Bike for the Missus

corriebee1
corriebee1 Posts: 390
edited August 2014 in Commuting chat
Hey

I'm hoping that I'll get away with posting this in commuting and not the road buying forum. This is where i normally hang out :)

I'm looking for a starter road bike for the Missus and came across this from Leisure Lakes. It looks like a decent bike and good value for the money. But i wondered if anyone had any other suggestions or thoughts on the Trek?

http://www.leisurelakesbikes.com/p/9871 ... -2013-sale

(She's 5'6" so the 54cm frame should be ideal)

Comments

  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    Wouldn't 54 be slightly too large for 5'6"?
    Definitely a road bike you want? My missus is looking to sell her commuter (Ridgeback Flight 01) and I'm sure she'd want less than the 350. It's too small for her but in very good nick.
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  • corriebee1
    corriebee1 Posts: 390
    Yep, she wants a roadie. She's been cycling a battered old Raleigh road bike round London for years, then had a year off the bike (baby) and now wnats to get back to doing proper miles.

    I looked up some sizing charts which reckoned on a womens bike she should be looking between 52 and 55 cm frames. It's a bit of a Trek (pun intended) up to Daventry to try one out though. Hmmm

    EDIT: The first review on here looks encouraging re sizing.

    http://www.evanscycles.com/products/tre ... BP#reviews
  • leedsmjh
    leedsmjh Posts: 196
    I'm 5'6"ish and would find 54cm too large for me. I ride a 50 or 51cm.
  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    Cyclesurgery have this year's model in stock at a few stores. Go there to try the 54, then I expect the 2013 model will be identical geometry (or as near as makes no difference).
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  • greg66_tri_v2.0
    greg66_tri_v2.0 Posts: 7,172
    At that price point, I'd be looking hard hard at the Boardman Fi road bike.
    Swim. Bike. Run. Yeah. That's what I used to do.

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  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    Greg66 Tri v2.0 wrote:
    At that price point, I'd be looking hard hard at the Boardman Fi road bike.
    +1
    That's the one we got to replace the bike that I'm trying to sell :roll: :D
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  • corriebee1
    corriebee1 Posts: 390
    Thanks folks

    Perhaps i'll hold fire until we can get her actually sat on a Boardman and a comparable Trek.
  • DrLex
    DrLex Posts: 2,142
    <slightly disappointed to find that this isn't a swap thread>
    Location: ciderspace
  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    DrLex wrote:
    <slightly disappointed to find that this isn't a swap thread>
    :lol::lol:
    Rose Xeon CW Disc
    CAAD12 Disc
    Condor Tempo
  • rubertoe
    rubertoe Posts: 3,994
    The pendleton road bike at halfords if you can manage it, also looks pretty tasty. my non bike riding missus even fancied one.
    "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got."

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  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    rubertoe wrote:
    Pendleton looks pretty tasty. my missus even fancied one.
    :shock: 8)
    Rose Xeon CW Disc
    CAAD12 Disc
    Condor Tempo
  • arran77
    arran77 Posts: 9,260
    dhope wrote:
    DrLex wrote:
    <slightly disappointed to find that this isn't a swap thread>
    :lol::lol:

    You lot are useless :roll: None of you have asked for pictures of his missus yet to see if the swap is worth it :wink:
    "Arran, you are like the Tony Benn of smut. You have never diluted your depravity and always stand by your beliefs. You have my respect sir and your wife my pity" :lol:

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  • rubertoe
    rubertoe Posts: 3,994
    dhope wrote:
    rubertoe wrote:
    Pendleton looks pretty tasty. my missus even fancied one.
    :shock: 8)


    If only that were true...
    "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got."

    PX Kaffenback 2 = Work Horse
    B-Twin Alur 700 = Sundays and Hills
  • daniel_b
    daniel_b Posts: 12,040
    This may be of no help, but my missus rides a 2006 (So horizontal top tube) Trek 1000 in a 52cm frame, and it fits her perfectly.

    However, as you say that first review says a 54 was perfect for his missus/daughter, and as it is a WSD bike, might it not be that the top tube length is shorter than on a fella's bike?

    Is it that much of a bargain though, I mean with 8 spd and alu forks?

    Does she need a WSD frame?
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  • corriebee1
    corriebee1 Posts: 390
    Hey

    Thanks for the replies. I guess she probably doesn't need a WSD frame, providing it fits.

    We'll definitely take a look at the Boardman but any other suggestions (including non-WSD) gratefully received!
  • corriebee1
    corriebee1 Posts: 390
    So i bit the bullet and decided to go for the Bianchi Via Nirone Dama Bianca Sora 2014.

    I got it for 550 pounds on Winstanley Bikes. However, they've since taken it off their website so either they only had one of them, or (as i hear is often the case at Winstanley) they don't actually have stock at that price.

    http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bia ... e-ec059373

    Seems like a decent amount of bike for 550 quid, and the Missus likes the colours!
  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    and the Missus likes the colours!

    usually the most important part hahaha!
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  • keyser__soze
    keyser__soze Posts: 2,067
    supersonic wrote:
    and the Missus likes the colours!

    usually the most important part hahaha!

    Compton Cycles got good marks from my missus when she bought her Brompton for only asking about what colour she wanted right at the end, after discussing handlebar options, guards, tyres, suspension, gearing etc. When she was looking to replace her crash-damaged race bike and was looking at reasonably high-end bikes (eventually buying a Cervelo R3) usually the first question any salesperson in a shop asked her was 'what colour bike are you after?' :roll:
    "Mummy Mummy, when will I grow up?"
    "Don't be silly son, you're a bloke, you'll never grow up"

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