Female riders are you on female bikes?

p1tse

Female riders are you on female bikes?

What's the main difference with female bikes?

Wirral_paul

Well i'm not female, but they seem to have shorter top tubes for a given sized frame, come with female specific saddles......... and come with god-awful flowery graphics!!

Mikey41

It seems most have no setback on the seatposts and shorter stems and often shorter top tubes as said above.

TakeTurns

Not to mention, they're relatively more expensive to 'unisex' bikes

Calpol

Wider saddles, generally. Having just ordered a bike for Mrs Calpol I can testify that the flowers, general pinkness and alleged female geometry do seem to add to the cost of the bike. Thats why I have ordered the male version of the Cannondale Synapse.

Ka12

I'm female and ride a women's Cannondale Synapse 105 - I tried both male and female bikes before buying and opted for the women's as longer legs with shorter arms.

Fortunately the women's Cannondale Synapse 105 is not particularly girly and has no flowers on it I got it for a good price and not much difference to the spec/price - my saddle is the first thing on the bike to be changed though!

Oxo

I'm very interested in this subject at the moment, as I'm trying to help my better half find a reasonable spec lightweight carbon road-bike.

Genuine WSF bikes seem to come with shorter top-tubes than men's frames in comparable sizes, the bars are narrower and saddles slightly wider. The shortening of the top-tube can result in severe toe-overlap so the smaller frame sizes sometimes have 650c wheels to try to alleviate this. Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

From what I've read though, for many women an off-the peg men's/unisex frame in the correct size should be fine, just requiring a saddle swap and playing around with stem length if necessary - she's going to test ride the Lapierre Sensium 200 CP in 49cm (she's 5' 5") and see how she gets on anyway.

As an aside, I would be interested to know if female professional cyclists have WSF frames made up?

cheaterkiller

Womans bicycles are a bit faster than mens. I know its not conclusive proof coz I couldnt see what type of bike she was on, but a woman overtook me the other day.

jibberjim

Oxo wrote:

Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

This is not true, MEN have shorter torsos and longer legs in the UK.

marylogic

My Orbea is getting on a bit, rather like me.

When I got it 7 years ago I got the women's specific version and it didn't cost any extra, although I would have paid extra if required
If you're going to spend all that money surely it's best to get the ideal geometry?
I have niggly back issues I would spend my entire time wondering if it was the bike if I had got the men's version.

I quite fancy the orbea dama blt for my next bike - it is only £40 more than the men's version which doesn't seem that unreasonable given economies of scale.

jibberjim

marylogic wrote:

If you're going to spend all that money surely it's best to get the ideal geometry?
I have niggly back issues I would spend my entire time wondering if it was the bike if I had got the men's version.

Whilst on average there is a small difference between men and women in the UK (although for the UK and the reason given for the different geometries it would be the MEN on WSD and women on Mens...) there's more difference in general between individuals. Looking at the average isn't useful.

Sit bones and shoulder width there's a larger difference though - so a different seat and handlebars will likely be indicated.

Anonymous

jibberjim wrote:

Oxo wrote:

Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

This is not true, MEN have shorter torsos and longer legs in the UK.

Oh bugger, have I got to buy a pink bike with flowers on then

hjghg5

All my bikes are mens bikes. I've changed the saddle on some of them, and I've swopped the stem on some but it's just a case of working out how to tweak each of them rather than there being a standard list of things I need to do to get them to fit me.

One of them still has flowers on it though - a planet x nanolight in guru team colours

diy

My mrs is 5'10 and she rides a man's bike with a softer saddle, shorter and upside down stem.

A lot of wimins bikes are a bit of a rip off though. Worse in MTB, priced for the model up, spec'd for the model down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36Zq_Xr9eBo

stannie

I am 5'4" and ride a female road bike (Trek Domane) and a unisex MTB.
The ladies road bike has a shorter stem, slimmer bars with a shorter reach and a ladies saddle but otherwise the geometry is very similar to the mens. It cost the same as the mens bike, and does not have flowers or any pink graphics. The biggest advantage I found with the ladies bike was the smaller drop bars - My smaller hands did not reach the levers on larger bars.

Redhog14

Speaking for my other half who has owned more bicycles than she can remember (on account of having many of the nicked!) she to my knowledge has never bought a female specific bike. Reason she cites is that they are often down spec'd from the male version so she just buys the smaller frame sizes.

Currently has two road bikes, one CX and three MTBs' only concession she makes is to fit the same female specific saddle to each of them. She is 5'7" or thereabouts.

jane90

I have a men's bike, but fitted with 38cm handlebars and a women's specific saddle. Steve Hogg wrote a couple of interesting articles on the subject here and here.

Anonymous

Do any females wear mens bib shorts/tights?
Without being too detailed, if there are no boobie issues and they generally fit, is the pad going to be a problem?

I got an extra small pair of DHB Roubaix bib tights for my daughter or possibly my wife depending on size.

Ka12

I have a pair of the men's DHB bib tights and no issue with the pads, women's cycling clothing seems to only be available in small sizes for those with no bust whatsoever!

ToeKnee

Ka12 wrote:

I have a pair of the men's DHB bib tights and no issue with the pads, women's cycling clothing seems to only be available in small sizes for those with no bust whatsoever!

So, you're saying men's DHB bib tights have more room to accommodate an ample bust?

Anonymous

ToeKnee wrote:

Ka12 wrote:

I have a pair of the men's DHB bib tights and no issue with the pads, women's cycling clothing seems to only be available in small sizes for those with no bust whatsoever!

So, you're saying men's DHB bib tights have more room to accommodate an ample bust?

They have a 'Moob friendly' cut

Oxo

jibberjim wrote:

Oxo wrote:

Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

This is not true, MEN have shorter torsos and longer legs in the UK.

I sit corrected, ta

sparrowlegs78

I'm on a mans bike, might have something to do with needing a 63cm frame!!! Ladies bikes don't go up to that size.
I'm 6ft 2" and all limbs lol.

Caz xxx

sassse

I am 164 cm and all my bkes are "mens" ones, but have all been bought after bike fits and have required no changes other than saddle changes. I know women who are 6ft who ride custom frames as "mens" bikes don't fit correctly and require to bigger compromise to work for them.

So, I think the key thing is not whether a bike is a mens or womens bike, but whether it fits you. I always think having a proper bike fit and measurement before buying a bike is they key and then selecting the ones that are the best fit for you to test before buying. Saddles are easy to change and most bike shops I know are quite happy to swap for you.

In terms of bib shorts and tights, I wear womens ones as they fit me personally much better than mens ones, especially the pad. However for tops I have a mixture depending on the brand and exact fit.

pinkteapot

Agree with the comment above that fit is all that should matter.

I'm on a hybrid rather than a road bike. It's a Whyte Malvern Women's and it fits like a glove. When I tried some Specialised bikes before choosing mine, their men's bikes were more comfortable for me than their women's. I'm 5'7".

Not sure about women's bikes being more expensive? With the Specialised and Whyte bikes that I looked at the equivalent models were the same price...

I wanted a step-through frame as I commute with a trunk bag on a pannier rack. I always used to get on and off my bike the male way, but with my bag on the back I try and swing my leg over and fail miserably. :oops:

Daz555

jibberjim wrote:

Oxo wrote:

Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

This is not true, MEN have shorter torsos and longer legs in the UK.

Where did you read that?

I have only ever read that women have proportionally shorter arms and torso than a man of the same height. A quick Google seems to confirm this.

jibberjim

Daz555 wrote:

jibberjim wrote:

Oxo wrote:

Apparently this is because women have, on average, a shorter torso but longer legs than men.

This is not true, MEN have shorter torsos and longer legs in the UK.

Where did you read that?

I have only ever read that women have proportionally shorter arms and torso than a man of the same height. A quick Google seems to confirm this.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12031138

stannie

jibberjim wrote:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12031138

That study refers to children, not adult women.

I guess some women are not "average" but what is " average"?
I know I have longer legs and a shorter torso than most men my height and I would hazard a guess that the same goes for most (but not all) women on this site, but I can't prove it
I have the same inside leg measurement as my husband and I am 5 " shorter than him.

jibberjim

singletrackanne wrote:

jibberjim wrote:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12031138

That study refers to children, not adult women.

Have you read it or just the abstract? The 21-25 year old group are pretty representative of the majority of women buying bikes today. Now if you tell me you're asking about a 65 year old, or a hutsi immigrant, then sure things are going to be different, but individuals should always be looked at as individuals. On average though, the Dangour et al. data is reasonable?

singletrackanne wrote:

I have the same inside leg measurement as my husband and I am 5 " shorter than him.

My wife's proportions are such that she has much shorter legs / longer back than me, there's 2 data points, complete opposite, these little anecdotes aren't a lot of use, other than to say you should buy a bike that fits...

stannie

jibberjim wrote:

singletrackanne wrote:

jibberjim wrote:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12031138

That study refers to children, not adult women.

Have you read it or just the abstract? The 21-25 year old group are pretty representative of the majority of women buying bikes today. Now if you tell me you're asking about a 65 year old, or a hutsi immigrant, then sure things are going to be different, but individuals should always be looked at as individuals. On average though, the Dangour et al. data is reasonable?

singletrackanne wrote:

I have the same inside leg measurement as my husband and I am 5 " shorter than him.

My wife's proportions are such that she has much shorter legs / longer back than me, there's 2 data points, complete opposite, these little anecdotes aren't a lot of use, other than to say you should buy a bike that fits...

I just read the abstract which I assumed would summarise the main results!!! Sorry if I assumed wrongly.

I realise this has all been discussed on this forum before and I do not know enough about the study or the facts to make an informed decision although and I do not intend to start the argument/discussion gain. Although I am still unsure of the relevance of the study you cite. I would be interested to know exactly how many people were in the 21-25 year age group? I do not seem to be be able to access the actual paper you refer to.

All I know is that of the dozen or so women I ride with regularly, all but one seem to have have long legs and short torsos compared to males of similar heights. therefore a shorter stem and smaller handlebars on a unisex/male orientated road bike would possibly be useful for them.

However, one thing I do agree with is that it is important to look at everyone as individuals and buy a bike with the appropriate fit, be it male or female specific.

katiebob

I've got a mens Carrera Gryphon (a small one as im only 5'2"!)

I got it through the Halfords C2W and didnt want a sickening pink or turqouise bike which seemed to be all they had on offer!