Welcome!

[thanita]

Women and men have a lot in common. When it comes down to it, we're much more similar than we are different. This is just as true in the cycling world as it is anywhere. We all love what bikes do for us - and the world. We ask the same questions: How do I pick "my" bike? How can I ride it better? Where should I ride it? How do I keep my bike (and myself) running smoothly?

Yeah, we share a lot. But, every now and then, we're not on the same page. Or even reading the same issue. Sometimes, it makes sense to have, in the words of Virginia Woolf, "a room of one's own." So here it is, women (and curious men) of DirtRag!

When to go with WSD stuff, when not to? What's the best way to deal with a bike shop jerk? What if you've never fixed a flat, let alone serviced a fork? What kinds of sports bras work best for mountain biking? And so on . . .

Beginners and experts all, let the forum roll.

[firefly]

Thanks for this Thanita!
sO, LADIES-=WHAT THE DEAL? mountain biking was once just this really sexy advertising scam that showed rugged beautiful men clearing a nice slice of colorado trail....now its everywhere and the ladies are kicking some ass- basically, my head is full of gunk right now-lots to ask you all --best thing for me to do is grocery list it- if something grabs ya hit reply and go to town on it- here goes:

good dh bikes for women? we are smaller than guys (generally) and dh bikes are expensive--where does a girl go to test ride a dh bike so she can be sure shes getting the right rig?? Shops never build up xs dh bikes.....what's a girl to do?

diggin on guys who ride but soon as you make it to the top of the cliimb faster than them it seems like you are no longer sexy? what the deal?

hating the supershort spandex bike shorts most companies offer for women- legs are so short they roll up when my thigh brushes my saddle at every pedal stroke so instead of having material between my thigh and the saddle i have my thigh rubbing ON my saddle. I THOUGHT WOMEN WERE DESIGNING WOMENS CYCLING CLOTHES -GUESS NOT- at least not women wo ride. Aside from that no one takes a girl seriously in a race when her shorts look more like hot pants. I DONT
LIKE THE DUKES OF HAZARD (well, the car is cool but that's it).

WSD- PLEASE dont by in......at least test ride first- its like clothes- you would LOVE to wear a size 8 in every brand of jeans- but you know some fit differently than others- same goes with bikes- wsd or not. My experience with wsd is that there is an asumption that all women are long legs /short torso - maybe your boyfriend is all legs--he should nab himself a juliana! Most important is that you ride and see--WSD does not quarantee a better fit. I happen to love how levi's 501s fit me- and they not wsd. I heard a rumor that some company was gonna make wsd bike tires!!??!

Suckiest part of WSD for some manufacturers is that there womens' specific stuff is not offered using high end materials--no ti railed saddles, no leather covers-- the market is too small (or even unknown)
If we want better products offered we need to speak loudly about what IS avaible and help make it better,this forum could be just the vehicle we need!

[susan]

hey! i am a very small woman (skimming the 5" mark) and it seems that i have very little choice but to buy a wsd bike (that is if i want any significant amount of clearance space)---and a couple of things suck about this: for one, it seems that there are very few choices out there and for another, i agree with firefly---rarely do bike shops have a wsd in xs (and when they do, it rarely seems to be the model that interests me).

thanks for getting this forum together t. i'll see you this weekend...

some really bad karaoke just started---there's a reason why most people only attempt this when intoxicated.

[angelo_caduto86]

I've never thought about this...but what a shame. So if you are a small person, you have to order your size, which means the bike shop probably wants you to buy before you order and once you get the bike, you might not like it....is that how it works?

I suspect it's a reason why the general biking population doesn't buy (road) touring bikes.

Hmmm, I wonder, if bike shops operated a little more like car dealers, instead of having lots of bikes in a popular size, they have one of each size, if you like it, then they order you one, and/or they have a "previously owned" bike room too.

[thanita]

At least for the bike shops I spoke with, this is pretty much the situation. If it's a shop with multiple locations, they'll usually look around and see if the size you want is at another location, and they'll have it sent over (free). If not, you're "special ordering," and you'll either be obligated to buy or have to put a non-refundable deposit down.

Catch 22, for sure - you have to know what you want before you order it, but if you haven't tried it, how do you know?

Yeah, bike shops stock primarily for the "average" sized rider, which is, you guessed it, a Medium in most cases.

If anyone out there knows of a shop/shops that will get a size for you to try without obligating you, please let us know!

Or, if someone has found a way around this conundrum, pls. let us in on the secret . . .

[firefly]

Incase i did this wrong, i 'll say that this is in response to bike trying on=how it is tough to try out a bike in the proper size....So true about the catch 22--but what i have found to be super cool is friends with bikes-guys and girls who are willing to let me check theirs out.

I am not a small woman, so I generally dont stress about finding sizes of xc bikes to try out in shops- but DH bikes are another story(and alot more expensive) Its not just the size but how heavy they are in relation to my own weight (and strength).

Even if a shop does build up a dh bike that "fits" me- the frame fits, but the 7" fork jacks the standover way up, not to mention the fork is tuned for a 200lb person and is stiff as...well, stiff.

So thats the thing i'd like to figure out-BUT in the meantime, I would like to sing the praises of this little biking community that i am coming to know- a friend i met through riding/racing lets me borrow one of his dh bikes- he is a tad bit shorter than me, and his bike fits me pretty damn good. I tuned the fork to suit me as well.

I mention this because it is a sure fire way to get a person more into a sport without having to make all the financial commitments off the bat. I know how much it takes to trust someone else with your stuff, and it is something that i hope others experience as well. You can promise your riding buddies hours and hours of entertainment as you learn to handle the bigger rigs and they just may let you.

[Divscotty]

Santiam Bicycle in Salem Oregon 388 Commercial St Salem or 97301 503.363.6602

I don't know what their policy is for people they don't know - but this bike shop always treats me real nice. I try accessories out, take bikes for rides etc. I know of a bike they custom ordered for a girl and it didn't fit her at all and she didn't have to take it.

I get super good service from them. They are not the cheepest in town but if you have a problem or a warrenty issue they are all over it and that is worth money to me.

They are pretty well stocked too so browsing is easy. I buy nearly everything from them.

Divscotty