Trek 2000wsd or Cannondale?

It's a real pleasure to discover a women's cycling forum. I am in England and have enjoyed reading some of the very interesting posts. Now I have joined and would like your advice please. My LBS has Treks and does the women's models. Here in the UK they are more expensive than the US but from what I have read I think they may be worth it. I am five feet two with an inseam of 28 inches. I love the look of the trek 2000wsd but it is expensive. The Cannondale at another dealer are cheaper although it is not near to me. Does the wsd really make a difference? Did you buy one and are you glad you paid the extra? Please help me decide I am a new rider with a mountain bike but am desperate to get on the road and join you lot and maybe take a trip to the USA to do an organised ride.

hi there! I am actually selling a WSD road bike right now (a Lemond) and have since bought a Litespeed... they changed a few components and put WSD shifters/brakes on the Litespeed for me... It does indeed make a difference! Regular bikes have shift and brake reach set for men sized hands so the reach is much longer... I have ridden a regular bike and found it difficult and uncomfortable to shift and especially difficult to brake when in the drops... which of course means on downhills... where you may need to brake to stop for a light etc! They also have handlebars that are broader meant to fit a man sized shoulder width... your handlebars should be the same width as your shoulders typically.

try both out and see which is more comfortable for you... also I finally bought a women specific saddle... shoulda done that the first day I bought the bike! I got the Terry Butterfly and love it... much more comfortable than a mens saddle... lets face it... women are just built different than guys! Good luck with your new bike!:)

Carolina,

At your size, I would definitely try to check out women's specific bikes. I am exactly the same measurements and ride a 17.5" Terry Isis currently. I am also having a 46cm Aegis Swift built up with 38cm short-reach drop bars and Terry Butterfly saddle (only one that works for me too!). For me the reach to the handebars is critical and a WSD bike will have a shorter top tube (both my bikes have top tubes around 19") than the equivalent man's frame. It can be very difficult to get a short enough top tube if you are a petite female without going WSD. A man's 50cm bike (smallest "standard" size) is just too large for me - as is anything with two 700C wheels. The Terry I ride has a 24" (small) wheel in front and 700C in back, and the Aegis I am having built has two 650C wheels.

I test rode a Trek 5200 WSD in the smallest size (47cm), and it was okay, but the top tube (19.6") was still a bit stretched out for me since the stem could not be raised any higher (it's threadless). I prefer the "old timey" quill stems (threaded), since they can raise the handlebars as high as the saddle, which is the height I need.

Most women have longer legs and shorter torso than men for a given height, and that is what WSD bike frames are trying to address. If you haven't, make sure to check out www.terrybicycles.com as they usually have last year's models of their bikes at a good discount, and will ship them to the LBS of your choice for assembly (not sure if this is USA only, though). Since you have the exact same inseam and height as me, there is a good chance that you'd ride the 17.5" size like I do. Terry makes a very good bike, though the two different size wheels means carrying an extra tube on every ride.

Good luck in your search! Let us know what you decide.

Emily