike break me in. I have been considering this purchase for about a month debating whether or not to convert my current bike to a singlespeed or just buy a new one. What attracts me to singlespeed is the simplicity of the bike and from what I've been reading, an almost zen-like experience when riding. I loved how quiet it was with no chain noise to speak of really. It is a pure bike and hopefully will deliver pure biking bliss.
Weather was threatening today so I waited in the parking lot for 15 minutes but no rain. It began raining as soon as I hit Dwelling and it was flowing streams of water down the path. Not much fun! I felt horrible for bringing my brand new bike out on its first ride and it turned out to be a slop-fest but that's life in the outdoors. I also forgot my gloves so I had a deathgrip on the bars and they were slick. I also wore my clipless shoes on flats! Ha, that was interesting in the wet conditions.
I ran Dwelling fairly strong with no dismounts but Van Michael is where I really began to see how tough this is going to be. I dismounted 4 times, twice on Kevorkian Pass. I expect there to be a lot of hike-a-bike for a while as I adjust.
Still, there is something really fun about this bike, hard to put in to words, but it's just a different ride.