Carbon or Alu for Wife?

[purdyd]

I agree that components are also important.

The $2000 Trek Madone I mentioned earlier comes with Shimano 105, I think, which would be my minimum for Shimano. As it turns out, the bike I bought has SRAM Rival, which I'm quite happy with.

thanks everyone for all the great input

is there a preference for SRAM brifters for ladies over Shimano?

[malkin]

thanks everyone for all the great input

is there a preference for SRAM brifters for ladies over Shimano?

Yes, ladies have preferences as do gentlemen, but there is no gender specific preference.

[maillotpois]

Some of us prefer Campy....

[moonfroggy]

how petite is she?

i really can't stand the feel of aluminum. i love my steel bike. that said she should get the bike that fits her the best and that she likes the most. it took me a long time to find a comfortable bike and it ended up being a custom built frame. getting a bike that fits is the most important thing.

[purdyd]

how petite is she?

i really can't stand the feel of aluminum. i love my steel bike. that said she should get the bike that fits her the best and that she likes the most. it took me a long time to find a comfortable bike and it ended up being a custom built frame. getting a bike that fits is the most important thing.

5' 1 1/2" and she looked good on the trek 43cm frame

[malkin]

5' 1 1/2" and she looked good on the trek 43cm frame

How did she FEEL?

[purdyd]

How did she FEEL?

she wanted to buy it on the spot

but i want her to try at least try the specialized 44cm frame

thanks everyone for the feedback on SRAM versus Shimano brifters

does anyone have an issue with SRAM requiring more force to shift?

[Chicken Little]

Fit her in aluminum, and start checking Craigslist. If nothing come up that fits, go entry level aluminum, you can sell at a small loss in the spring, if you want to keep your $$ reasonable.

I ride steel, period. But I didn't start that way, and prefer to financially ease into things...

[Crankin]

I love my Shimano Ultegra short reach brifters. My hands are not that small (size medium glove), but overall, I am a small person. I have never been able to ride in the drops until I found the perfect combo of the short reach brifters and a short and shallow dropped bar. I never want to change... learning a new shifting pattern would mess up my brain.
The aluminum Orbea I had on my bike tour last May reminded me how much I like my carbon (and steel) bikes. Although the bike had the exact same geometry as my road bike, I felt jumbled every time I road over a teeny crack. And I was back to not being able to reach the brakes from the drops.

[indysteel]

some of us prefer campy....

+1.

[redrhodie]

thanks everyone for all the great input

is there a preference for SRAM brifters for ladies over Shimano?

I tried SRAM for the first time last week, and I do think it's ergonomically better for my small hands than Shimano (and I have short reach Shimano brifters). I can't really comment on performance other than it worked perfectly for the ride I took around he block.

[hirakukibou]

I have Shimano Ultegra (although the shifters are older 105's) on one bike and Sram Rival on another. The Sram shifters fit my hands better although the new Ulterga's, I believe are now flatter on the tops and adjustable. Someday I hope to get a set.

The shifting motion is different for each of them. I went from Shimano to Sram so it took some getting used to, but now the Sram is fine. I think I have a slight preference for the Shimano, but that is probably due to the fact that I started with that system.

If I had a choice between Sram or Shimano, I think I would get a new Ultrgra (or even Dura Ace ) group. (However, I would love to try a Campy Record group someday. But that is a long shot!)