bike for short woman

[Raph1978]

I am looking at purchasing a road bike. I currently mountain bike. I have tried the Trek Lexa slx, 43cm. It seemed to fit well but was wondering if anyone had any recommendations. I am looking for a bike I can enjoy for a while but have no plans on riding competitively. Frame is the most important since I can always upgrade components if want to. I am 5'1" and looking to spend around $1000. Thank you :)

[Cataboo]

Honestly, test ride as much as possible and get what fits you.

[Artista]

I'm 5'1". Terry road bikes are great for me. It's tough to find Terrys in local shops, but I believe that they still have a test ride program where they'll send a bike to an LBS of your choice, pay the LBS to assemble it, & let you test ride the bike for 2 weeks. If you decide that you don't want the bike, Terry will pay the LBS to pack it up & send it back to them. If you do like the bike, you pay Terry & keep it.

[Koronin]

I'm 5'0" and about the only bikes that fit me are Trek and Specialized. I prefer the Trek. I actually have a Trek 2000 47cm men's bike right now and will be looking the 47cm Madones when I'm ready to upgrade. My current bike has the 650 tires and I do not want those on my new bike, which is why I'm going with the 47cm and won't consider the 43cm bikes for Trek. Specialized 44cm bikes are similar to the Trek 47cms. I would suggest also checking the 47cm and see what you think of those as well. Now there are some such as Giant and Cannondale that are just too big even in their smallest frames for me. I'm also pretty sure that I can looked up Felt at one point and just looking at the specs their bikes are too big.
Check out the Specialized Dolce as well as the Trek Lexa. Good luck in your search.

[Raph1978]

Thank you for the help. It seems like Trek makes a good small bike. if i can handle a bigger wheel, should i try to stay away from the 650c??

[azfiddle]

I'm 5'1" and the Trek 47 was actually too big for me. I recently got a Specialized, and before that rode a Fuji for 1 1/2 years.

I agree- ride several bikes if you can find them in your size.

[Catrin]

hmmm, I am 5'3 and Trek doesn't appear make a bike small enough for me. I need a shorter reach than they provide. I've had a direct experience with this in the FX line, but looking at their size charts they all appear to have too long a reach for me.

Test ride, test ride, test ride!

[roadie gal]

My SO is 5'1" and fits the small Jamis very well.

[Susie Derkins]

Hmm. At 5'1", I'm a little surprised you'd be on a 43cm frame. I'm 5'2", and was fit to 47 or 48cm frames, depending on brand. Your proportions could certainly be different than mine, but make sure you get fit for your bike. It won't matter how awesome a frame you buy if it's the wrong size.

I avoided Cannondale and Fuji because the top tubes were too long for me. They don't seem to cater as well to short riders.

In the range that it sounds like you're looking at (aluminum frames) I did really well with Scott (Contessa Speedster), Trek (Lexa), and Specialized (Dolce). If you're willing to spend just a bit more, the Specialized Dolce Comp has carbon seat stays that I thought made a big difference. None of the other brands that I looked at offered that as sort of a compromise point between aluminum and carbon frames.

In the end, I was seduced by the carbon frame, and bought a 48cm Specialized Ruby Comp. It just came home last night. Can't wait. It was like a dream to test ride. The geometry was the same as the Dolce.

[hid558]

I am 4'11" and had a 44cm Cannondale. Good bike, just try all you find available and see what fits most confortable.

[bellissima]

In order for you to find the bike that really fits, you need to consider your proportions and just taking in consideration your height is not enough as you may have a long torso and maybe shorter legs, or maybe be long legs and short torso. So if you have a longer torso and shorter legs you would need a bike with a longer top tube and lower top tube (lower stand over) or vice versa if you are the opposite.

[Cataboo]

hmmm, I am 5'3 and Trek doesn't appear make a bike small enough for me. I need a shorter reach than they provide. I've had a direct experience with this in the FX line, but looking at their size charts they all appear to have too long a reach for me.

Test ride, test ride, test ride!

The top tube is 480 on the 43 cm lexa.

http://www.trekbikes.com/women/wsd_products/bikes/road/lexas/

I know I had a trek 1500 wsd that had a tiny top tube which would have been fine for you.

[Raph1978]

I just tried the Jamis Ventura in a 48 and really liked it. The guy took the time to fit me to the bike and it seems like that size will work. Definitely much more comfortable that the 43c Trek Lexa the other bike shop put me on. Jamis bikes seem to have a good rep (at least in the mtb world)

[oz rider]

Thank you for the help. It seems like Trek makes a good small bike. if i can handle a bigger wheel, should i try to stay away from the 650c??
If the 700 fits, fine. If the 650 fits, fine. As others have said, it's all about your proportions and fit (= both comfort and handling) - not because of the wheel size per se but because of the frame geometry it allows. 650 tyres and tubes are less common than 700 but if the 650 fits better, the question for normal road riding becomes whether you want to ride a bike that fits 365 days a year, or can't find tubes two days a year.

Also, with seat tube lengths being quoted, be aware that this measurement varies dramatically on compact (sloping top tube) frames. If you are comparing sizes on the web, look at the other measurements as well. Some are now using stack and reach which are more useful. But still, test ride FTW! :)

[emily_in_nc]

There is a lot of prejudice against 650c wheels here and on other forums and sites, and frankly, I am getting so weary of it. I used to have a 650c carbon Aegis Swift, and I could keep up with or beat nearly every woman in our bike club -- and good number of the men as well! Remember what Lance said: "It's not about the bike"??? The bike does matter, but even more important is the engine. My bike was light and I was in fabulous shape (this was before my accident in 2005 where I fractured my pelvis in three places -- I'm not as fast now).

If I were to build a new go-fast bike today, I wouldn't hesitate to use 650c wheels again as they lend themselves to a bike geometry that fits me, and since they're smaller, they are lighter and accelerate faster! You give up a bit in easy rolling, but the difference is balanced out by the weight and acceleration advantage.

I did have a 700c bike earlier in my cycling career but it was just too big for me. With today's sloping top tubes and compact geometry (which, admittedly, I've never tried), I could probably fit a 700c wheel and would consider it, but I would never rule out 650c wheels on principle.

[Jo-n-NY]

Also, you really cannot compare the same size bike from one company to another. Specs vary from one company to another. I found by reading so many posts over the years of being here is that even if someone is say 5'1'' and you may be 5'1" there is a chance you might size the same bike differently.

I say this because I am 5'2" and ride a 51cm Specialized Ruby (as well as my Dolce). I see so many ladies posting that although the same height they ride this bike in a 48cm. I got a fit yesterday at the shop that my dh works at. My reach was perfect, I had the exact amount of bend in my arm when holding the hoods that should be. Although he turned my stem around from the more upright position. He felt my shoulders should be down more. I will try it for few rides as it really feels different. The real surprise was that he "raised" my seat 3mm and it feels really better.

I sometimes 2nd guess the size of my bike from the posts that I read, but am at the realization that you really need to try all bikes to see what is good for you.

[lawnchick22]

Have any of you used some of the online measuring guides for fit?
If so, which ones?
Did the measurement results hold true in the purchase and set up of your bike?

[emily_in_nc]

[QUOTE=Jo-n-NY;564180
I say this because I am 5'2" and ride a 51cm Specialized Ruby (as well as my Dolce). I see so many ladies posting that although the same height they ride this bike in a 48cm. [/QUOTE]

Yes, it's interesting how even those of us of the same height vary all over the place in bike size. I have ridden bikes in the 44-48cm size comfortably and am also 5'2", and I can't even imagine riding a 51. You're probably more flexible than me or have a longer torso.

Years ago, I recall that a gal in our bike club rode a 51cm Trek 5200 WSD, and was around 5'4". The bike fit her perfectly. I test rode the 47cm size of the same bike and found that I felt a little stretched out and would want a slightly shorter (or higher) stem than the stock.

Funny, isn't it? That's why test rides are so important, but it can be hard to find smaller bikes to ride in many cases. I've bought several bikes online and gotten lucky, but I'm also very familiar with the geometry that works for me.

[oz rider]

Also, you really cannot compare the same size bike from one company to another. Specs vary from one company to another.
Most manufacturers show geometry on their websites, so you can compare ett, seat tube angle etc. Agree that it doesn't beat a test ride though, especially for new riders.

[Koronin]

Yes, it's interesting how even those of us of the same height vary all over the place in bike size. I have ridden bikes in the 44-48cm size comfortably and am also 5'2", and I can't even imagine riding a 51. You're probably more flexible than me or have a longer torso.

Years ago, I recall that a gal in our bike club rode a 51cm Trek 5200 WSD, and was around 5'4". The bike fit her perfectly. I test rode the 47cm size of the same bike and found that I felt a little stretched out and would want a slightly shorter (or higher) stem than the stock.

Funny, isn't it? That's why test rides are so important, but it can be hard to find smaller bikes to ride in many cases. I've bought several bikes online and gotten lucky, but I'm also very familiar with the geometry that works for me.


I was thinking the same thing in reading this. I'm 5'0". I've stated have short legs and a longer torso. I was fit perfectly to a 47cm Trek Lexa, although my next purchase is going to be a Madone. No one had one of those in a 47cm I could test. I was also at my old LBS where I got to test the Lexa. Well actually my old LBS's sister shop in Charlotte. (I lived in Mooresville, NC which is now 5 hours away). I also prefer a more stretched out feel. We finally figured out this was the biggest issue I have with getting comfortable on a Mountain bike. Once we finally figured that out, we were able to change the stem and get me more stretched out on the Mountain bike so now I'm more comfortable on it. Although I'm still much, much more comfortable on my road bike. I've only had the road bike for about 9 months now, where as I've had mountain bikes for years. (I am also fairly flexible as I participated in gymnastics as a kid and off and on through college, though never competitively.)