The boss has been bitten by my Trailstar2 while it was in MTB guise. That’s now been reverted to polo form and I’m thinking of getting her sumat tidy as she was getting into family rides with the DH nutter 5yr old n XC-in training 7yr old girl…

What would you get yours? Given that she’s still pretending not to be that interested so wouldn’t allow a lot to be spent. (think how many shoes could’ve been bought for that much!)

No different to what I’d recommend as a first MTB to a mate, or to someone new to the sport, but looking to take it seriously.

Depends on your budget really.

depending on budget……..

the lighter the better , cheap bikes tend to be heavy and in my wifes case she found it hard to handle, steer, brake, lift out the car etc
so when i got her an xs lightweight hardtail and some second hand floats she found it much easier and fun!

Genesis Core appears to work for my lovely wife.

Just bought the wife a saracen x1 hybrid, she was after a bike to ride to the shops/gym and on pub rides on a sunday. Im impressed with the build quality and value for money. Brand new 2012 model from my lbs for 280 almost 100 quid off and only 50more than the appolo halfords equivelent.

Id have a look at there budget models. Im really impressed with what you can get for sub 300…

The ladies specific Carrera Kracken- comes in nice girly colours too.

I got a Decathlon RockRider for £190 5 years ago when I started mountain biking. I rattled it to bits within 12 months and was looking for something much better.

Second-hand.

We went for a Spesh Hardrock. Four years and a few upgrades later it’s still going strong.

Interesting – only one mention of laydee specific model… The difference is shorter TT and bit lower standover height only, isn’t it?

I have a cro-mo rigid hardrock that’s done everything from centuries to Gisburn black sections via kiddy-carting round central Manchester. It was out of action for a fee months while it was cannibalised, was like being reunited with a dear friend when resurrected. Good to know the newer models are still turning folk on to the joys of wheels B-)

One reads these cheaper toys have forks not worth riding on tho – at what point do they become fun/useful? I
went from rigid to Revelations so no experience of the mid range. The trailstar has decent On One cromo forksbbut she liked the squishy Recons.

Or I buy some forks for the TS n a new polo bike! I just think she’d feel the weight n poor climbing of the TS if she got up to bigger rides than the kids…

I guess budget would be £500 tops, BTW.

scott

The difference is shorter TT and bit lower standover height only, isn’t it?

It depends on the brand. Some only change the paint, graphics, and saddle. Others shorten the top tube length, mainly. Some brands go so far as lighter tubing, shorter cranks, lighter springs, narrower bars, smaller grips and more.

The bottom line is that she needs a bike that fits well, women specific or not.

We bought a merlin malt 2 secondhand a year ago and it’s been great. Light and easy to ride with decent spec. Merlin still selling these new for a very competitive price.
R

We got a ggod deal on a Specialized Myka for Mrs Gti and she liked the comfort. But once we got out on the trail and into real riding conditions she grew to hate it; it was heavy and slow and the tyres dragged and the upright riding position made it a nightmare in any headwind. Then she tried a road bike……

Try a Carrera fury always get good reviews for budget. You could always stick better forks in when you feel the need and at that budget it does give room for improvements. A mate got one as his first mtb he did Gisburn and lakes on it now he’s changed and his wife rides it.

What height is she?

Got my missus a Speacialized Hardrock disc..just the job

I picked up an entry level alu Kona from fleabay (ex hire bike), and then upgraded and lightened everything with bits from the shed and classifieds, using the parts from the Kona for my hack/town/child carrying bike..

Mrs yunki also put a bit of effort into colour coordinating grips/pedals and saddle etc..

My GF got a Womens’ Specific Design (WSD) Specialized and it seems perfect for her. I actually think it’s more important for women which first mountain bike they get as the sport can be quite awful (as we found out!) if you just try and force them onto a men’s mountain bike. The cockpit is all wrong as they have narrower shoulders, longer legs relative to men but a shorter reach. Check out the WSD models from different manufacturers as they are really well-made and well-suited bikes. Specialized and Trek I know do them.

Keep your budget to about £300

Got my missius one a while ago frame is a good basis for upgrades, does the job for a beginner.

Keep your budget to about £300

Risky as if the bike is sh*t (which they often are at this level) she probably will hate it! My first bike was a Carera, but 6 months later (fed up with the weight and rubbish brakes) I spent £1000 on a Rockhopper.

For many woman female specific frames are a lot better due to the shorter cockpit, but I am 5’9″ and find mens bikes fit me a lot better. Be worth her trying a few frames if she hasnt ridden before.

Womens specific bikes aren’t the be all and end all. The best fitting bikes I have ever owned (and still do) are my Cotic Souls/Soda, which are tailored to me. Previous to that I had a Specialized FSR Era (Women’s version of the Epic) and still couldn’t get a correct fit. You may have to swap out a few components like saddle/grips if it’s not a ‘girly bike’ but it’s worth it if the bike fits well.

If you can get a half decent second hand bike with half decent forks I reckon it’ll make the experience a lot more fun in the long run. I remember my cheapy hardrock I first had and the forks may as well have been rigid.

As has been said, if you can get some test rides that would possibly help narrow down the bike to go for, or at least the ideal geometry.

I am a bit skeptical about women-specific designs. Not all women are the same shape! I have broad shoulders, long arms, and short legs. Go with what fits!

I recently got an orange diva HT for £300 2nd hand on eBay as a first bike for my wife. 2 yr old model that looked like it had been for a few road rides and not much else (having watched eBay for several months for the right bike/price there seems to be a high turnover of bikes bought by enthusiastic boys for not so keen girls that end up on eBay after only a few token outings then a long time unused in storage)…..great geometry/smaller grips/shorter cranks for my shorter wife….she was more appreciative of the “disco blue” colour and the name! Perhaps overspeced for the blue trails max she will be riding but she loves it and it’s convertered her from a non rider into a ride requester. Result.

Wow you guys are awesome, thanks everyone!

She’s 5’1″, inside leg 30″ I tink. Petite lady shaped, whatever dimensions they be!

I hear the test ride thing, just not sure how to go about getting a go. Maybe a trip to Grizedale is necessary 😉

I built her a sweet wee Peugeot roadie and she loves it but I can’t see her getting into more than about-town use on it. I think she’ll end up more into MTBn, if only coz It’s so fun seeing how much the weeuns buzz off it! So remit is to keep up with enthusiastic under-10s, perhaps red routes pushing the steeper or gnarlier sections in a year or two. Bearing in mind the boy doesn’t seem to grow n will likely be on his new Ridgeback MX16 SS for a good 2yrs. (changed the freewheel to 22t as Ridgeback seem to think a 5yr old will get torque on a 36-16 ratio!)

Fleabay rationale is v sensible! We’re able to get cyclescheme tho so all bikes at 30%off… Still couldn’t convince her to go more than 500 I reckon, plus I’m hoping to lobby for a Cotic X when I’ve paid off the 456!

My friend got herself a Kona Lisa HT, I was quite impressed with the spec as I thought the a “woman’s specific” bike may have been a bit of marketing bull,