Women's heavy cruiser bikes: ever recommended them?

[Owlie]

The "fun" part of cruisers aside (there's definitely a place for them!)--

When I was selling bikes, most of the women who bought bikes bought hybrids. I worked there for a year. I can only remember 4 women who bought road bikes. In 2 cases, she was with her husband or significant other who was also into cycling, In one, both she and the husband bought road bikes together, with similar specs. That leaves only one case where a woman came in looking for a road bike by herself. The one she wanted was entry-level. The reason we didn't have any really nice women's bikes (unless by some miracle one sneaked onto the truck)? No one ever bought one. Most of the time, that went for the nicer hybrids as well--the vast majority of them were bought by men. Most of the bikes I sold to women were the step-through hybrid/cruiser things.

Oh, I think there may be many reasons for it. Many of the cruiser sales were probably "I want to ride with the kids/in the neighborhood/on the bike path sometimes." OK, that's cool. I feel like many of the women I talked to didn't want to spend a ton of money on it. Maybe it's the idea that a bike, in the suburbs, is a toy and you don't need anything fancy. Maybe there's some concern about whether or not they'll use it enough to justify spending the extra money. I think lph's point about status/object is valid. "I don't need a fancy bike" is also code for "I don't think I'm athletic enough to warrant a fancy bike." I think men are more likely to say "Yeah, I'm awesome, I'll buy that!"

[Pax]

I love my Townie so much! Got the seven speed because of my knee, it's helpful for going over the bridge to the beach. All in all its the most fun and practical bike I've ever owned; put some Basil panniers on it, a basket, and an adorable bell and it's my beach/farmers market/grocery store daily runner. And it's coral and teal!

[OakLeaf]

And burgers at The Breakers!

[Pax]

And burgers at The Breakers!

You know it!! I think they put crack in them or something, best burgers EVER!

[emily_in_nc]

I love my Townie so much! Got the seven speed because of my knee, it's helpful for going over the bridge to the beach. All in all its the most fun and practical bike I've ever owned; put some Basil panniers on it, a basket, and an adorable bell and it's my beach/farmers market/grocery store daily runner. And it's coral and teal!

Adorable, Pax!

Living in a totally flat are really does make all the difference. I would never, ever consider a cruiser in the vast majority of places I've lived or visited before, but in some spots, they just work.

[shootingstar]

I did try a bikeshare bike (Bixi) in Vancouver...when they were demo which Toronto has acquired the fleet. Nope. I hated the heavy bike which didn't fit me anyway.

I live in a prairie city which overall....is flatter than Vancouver and Toronto but still has some long hills. We get chinook winds often from the Rocky Mountain areas which is a weather phenomena in our part of Canada...warm winds that blow 40-60 km. per hr. The winds blow in several times per month. For whatever reason, the winds when they come tend to kick up late afternoon and blow east....when I'm leaving work. So it becomes a headwind...

No, Electra, Townie, whatever no heavy cruiser bike for me. I would start to hate cycling..

I don't ride any road bikes with drop down handlebars. I have and ride several hybrid bikes. Even into my elder years, I can always see myself wanting a light, geared bike to help myself enjoy my ride slowly. Both Toronto and Vancouver have bike racks on buses and so I must be able to lift the bike onto rack by myself. Some of the cruiser bike configurations would be tougher for shortie me, to get onto a bike bus rack.

But great if it works well for you and you make frequent use of a cruiser bike.

[OakLeaf]

I weighed my hybrid this morning, just for grins, before heading out to the farmers' market. I underestimated: it was 41#, the rear tire felt low, and even with a full compost bin on the way out and full grocery bags on the way back, it still felt quite a bit lighter than the share bike (which looks pretty much the same as the bikes in other cities that I've seen but haven't ridden).

I have a feeling the extra weight is mostly in the share bikes' wheels. Stands to reason they'd be super bulletproof - not that the wheels on my hybrid aren't, but a friend of DH's did trash one of the wheels on his similar hybrid, jumping curbs we assume, and I expect they want share bikes' wheels to be able to stand up to that and worse. Not least because the front wheel has to be at least more or less true to go back into the docking station!

Can't remember how many internal gears Columbus' share bikes have, but at least three and maybe five. Not single-speed, anyway.



FWIW, it seems to me that the heavier the bike, the *less* it's affected by wind. Maybe it just seems more miserable when you're going more slowly overall ... You're obviously less aerodynamic in an upright riding position, but that's riding position and not weight. With more weight, you've got better momentum, and your profile to the wind isn't affected by weight. In crosswinds, you'll be way more stable. And FWIW, it seems to me that wherever you are, you get either hills or wind, not sure there's anywhere where there's neither. Hills are the reason that wind inland *isn't* as brutal as it is in flat coastal regions ...

[shootingstar]

I agree the bikeshare bike's weight tends to be in the wheels area, as related to part of the bike station's security system.

My hybrid that I have been using most daily for last few years where I live, is approx. 29 lbs. and I have 38 mm wide Schwable commuting tires @ 70 psi. My dahon folding bike is around 21 lbs. or less. It has an internal hub, plus front and back racks. (I know weight weenies criticize the internal hub system for this....) Both bikes I have each lifted, onto bus bike rack over the years.

Honest, with these chinook high winds that often push through, I like riding with my weighted panniers to ..stay upright on bike with the strong crosswinds depending how the route curves and turns.

[emily_in_nc]

FWIW, it seems to me that the heavier the bike, the *less* it's affected by wind. Maybe it just seems more miserable when you're going more slowly overall ... You're obviously less aerodynamic in an upright riding position, but that's riding position and not weight. With more weight, you've got better momentum, and your profile to the wind isn't affected by weight. In crosswinds, you'll be way more stable. And FWIW, it seems to me that wherever you are, you get either hills or wind, not sure there's anywhere where there's neither. Hills are the reason that wind inland *isn't* as brutal as it is in flat coastal regions ...

It's very true that you're less affected by wind on a heavy cruiser bike than on a light racing bike, but according to my DH who understands the physics of it all, that's because you're traveling much slower (which ultimately is mostly due to the weight of the bike but also your position on it). The slower you go, the less wind is a factor. Maybe that's why riding a cruiser bike here in windy Playa del Carmen works out pretty well for me. On a go-fast bike I'd probably wail about the wind like I always do in the US, but here it's a relatively minor factor.