Quote Originally Posted by crazycanuck View Post
I think it's normal to want another bike...even if you are on your first. (What'll you do if you want to do more than what you've listed...!)

I know nothing about the bikes mentioned and i don't have the greatest internet speed so i can't see the Therese one..I think the Pashley bikes are cute! What about the Roadster???

In terms of getting uphill on one-are we talking a weenie hill or a super duper steep long hill that you just want to swear at & run away

I'm babbling and will let the more knowledgeable folks chime in
I worry about wanting more bikes The Roadster is gorgeous, but looks a bit big.

Regarding the hill, it may well be smaller than my mind is painting it. It's about half a mile long and if I walk it with a 28lb child in a buggy it takes about 15 minutes and I'm a bit out of breath at the top. The thing that makes me worry is that I drove past a male cyclist who was sweating buckets going up there. I suspect that in a lesson or two I'll be riding it with my teacher so will know for myself.

Quote Originally Posted by pll View Post
You've landed in a forum on enablers.

There are plenty of very knowledgeable people here and most questions will be about the type of riding you want to do. Have you tried the two bikes you are considering? I looked at the Therese and it is a lovely bike, a mixte frame (there is an entire section about mixtes here). It has 7 speeds compared to the 3 speeds in the Pashley, so that can be an edge if you have hills around. Try them out, so you are able to compare what feels more comfortable, lighter, and faster to you. Some bikes make you want to ride them, others feel "dull" when you ride them...

PS: Here is the thread about mixtes: http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=19205
I haven't tried any bikes other than the one I'm riding, apart from a very cheap and horrid mountain bike that I tried to learn on many years back. I absolutely love the look of "mixte" frames, I think I definitely want a step-through frame. I wanted to get a bit more knowledgeable (and also figure out where the money will come from ) before getting on a bike and falling in love with it.

Quote Originally Posted by sfa View Post
I think it's a pretty typical progression in just about any activity to get into it, buy some equipment, get MORE into and then realize the stuff you bought was all wrong. I know knitters who replaced all their needles after a couple of months and then bought all new yarn because they bought the wrong stuff the first time around.

I don't know if you can get uphill on a Pashley, but I'd like to be given the opportunity to try. Those are such pretty bikes. And I think I'll spend the rest of today drooling over the Lunar Cycles website. Gorgeous!

More seriously, we had a short discussion about upright/cruiser type bikes on hills that you can find here (also includes discussion about the Ticino): http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=39594

I think any of the bikes you linked to would do fine for the type of riding you're talking about, but the Electra Ticino and the Therese have better (or at least MORE) gears that'll help with headwinds and hills. They'd also all be fine for riding with boots and shorter skirts, but if you're going to wear long flowy skirts, you'll want a skirt guard. The chain guard helps when you're wearing trousers (or you can just roll up the right leg or slap on an ankle band) or long flowy skirts.

Have fun shopping!

Sarah
Yes, I have an unfinished baby jumper because I absolutely hated the feel of the wool by the time it got to the making up stage and couldn't bear the thought of it next to my girl's skin!

I'll look up these bikes in real life, the Lunar will take some planning as it's in London. Thank you for the advice, I don't wear long floaty skirts but would love to be able to ride in my winter wardrobe of skirts and boots.

Many thanks for all the replies, I really appreciate your time and will read the linked threads. Do any of the mainstream manufacturers make mixtes any more?