Fixie Inc Pure Blood First Ride
David swings a leg over Fixie’s cyclo-cross bike
RCUK first reported on the Fixie Inc Pure Blood way back in 2007, when the first examples arrived at Mosquito Bikes in London. The beautifully slender and curvaceous frame is rendered in custom drawn 4130 steel and is the German company’s spin on a cyclo-cross bike.
Its breaks convention for a ‘cross racing bicycle by only accepting disc brakes. There are no cantilever mounts, but don’t confuse it with the many cyclo-cross bikes billed as multi-purpose do-everything machines. The Pure Blood isn’t one of these. There are no rack or mudguard mounts, but more importantly there is a ton of mud clearance and it has some sharp details to help it excel in the demanding world of cyclo-cross. Bear in mind that UCI regulations don’t allow disc brakes for cyclo-cross.
Thus, Fixie Inc. described the Pure Blood as a “classic race tool with some fresh add-ons that make your life easier out there in the mud. The reliability of disc brakes and the functionality of interchangeable dropouts that give you the choice between geared or singlespeeded [sic] use at any time.”
There’s a ton of mud clearance, and there’s room enough for up to 38mm tyres. The rear brake cable is routed inside the curved top tube and the single bottle cage mount is placed high up the downtube so you can shoulder it without any hindrance.
For a company better known perhaps for its ‘singlespeed’ bikes, it’s really no surprise that Fixie have designed some smart CNC machined dropouts, which allow the bike to be run as a fixed wheel/fixed gear or derailleur geared, as our example is setup.
How does it ride? Given the blanket of snow covering the entire UK, and with riding road bikes on anything but well salted main roads out of the question, the Pure Blood came along at the perfect time. Blasting along Tarmac it is surprisingly swift, the chunky Schwable Racing Ralph tyres rolling fast. When it was time to turn off the slush covered roads and plough through snow, the real character of the Pure Blood was revealed.
It’s sublime. The frame has a real spring to it and the geometry produces finely balanced handling. It skips and skims over rough stuff, turns in fast when requested and remains stable even at high speed. It’s composed through all manner of trails, is a blast through fast downhill singletrack, cutting back and weaving across the trail at a flick of the body.
The conditions should be classed as rare, that is true, but it chomped its way through the fresh snow and compact ice. And that on and off-road had it revelling in both with very little compromise was the biggest surprise. Riding fast off-road appears to be its single raison d’être, and there’s little compromise in this pursuit.
The ultimate cyclo-cross bike? I need some more riding time on it first…
Frame and fork costs £749, while a complete bike with SRAM Force will set you back £2149.
www.mosquito-bikes.co.uk
www.cycles-for-heroes.com
Discuss this story
The vast majority of 'cross races in the UK are not UCI classified so your average 'cross league rider should be able to race on the Pure Blood without any problems. I've ridden a handful of the London X League races this season on a disc equipped 'cross bike.
Posted: 14/01/2010 14:23
The vast majority of 'cross races in the UK are not UCI classified so your average 'cross league rider should be able to race on the Pure Blood without any problems. I've ridden a handful of the London X League races this season on a disc equipped 'cross bike.
Indeed. Doesn't make it any less absurd that disc brakes aren't allowed in UCI-classified races; if anything, more so, especially as mechanical discs work fine for the purpose
Posted: 14/01/2010 15:24
Surely you don't expect the UCI to be forward thinking and pro-active when it comes to bike design? There appears to be no logic or reason behind most of their technical rules, i.e. minimum weights, which wheels can be used, etc.
Posted: 14/01/2010 16:36
It may well be a good bike but...'the ultimate cyclo-cross bike' that you can't actually use for cyclo cross racing but also doesn't have rack and 'guard mounts for commuting/touring/training.
You're clearly not into the spirit of the cross-bike Tim. I use mine for off road riding for which it had virtually superceded my venerable MTB until the recent evil weather which necessitated maximum tyre width and knobbliness. I han't realised just how heavy and unresponsive a mountain was in comparison until I dragged it out last week (well I had which is why I use the cross bike but had forgotten just what a difference there is). The beauty of the crosser is that with semi-slick tyres it will cope with virtually anything off road except deep mud and snow but is quite at home for on-road passages to get to and from the off-road bits. Perfect compromise. Incidentally mine has standard cantilevers because I decided discs weighed too much which is another reason maybe why they're not popular on cross-bikes for racing but I do often wish I'd opted for the disc option with all the juddering that goes on from the front wheel if the blocks aren't toed correctly.
Posted: 14/01/2010 17:27
Never been a Gretsch fan... a bit too twee, methinks- although the White Falcon was a classy axe. And whilst I do love a bit of Les Paul love, I find that it only really works well for certain genres like blues rock and classic-styled rock. Can't stand teles, but for versatility, flexibility and just wrapping round a riff I don't think you can go far wrong with a good strat or jaguar. And, hey, if it's good enough for Knopfler, slowhand and Frusciante (3 of my greatest idols) then it's good enough for me. I like strats for that reason, but they're so commonplace I stripped mine, rewired the singlecoils, sanded the finish off and repainted it with acrylics. As well as making it stand out and being very personal, it also improved the tone as there is no lacquer to impede body resonance. I do still have a hankering for a mint green or fiesta red jaguar like Frusciante had BSSM-era, though.
Posted: 14/01/2010 18:11
Thorn wouldn't go off-road quite as well as the Pure Blood ;:
True. It'd been a hard morning and I obviously wasn't thinking clearly.
But they're British, somewhat agricultural? (coolboarder's expensive cyclosportif excepted, of course), and carry luggage. And won't they take knobbly tyres? Now, back to the guitars ...
Posted: 14/01/2010 23:01
I don't like it. Sorry, JP. And as for stripping the guitar... try it. I painted it a few months before I ever got round to rewiring it, and didn't think there would be any difference at all- but there was a noticeable difference, and people with ears far greater than my own noticed it too. Bizarre.
Posted: 15/01/2010 00:26
Thorn wouldn't go off-road quite as well as the Pure Blood ;:
True. It'd been a hard morning and I obviously wasn't thinking clearly.
But they're British, somewhat agricultural? (coolboarder's expensive cyclosportif excepted, of course), and carry luggage. And won't they take knobbly tyres? Now, back to the guitars ...
A good point here, I agree that in general Thorns are ugly, agricultural looking things but the Cyclosportif just ticked all the boxes for me and looks like a slightly retro racing bike. And no - you couldn't put knobbly tyres on or indeed anything bigger than 25mm. Now to the guitars. My daughter (Alice) plays Gibson's but I was listening to Pink Floyd last night and there is no sound as sublime as when Dave Gilmour fires up his Fender Stratocaster. Funny Alice was commenting on how the debates on this forum Campagnolo v Shimano was a bit like Fender v Gibson on musical forums. We seem to have both on here now but I wonder if there is a correlation between what groupsets cyclists use what guitars those of a musical persuasion prefer?
Posted: 15/01/2010 09:21
Hmm, I see what you're getting at Coolboarder, but I do feel the Gibson/Fender debate has many more angles than Campag/Shimano as guitars are for making music - art - and art is in the eye (and ear) of the beholder. And where Campag and Shimano are just mechanical devices that do exactly the same thing, Gibsons and Fenders (not to mention the Gretsches, Baldwins, PRSs and so on of this world) have specific 'sound signatures' and like a MTB or racer are thus more 'horses for courses' - some songs work better with a Gibson sound, some with a Fender sound.
Then there are one's playing technique and choice of amplifier, which combined make an even bigger difference to the sound than the guitar itself. With C/S, technique cannot not make that same difference, and any one bike or course is not better suited to Campag than it is to Shimano. A 1960s Les Paul or Strat can still be used at top levels of music today with ease, but nobody in their right mind would fit components to their bike of that era to try and win the TdF.
As always, the 'absolute truth' of what is best is somewhere in the middle; the same way a cross bike can do both on- and off-road, and Clapton for example is a master on both Fenders and Gibsons and has used both to great effect.
Personally I much prefer the visual design of Campag, but then Shimano's operation without those silly thumb levers works better for me. Prices, availability and serviceability also play a part in that preference. If I could have all of my preferred aspects in another brand I would buy that other brand. As for guitars, well, hard to say as all my guitars (like my bikes) are custom-built. In terms of playability and range of sounds I prefer my custom Les Paul, because I wired it to have in-phase/out-phase, parallel and series as well. But break anything and the Fender wins for pure ease of repair, plus it weighs a lot less. Sometimes the raw power of the Gibson is what works best, other times the 'cutting through' of the Strat works best.
Posted: 15/01/2010 11:41
I agree with the analysis Jorrin. As a player and listener there is much more depth to the guitar debate, even if there are devoted followers of brands. I have an older Squier Strat which although a cheapy has been thoroughly gutted, rewired and screened with GF humbuckers with coil tap switches - a job I did on it a few years back: it totally transformed the sound and versatility. Shame I haven't played it in ages, but I find I onlyenjoy playing it in a band context. I feel a closer parallel can be drawn for the Campag - Shimano debate with the Nikon - Canon one in camera equipment. I'm a Nikon man, though I have bought a Canon compact for a G/F. I may still go for a G11 so I'm not that much of a die-hard Nikon follower. I started with Nikon, liked the ergonomics and build, invested in a system and I'd have to ditch a whole load to change if I wanted to. Bottom line: competition is good for all brands
Posted: 15/01/2010 11:53
Agreed. think the most important consideration when debating shim/campy or fender/gibson is that there is pretty much only one way of using shifters. It does what it's meant to do. However there is/are so much variation, nuances, etc in properly 'playing' a guitar.. and by that I mean using it a an audible incarnation of the soul rather than just copying a lick.... that it really is a lot more personal and comes down to the individual guitarist. I don't own a PRS or a Yamaha, yet can give a pretty fine imitation of Santana on the strat, just because I can replicate the subtle trills and intricacies of his style. A PRS may help a little, but it does come down to techique. It won't play itself. When you do manage to get your playing technique and your eqpt similar to a guitarist, though, you can give a passable imitation. Whilst not an identical set-up, I find running a Squier Strat through a Boss OD-1 or similar 'crunch' distortion and a Marshall gives a very silky and instinctive interpretation of Mark Knopfler's work- but then I do worship Knopfler and play very similar to him (whilst not as good, obviously).
Posted: 15/01/2010 11:57
Could be a fantastic idea for a budding investor/entrepreneur.... For your listening pleasure, a Knopfler song that received extensive jamming/listening to last year for me: Knopfler - Boom Like That (studio) on YouTube Knopfler - Boom Like That (live) on YouTube
Posted: 15/01/2010 12:21
I should have thought "Rock and Roll" would be appropriate.... Rhythm and Skewers? Rhythm and Roues?
Posted: 15/01/2010 12:32
Snore. 
Posted: 15/01/2010 12:36
Hmm, I see what you're getting at Coolboarder, but I do feel the Gibson/Fender debate has many more angles than Campag/Shimano as guitars are for making music - art - and art is in the eye (and ear) of the beholder. And where Campag and Shimano are just mechanical devices that do exactly the same thing, Actually that is where the two comparisons do meet, Campagnolo aficionados will testify that they love the product as nuch for its visual appeal c.f. art as for mechanical comparisons with Shimano. What is interesting is the way guitars and bikes go hand in hand - a larger proportion of the cyclists I know plays guitar than the general population does. My dad once told me about his favourite shop, where they sold guitars and racing bikes in the same space ('Would you like a Stratocaster with that PX10 sir?') and this was back in the 1970s. It is not perhaps surprising as both pastimes require and reward periods of time on your own immersed in your own thoughts and efforts so attract a similar mindset. For my part I'm musically challenged but I see the reward that my daughter gets from it.
Posted: 15/01/2010 13:16
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