IGH.

As in Internally Geared Hub. Been interested in trying this for quite some time, the concept always made complete sense to me but options were limited. Shimano's Alfine 8 has been getting rave reviews by off-road cyclists and is a fairly affordable option with some smart shopping. I picked up a rear wheel with Alfine hub and Velocity rim by Handspun (QBP's handbuilt wheel brand) from Bikeman for about $40 bucks less than the cost of the hub alone and the rest of the Shimano parts from Amazon for short bucks. The only part I couldn't get a deal on was the Jtek barend shifter. Goodies should begin trickling in this week, I'll post pics and first impressions once everything's come together.