Spec the Wife a new Bike

Joined
25 Sep 2011
Posts
3,861
Looking to get the Wife a new bike and thought some of you knowledgeable folks might have some recommendations. On a scale on 1-100, she has roughly 5 stamina and currently on her very old, barely working MTB she can't make it up hills and is knackered very quickly. I'd love to get her an electric bike but budget doesn't stretch that far considering she's probably only going to use it a handful of times a year.

We normally go on rides around the forest, which often end up down big bumpy hills and tracks so think sticking with a MTB would be best.

Budget max £850
Hydraulic Brakes would be nice
Front Suspension atleast
Having a single set of gears would be beneficial (don't know the technical name for this! :D)

Any thoughts would be appreciated!
 
Associate
Joined
26 Sep 2013
Posts
326
Location
London
gender for the bike normally means:

-colour
-saddle (women ones tend to be abit wider)
-handlebar (women ones tend to abit shorter but not always)
-crank length (women ones tend to abit shorter, but very very rarely this is offered)
-offer in 3XS, XXS and XS (most men bikes dont offer in XS or smaller)
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Jun 2007
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9,045
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extremes.spacious.indelible
I don't really have any experience with womens MTB's as the Mrs. is more into horses (yawn), but some googling has come up with:

If you want full sus for the comfort you've got the Jamis Dakar:

https://www.evanscycles.com/jamis-d...awin&utm_campaign=169609&utm_medium=Affiliate

However under £1000 you're generally better off going for a hardtail as you'll get a better spec for your money:

Good fork, 1x10 gears and Shimano hydraulic brakes.
https://www.tredz.co.uk/.Marin-Wild...ns-Mountain-Bike-2019-Hardtail-MTB_129700.htm

Best bet is do some googling "best womens MTB" etc for some ideas, then get out to some shops and have a ride around on some :)
 
Associate
Joined
29 Jun 2007
Posts
662
Got the missus one of these :

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/elops-900-e-step-over-classic-electric-bike-id_8379380.html

Was originally only going to spend £249 on the non electric version , but unfortunately the nice bloke at Decathalon :( let her have a go on the £999 electric version.

It has front suspension Brooks type saddle and swapped the tyres ot to Scwalbe Land Cruiser 45's so happily bounces along rough trails.
Cable Disc brakes but another £50 would sort that out although they do the job well enough.
 
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Soldato
Joined
5 Jun 2007
Posts
9,045
Location
extremes.spacious.indelible
Got the missus one of these :

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/elops-900-e-step-over-classic-electric-bike-id_8379380.html

Was originally only going to spend £249 on the non electric version , but unfortunately the nice bloke at Decathalon :( let her have a go on the £999 electric version.

It has front suspension Brooks type saddle and swapped the tyres ot to Scwalbe Land Cruiser 45's so happily bounces along rough trails.
Cable Disc brakes but another £50 would sort that out although they do the job well enough.

Looks like a great little bike!

I’d almost be tempted to stick with the mechanical disc brakes, cheaper and easier to maintain and will probably do the job just fine :)
 
Soldato
Joined
30 Sep 2003
Posts
15,875
Location
Norwich
Got the missus one of these :

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/elops-900-e-step-over-classic-electric-bike-id_8379380.html

Was originally only going to spend £249 on the non electric version , but unfortunately the nice bloke at Decathalon :( let her have a go on the £999 electric version.

It has front suspension Brooks type saddle and swapped the tyres ot to Scwalbe Land Cruiser 45's so happily bounces along rough trails.
Cable Disc brakes but another £50 would sort that out although they do the job well enough.
Funny how better halves and spending money on bikes go hand in hand! Just ordered this for my wife https://www.cyclerepublic.com/haibike-sduro-cross-1-0-womens-electric-hybrid-bike-2019.html Still... at least I won't get any more grief over my bikes as it cost more than my four put together :D

I'm confident it will do the job for our type of riding (road, forest/gravel paths and trail centre "blue" routes) and will allow me to enjoy our rides together a bit more without instantly grinding to a halt at the first incline.
 
Associate
Joined
1 Jun 2007
Posts
818
Get the bizango and change the tyres to slicks.. it will go up hills really easily!

ps. Only the new 2018 Red version has the 1x chainset at the front.
 
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