New Bike for Tall Plus-Size Woman?

[Thorn]

Taller than you, but also short arms and back. While my go-fast bike is custom (save them pennies), I also ride a Surly Pacer for winter riding and rainy summer days. I spent a little under $1K for the bike.

My Pacer is a teeny-tiny frame (52cm) with a huge seatpost and a stem extender (raises the bars up, not pushes them out--I need the short top tube). The bike handles fine although it looks rather peculiar. In fact the Surly handles for me better than my first road bike.

I used to ride a 60cm frame and was terribly uncomfortable (can you say back pain?). A wise, older mechanic told me that I was a classic case of why fitting by leg length is stupid. You can always raise the seat and handlebars, but you can't do anything if the bike is just too long.

So, my suggestion is find a shop that will do a fitting focusing on reach, not height. It may mean a silly stem extender (oh, the Fred-jeers I get for it), but if the bike is comfortable, you'll ride it more. Also, if you start looking at frames by length, not height, and accept long seat posts and stem extenders, you will open up the possibilities of more lower-end bikes.

Just my 2cents....others may disagree, but it worked for m.

[lo123]

I'm 5'6", but with a 31" inseam and teeny torso... Try for WSD if you can swing it... In my testing, Trek had the shortest top tubes and most comfortable fit for me.

I ride a 54 WSD Trek Madone 5.2. It comes in up to a 58cm in WSD.

There's a fit calculator on Competitive cyclist. It was a very good tool for me to help identify what geometries might work best for me. You can compare geometries on most brands' websites.

oh yeah, one thing that can work.. smaller frame to get the top tube length right, with higher seatpost... In hindsight, I wish I had gotten a 51 in my cyclocross bike. It took a TON of adjustments to get the 54 reasonably comfortable.

[Juliegoddess]

Thanks ladies! Well, it does appear that my thinking wasn't "stinking"! I kinda figured that the most important thing would be to make sure that top tube isn't too long. Because, like you said, you can't adjust that...but you can adjust the height plenty. And with that in mind, I for SURE need a WSD bike. Short waistedness just doesn't work on a men's bike, no matter what I do.

I'm going to check out that calculator! Thank you SO much!

[out_spokin']

Another tall woman (5'10" and 33" inseam for clothing, let alone my real inseam) with almost no torso (ha!). I also ride a custom steel road bike for going fast, so +1 on the saving your pennies...depending on your actual measurements and the geometry of different models you might be able to fit on a 56cm roadie, which is the largest frame for most WSD. Be careful about the handlebar height though -- getting your seatpost high enough is cake, but I highly recommend against having too much drop from your seat height to your handlebars. Racers can get away with it, but for newer/older/less limber/just all around cyclists it can be very uncomfortable and lead to riding less.

Don't forget Terry Bicycles - most of their road models over the year have had a 23" (58.4cm) option with shorter top tubes. Their new stuff is way out of your price range, but with patience used ones can be found. I found a new old stock frame/fork last year that I've almost built up with parts from a well-priced craigslist find.

This thread just rocked my world though -- didn't know that some of the Treks come in a 58!! Geometry probably still won't work for me, but I am SURE going to find one to test ride!

[Juliegoddess]

Another tall woman (5'10" and 33" inseam for clothing, let alone my real inseam) with almost no torso (ha!). I also ride a custom steel road bike for going fast, so +1 on the saving your pennies...depending on your actual measurements and the geometry of different models you might be able to fit on a 56cm roadie, which is the largest frame for most WSD. Be careful about the handlebar height though -- getting your seatpost high enough is cake, but I highly recommend against having too much drop from your seat height to your handlebars. Racers can get away with it, but for newer/older/less limber/just all around cyclists it can be very uncomfortable and lead to riding less.

Don't forget Terry Bicycles - most of their road models over the year have had a 23" (58.4cm) option with shorter top tubes. Their new stuff is way out of your price range, but with patience used ones can be found. I found a new old stock frame/fork last year that I've almost built up with parts from a well-priced craigslist find.

This thread just rocked my world though -- didn't know that some of the Treks come in a 58!! Geometry probably still won't work for me, but I am SURE going to find one to test ride!

Hey Out-Spokin' (LOVE that name!! ha ha!)

Thanks for the tips! Yes, I am deathly afraid of leaning down too far on the bike. Not only is it going to be a huge change for me from the MTB, but I also have a herniated disk in my back that I have to watch out for. So, any undue stress back there is not good for me.

And Ohhh, yes I LOVE Terry Bikes! I really really wish they had an entry-level road bike. I know I'd feel like a freakin' princess on one...!

May I ask, do you know what your top tube measurement is? I know mine might be different, but it would give me a point of reference...

[DarcyInOregon]

Thanks for the tips! Yes, I am deathly afraid of leaning down too far on the bike. Not only is it going to be a huge change for me from the MTB, but I also have a herniated disk in my back that I have to watch out for. So, any undue stress back there is not good for me.

Just want to say, I have two herniated disks in my lower back, and I ride a Trek Pilot 5.2 WSD. I am 5'8". Riding the Pilot, plus gym workouts to strengthen the core and back muscles, finally got rid of the constant sciatica pain caused by the herniated disks, and I haven't been troubled by the sciatica for quite a few years. Just saying, don't fear a road bike because of herniated disks.

Maybe move up to a road bike when you have saved up more money, and look at the Trek entry level road bikes.

[Juliegoddess]

Just want to say, I have two herniated disks in my lower back, and I ride a Trek Pilot 5.2 WSD. I am 5'8". Riding the Pilot, plus gym workouts to strengthen the core and back muscles, finally got rid of the constant sciatica pain caused by the herniated disks, and I haven't been troubled by the sciatica for quite a few years. Just saying, don't fear a road bike because of herniated disks.

Maybe move up to a road bike when you have saved up more money, and look at the Trek entry level road bikes.

Thanks, Darcy! That's good to know! Yes, even just losing these 20 pounds has helped the back immensely. I believe that the bike would do much LESS damage (if any) than all that weight I was carrying! And I still have 40 more pounds to go...

[lo123]

This thread just rocked my world though -- didn't know that some of the Treks come in a 58!! Geometry probably still won't work for me, but I am SURE going to find one to test ride!

Quick look on trekbikes.com shows the following models come in 58cm:
6.9 WSD (~8609 MSRP) - droool...
6.5 WSD (~6599 MSRP)
5.2 WSD (~3800 MSRP)
2.1 WSD (~1369 MSRP)
Pilot 2.1 WSD (~1369 MSRP)
Pilot 2.0 WSD (~1149 MSRP)

I don't get why they didn't offer the 4.5 or 1.2 in 58cm though.