I'm learning a ton about frame geometry from reading this discussion!

FurryBlue -- re: your question about wheel size bias. (For background, I'm 5'1", short torso) When I was looking for my first road bike (maybe 15 years ago?) I wouldn't have known that I ought to be biased towards 700c wheels, but a small amount of research informed me about toe overlap being an issue with what was "standard" for road bikes, and I also had learned of Terry's approach to using a smaller front wheel. I was a poor student and couldn't afford a Terry, so I was basically discouraged from road bikes and spent my money on a mountain bike that became my all-purpose workhorse.

I started looking for a road bike again a couple of years ago, and this time I picked up a used touring bike outfitted with 650c wheels. I wasn't even interested in wheel size when I went for a test ride. All I knew was the bike felt incredible, and I was in love.

When I lost that bike and started looking for a replacement, all I could find (maybe I was looking at the wrong time of year?) were bikes with 700c wheels. And they all felt high to me, center-of-gravity-wise as well as difficult to step over (I have a bad hip). Long story short: the replacement bike has 650c wheels.

Maybe with the right frame design I might be comfortable on a bike outfitted with 700c wheels, but in my opinion the industry bias towards this wheel size generally makes it more difficult and more expensive for someone my size to find a bike that fits.

I'm sure some riders have their reasons for insisting on 700c wheels. I know that there are women about my height who use 700c, and I'm sure that setup makes sense for them based on the type of riding they do, skill level, etc.

Speaking just for myself, a smaller wheel size would NOT be a deterrent. I also commute on a folding bike with 20" wheels.

I've also never been picked to participate in a focus group, I think because researchers pick up pretty quickly that I'm not in sync with whatever plays well in Peoria . . .