Getting a push bike

Schizophonic

Schizophonic

Schizophonic

Soldato
Joined
27 Dec 2006
Posts
2,894
Location
Northampton
Looking to loose a bit of weight and for the weather to get better. I'm looking to get a bike to get around those shorter places that don't need a car.

I've been told to look out for Carerra or Spealized (sp) brands. Going to the first place to look I visited Halford and through that a size 16 would be the best frame for me (I'm only 5 foot 4) and when I sat on a size 16 frame bike it felt comfortable and something I could use easily.

I went back to the Halfords website and Carerra start from Size 18 men and 16 on women, would a woman's bike really be a bad idea?
 
What's your budget?

I doubt you'd need to buy a woman's bike, and personally I wouldn't. You should be able to find a man's bike with a sloping top tube that will fit you.
 
I wouldn't necessarily just rely on Halfords for your bike, if you head into your local bike shop they should be happy to spend a bit of time with you and help you decide what is most suitable for you.

I wouldn't bother with a womans bike unless you really can't find a mans bike in a suitable size but it's most important to be comfortable so go with what feels best.

It depends on your budget but if you're spending less than £300 I'd still avoid full suspension bikes and probably also avoid disc brakes as there are usually some compromises on other components to fit them in despite the fact that cheap disc brakes don't tend to outperform good v-brakes by any significant amount but often weigh more.
 
Where will you be taking the bike? If you are going to do all road riding or on good, solid paths then you could consider a cheap road bike. I have a carrera Virtuosso and it's fine for my use which is occasional commuting. I have made the mistake of taking it on some non concrete paths now and then - if it rains you'll really struggle with the thin tyres. If you aren't too confident on the bike then a road bike may also not be the best of starts, they are not particularly comfortable to ride and will feel quite frisky (for want of a better word) at first. Even a cheap road bike like mine will be a lot lighter than the equivalent hybrid/mountain bike though.

If you have any reasonable country parks / lanes etc nearby that you could take the bike and would be interested in doing so then either a hybrid with reasonably thick tyres or mountain bike with hardtail / no suspension would be worth looking at. I reckon you should find a local bike shop and have a chat with them as already suggested, most of these guys are happy to talk to you and will give genuine advice regardless of whether you purchase something that day or at all - whereas halfrauds are very much hit and miss and will try to push a sale there and then.

I also have a giant Rock ( I think, haven't used it in a good while) that I bought 4/5 years ago and it's a perfectly good starter mountain bike. It was very cheap (under £200 from memory). Something like that or a second hand bike could be a good way to discover if you're really into it or not.

As above I can't see any reason for going for a womans bike unless you can't get comfy on the mens versions - you'll have much more choice this way
 
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