BIKES THAT FIT WOMEN under 5'4"

[caligurl]

ahhhhhhhhhhh ok.... that explains it! (i'm not a paceline/drafter person either! 99.9% of my rides are done on my own steam! i've attempted to do the drafting thing with hubby... but i'm rarely close enough to get the benefit of the draft!) i did a ride not too long ago in palm springs where several of us rode in a "line" for a bit... but NOONE was close enough to call it a paceline or drafting! lol!)

[mimitabby]

Cali, it's a club rule. So if I ride this weekend, People will make comments about my lack of mudflaps. (I have one of those stick on fenders in the back) And hopefully we wont' get a lot of rain because it's messy.

[caligurl]

right.... i got it! i wasn't commenting on the club rules once you explained! i was making the paceline/drafting comments secondary to your explaination cuz of what you said: "You can't do a pace line (which I don't do anyway)"

i completely understand about clubs and the comments people can make! (i think that's part of the reason i'm glad there are no clubs in my area! lol! no "club politics!)

[mimitabby]

Oh Cali, i hate politics, and if my DH hadn't gotten so involved in this club....
well. You know how it is.

[caligurl]

lol! well.... look at it THIS way! you're probably getting a new bike out of it! THAT's a GOOD thing!

[Triskeliongirl]

Mimi, if Bilenky's stoke frames have too long a top tube, their custom frames can be whatever you want. I was where you were a few years back. I didn't go custom not just cuz of the money (cuz often its not more money, just more time) but it was also cuz I didn't have anyone I trusted that would build me a bike that fit, so I did the 'safe' thing and stuck with terrys which have a geometry I know works for me. But folks that go custom *with the right builder* say its the best, and given that rodriguez is in your neighborhood and seems to understand womens fit issues, it may be best for you. This is especially true for those of us who want bikes that are both Light and take fenders/touring tires. This combination is really hard to find in a stock bike. I would guess the rivendell you are looking at is heavy. Maybe you should visit with Rodriguez, and see what it would really cost to get the bike you want (make sure they undertand both the light part and fenders part since these 2 features often don't go together) IF he could transfer all the parts from the veloce. It may not cost as much as you think since the components are a huge part of the price, and then you would get your money back out of the veloce (and you could even sell the stripped frame). ANother thing to be careful of, I know you don't want to be technical, but you need to pay attention not only to top tube length but to seat tube angle. Remember for every degree increase in STA you need to add a cm to the top tube to get the same reach. For example, a bike with a 73 degree seat tube angle and 52 cm top tube, has the same reach as a bike with a 76 degree seat tube angle and a 49 cm top tube because on the second bike you will need to move your saddle 3 cm further back to get your knee in the same position relative to the pedal axis. This point is really imporant and I am not sure you fully get it. Another factoid is that as top tube lengths get shorter than 52-53 cm it gets harder to get a 700c wheel in front and avoid toe clip overlap without making compromises to the frame geometry that effect handling (i.e. you either slacken the head tube angle or increase the fork rake, in an attempt to push the front wheel further forward, but then the bike becomes so stable it is hard to turn). What I did was to test ride different bikes that used different solutions to this problem, and after my test rides could tell how a bike was going to feel purely by looking at its specs.

[KnottedYet]

I think Lisa S.H. said her Riv weighed the same as my Waterford: 21 1/2 pounds.

My lugged steel Waterford weighs less than my aluminum Kona hybrid commutermobile, but I weigh more than both of them put together!

(my *bikes* don't need to lose weight... hee hee! )