Charge Plug Test ride

First in a series of posts, having got my hands on the 2010 Charge Plug..kindly donated by our friends at Evans Cycles.


I have been hankering after one of these for a while, been keen to see what the ride is like. After picking it up last night first job was to whip off the ugly plastic chain guard (why cover something so pleasing to the eye?), bells, reflector etc. All about the aesthetics. Second job was to think about whether to fix the hub or not, and decided I am not brave enough for that just yet.

Doesn't it look lovely?


This morning I took it along the seafront to work. First impression? Speed. Lovely. The feeling of not having to think about changing gears is great! Compared to my Stumpjumper this thing is very nimble. When the wind got up and pedalling became hard, I found my thumbs automatically looking for a gear lever. It really is quite liberating not thinking about which gear...but also quite tiring..so I think riding a single speed is going to be good for fitness, or tiredness depending on which way you look at it.

Anyway I really enjoyed the first ride, now need to be brave enough to turn the flip flop hub around, and ride it truly fixed. Save that for next time.