To balance things out in the world of off-road cycling and counter the ex-roadies, you need look no further than the single speed crowd. When single speed mountain bikes first began to pop up they were simply old machines butchered together to have fun on as cheaply as possible; a direct reaction to the onward march of technology.

Single Speeders, like their rides, now have a carefully defined don’t care attitude. There are some that hark back to the dawn of mountain biking in the Colorado Hills when the Repack Riders rode clunkers while dressed in jeans and plaid shirts.

Others will give a nod to the early ‘90s when fluro was cool. But what really unites them is a general lack of respect and a happy-go-lucky attitude. How many other types of racing regularly requires the riders to down a beer at the start of each lap?