Specialized Safire Size Advice

[eilidh]

Hi - I'm new to Team Estrogen Discussions, and am looking for a little advice.

At Christmas time I was lucky enough to rent a Specialized Safire Expert in Sedona for a few days. I loved how comfortable it was, enjoyed the upright position and found I had a lot of confidence.

I have noticed that there are 08 closeouts of the S Works at really great prices. I would like to replace my much-loved-but-very-tired 12 year old Marin Mount Vision Pro and so am thinking of splashing out on the purchase.

Unfortunately the bike shops nearby do not keep Safires in stock so they need to order from Specialized as a special order "sight unseen". I would be grateful for thoughts on size. I am 5'5" and pretty average in arms and leg length. In Sedona I rode a Small and It felt great. However, my 17" Marin is much longer - significantly longer than the Medium Safire.

I was able to test a small Myka at the bike shop and that felt very small and cramped. I feel like a Medium Safire should be right - but I'm puzzled that the Small was fine when I rode it on vacation.

So I wondered if any Safire owners could give size thoughts for someone of a fairly average 5'5".

Thanks very much for your help!

[katherine]

Hi Eilidh, I don't ride a Safire, but I do ride an Era Expert and I think that the geometry is pretty similar, as I test rode the era and the Safire last summer, if I remember the big difference was the Safire had more travel. Incidentially I love love love my Era, and have been riding it around Sedona lately. I'm just under 5'8 and have a medium, fits like a glove. My legs are a little bit long, but not much. Hope that helps!

[Aggie_Ama]

I test rode a Safire for an extended time. I ride a 15" and rode the small. I ended up with a small Gary Fisher (liked the longer TT) which is also a 15". I am 5'2", don't know my inseam but I am very short torso. FWIW even though my Fisher and the Safire are the similar size they felt very different so it may be hard to compare to your Marin. I poured over the size charts, Myka and Safire are different geometries not sure how different as it has been over a year since I looked. Can they order the Safire and not make you buy it? I was lucky my LBS would do this for me. They are a high volume shop and we are regular customers. My husband had bought a Stumpjumer FSR the year before.

[southjerseygirl]

I'm 5'2" and ride a Small Safire Expert. The fit is great, but if I was much taller I feel like I'd want to size up to a Medium. The Specialized sizing chart has held true for me for both road and mtn bikes, and at 5'5" it puts you squarely in the Medium range.

http://specialized.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/specialized.cfg/php/enduser/fattach_get.php?p_sid=Ufz-1-Xj&p_li=&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_tbl=9&p_id=1119&p_created=1254344668&p_olh=0

That said, is there another shop nearby where you could test ride a Medium Safire/Era/Myka FSR before you order?

[kermit]

Any chance you can call the rental shop and find out if anything was changed on the rental? I know it's a long shot but maybe a stem was changed or something tweaked. Good luck and post pictures!

[katherine]

Any chance you can call the rental shop and find out if anything was changed on the rental? I know it's a long shot but maybe a stem was changed or something tweaked. Good luck and post pictures!

I know the shop you would have rented from if you want their info, they're pretty helpful.

[eilidh]

Thanks very much indeed for the responses. It looks like I should be on a Medium. I took the advice here and called the bike shop that I rented from in Sedona (Absolute Bikes) and they were helpful. I did ride a small in Sedona, but I think for longer term riding Medium looks like the better choice. I think I am "between sizes" for Specialized. I also have a Specialized Ruby road bike - and Im not sure if I should be a Small or a Medium there either.

[eilidh]

Ps... thanks also for the Specialized size chart - this is really useful for both mountain bike and road bike too. I have been on their site many times and never seen this.

[Drtgirl]

FWIW I am 5'4" and just bought a Medium Era. My first reaction was that it's a little too big but the more I ride it the better it feels. My old bike was pretty tiny though so I'm just going through a transition period.

[bikermaze]

It could be the fact different companies have similar yet not quite size charts? It could explain why your fit with the Marin and Safire weren't same.
Switching brands can be quite a factor to satisfaction and usability so to speak. It's just a transition period. But that aside, if you do go for a Safire, make sure you're actually comfortabel with it and see yourself going with the fit for it long term.

Trust your gut feeling. It helps. Women have a strong sense of intuition. If it feels wrong, don't do it.