What do you think about WSD?

[TxDoc]

how essential is it to get a woman's specific design road bike?

Don't worry about the WSD label - just find a bike that fits your body.
I know that I belong to the minority here - but I find the WSD label a marketing hype.
Fit is based on finding the correct bicycle geometry for your body proportions, and not based on gender. There's men that fit on WSD labelled bikes and women that fit on regular stock bikes (which most people believe to be built for male bodies).
Find a reputable bike fitter, and test ride many bikes until you find the right one for you. When you know what geometry and size you need - go shop for the colors you like.
And don't worry if it does not say 'WSD' on the frame

[Bike Chick]

I like the WSD geometry because of the shorter top tube, shorter cranks, smaller grips, short reach shifters and narrower handlebars, however, some of the "girlie" paint schemes they've come up with are just too much for me to handle. I was at the Trek factory a few years ago during the dealer demo days and was having a discussion with the Trek ladies at the WSD tent about the WSD bikes. That was the year that Trek came out with that Pepto-Bismol pink bike---it wasn't even a pretty pink---and they used it on several models. Well, I proceeded to voice my opinion about the pink bikes and said something about how a man must have come up with that idea and ....that's when one of the ladies told me that it was her idea. I shut up and realized not all women feel the same as I do. So find the one that fits and the one that YOU like. Like TXDoc said, find a reputable bike fitter and test ride as many as you can find. You will learn a lot about bikes during the process.

[Lesley_x]

That pepto-bismol bike sounds quite horrendous!!

I'm just going to test ride a whole bunch and see how I get on. The problem now is no shops have mens bikes in small enough sizes...

[Bike Chick]

That pepto-bismol bike sounds quite horrendous!!

I'm just going to test ride a whole bunch and see how I get on. The problem now is no shops have mens bikes in small enough sizes...

Yes, finding small sizes is a problem. It's why I drove 6 hours last week to find a shop that carried them.

BTW, here's a picture of that bike. It doesn't look as bad as I remember but at the time I thought it was horrid.

[zoom-zoom]

BTW, here's a picture of that bike. It doesn't look as bad as I remember but at the time I thought it was horrid.

Someone around here has that bike. She has pink EVERYTHING on it. It's a bit overkill.

[Bike Chick]

I hope she's not offended.......it's just not me. Don't think I could blow snot rockets while I was riding it...it just wouldn't be ladylike

[zoom-zoom]

I hope she's not offended.......it's just not me. Don't think I could blow snot rockets while I was riding it...it just wouldn't be ladylike

No, I mean someone local to me. She's kind of a friend-of-a-friend. Apparently she's quite the athlete, but that bike makes me think I should be having gastric issues or something.

[arielmoon]

Yes, finding small sizes is a problem. It's why I drove 6 hours last week to find a shop that carried them.

BTW, here's a picture of that bike. It doesn't look as bad as I remember but at the time I thought it was horrid.

I love it! I would totally play up the black on bars and bottle cages to keep from pink over load!

[Aggie_Ama]

Don't worry about the WSD label - just find a bike that fits your body.
I know that I belong to the minority here - but I find the WSD label a marketing hype.
Fit is based on finding the correct bicycle geometry for your body proportions, and not based on gender. There's men that fit on WSD labelled bikes and women that fit on regular stock bikes (which most people believe to be built for male bodies).
Find a reputable bike fitter, and test ride many bikes until you find the right one for you. When you know what geometry and size you need - go shop for the colors you like.
And don't worry if it does not say 'WSD' on the frame

I agree. WSD is supposed to fit the more common build of women. But I know men with long legs and short torso (ummm my Dad!) so they would work better on WSD.

[Cataboo]

WSD bikes do not work for me - so I avoid them and all their pastel colors. I did buy one once and it fit so badly I didn't really ride it.

I don't have long legs by any stretch of the imagination, and I have a longer torso and arms I guess. So I ride men's bikes. I do have very small hands, but I've never had a problem shifting or braking with standard levers - and I actually prefer handlebars that are 42 cms wide.

however, I have a gf that's the same height as me whose legs are probably 3 inches longer - who I would say should ride wsd. I think my bf shoudl also ride a WSD, 'cause he's 5'7 with a 33" inseam.

[Lesley_x]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

Test rode it today and was disappointed. It wasn't as fast as I'd hoped (it was quite heavy, even the saleswoman agreed when she picked it up!) and not that much of an improvement over my trusty hybrid.

However, I loved the aggressive riding position. Loved the Tiagra shifters. The two levers system really felt natural to me as opposed to the Sora system. The fit and ride of the bike was great, it just isn't what I'm looking for. Need something a little bit quicker.

The search continues