Bike recommendations for my wife please

[NickTB]

Hi all.

I'm after some recommendations for a new bike for my wife. She's fit (Has run the London marathon 4 times and various half marathons) but has a knee problem so has reluctantly given up running. I suggested cycling and her being her she's just signed up for the London-Brighton run in September, even though she doesn't have a bike!
Criteria is as follows:
A fast hybrid, as she isn't comfortable with drop bars
Lightweight as she's only 5.6 and anything heavy soon defeats her
Preferably thumb shifters as she will struggle with triggers
Budget of £600 max
Preferably new, as she will want the warranty that comes with the bike.
So, over to you. Any ideas will be gratefully received!

Thanks,
Nick

 

[Wafer]

No expert on womens bikes but some usual suspects for that price would include
https://www.evanscycles.com/cannondale-quick-4-2016-women-s-hybrid-bike-EV239447
http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/products/whyte-carnaby-womens-16?bct=browse/bicycles/womens-bikes
http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/pro...port-disc-16?bct=browse/bicycles/womens-bikes

All of them would be at the road bikey end of the hybrid spectrum.
The carbon fork of the Cannondale would make a difference, but I'm not sure if that one takes mudguards if they are wanted.
Couple of them come with chunkier tyres, which may be fine, but should take something thinner too.

 

[jefmcg]

Which L2B is she doing? The BHF road one is in June, but the off road one is in September. I imagine there are other on road L2B in September.

Aren't thumb and trigger shifters the same? I thought the options on flat bar were thumb triggers or gripshift.

(while am there, "only 5.6"? Assuming that's 5' 6" then she is quite a bit above average height. If it's her age, probably she married a bit young )

 

[Kajjal]

If your wife is looking to do longer distance rides then drop bars are alot more comfortable for many people and more efficient . My wife took a while to get used to them coming from mountain biking but it was worth it. Just depends on where you ride and personal preference.

 

[MikeW-71]

How about this:
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/thrive.2/24978/90601/#specifications

They are a flat-bar road bike, reasonably lightweight, I am guessing circa 10kg

They have bar-ends which give other hand positions. Flat bar shifters are usually a thumb lever one way and a trigger for the other, but I think SRAM do a double-tap shifter with just the thumb lever. The downside is not that many manufacturers seem to fit them.

 

[HLaB]

She'll have to be very fit to get a decent bike for her

A serious answer, you may look at the Spesh Vita the women's equivalent of the Sirrus IIRC

 

[NickTB]

Which L2B is she doing? The BHF road one is in June, but the off road one is in September. I imagine there are other on road L2B in September.

Aren't thumb and trigger shifters the same? I thought the options on flat bar were thumb triggers or gripshift.

(while am there, "only 5.6"? Assuming that's 5' 6" then she is quite a bit above average height. If it's her age, probably she married a bit young )

It's the ride4cancer run. She's roped me in now!

 

[jefmcg]

http://www.bike4cancer.org/london-to-brighton-bike-ride

Yup, on the road

If your wife is looking to do longer distance rides then drop bars are alot more comfortable for many people and more efficient . My wife took a while to get used to them coming from mountain biking but it was worth it. Just depends on where you ride and personal preference.

If she is going to ride the way that she runs, marathon/half marathons are probably about equivalent to centuries and half centuries. I'm not saying they are exactly the same - I feel running a marathon is harder than riding a 100 miles, but the ride would take a fit athlete longer. She'll probably want to move to a road bike eventually. You can get cross brakes on road bikes, Giant fit them as standard on the Defy/Avail range. That gives her all the advantages of drop bars, but with brakes where she is used to them so it's not so scary.

You could get last years avail 2 and have change, for example (I'm 5' 6" and on a small avail)

https://www.google.co.uk/shopping/p...d=0ahUKEwjGtJfE9rPLAhXGqxoKHZyaDKoQ8wIIlgMwAA

 

[NickTB]

I'm liking the look of that jefmcg. Of course, she needs to approve too!

 

[jefmcg]

I'm liking the look of that jefmcg. Of course, she needs to approve too!

That's the 2012 avail 2 as my avatar I'll hit 25,000km sometime this week.

Riding around town, I tend to stay on the tops. I really must practice using the traditional brakes.

Lots of test rides, find a bike she loves. It's really hard buying your first bike, because you don't know what sort of cyclist you are going to be.

Of course, you can get to Brighton on just about anything. This is me arriving in Brighton after leaving south west London, my first long ride. And the gear cable needed replacing, so not only was it very upright and 16" wheels, but one gear! I bet your wife is fitter than I was then; I've never been marathon fit.

 

[NickTB]

That picture is amazing! Thanks for taking the time to reply. We'll be out this weekend trying out as many as possible

 

[wheresthetorch]

while am there, "only 5.6"? Assuming that's 5' 6" then she is quite a bit above average height.

I assumed it was metres.

 

[jefmcg]

 

[Pale Rider]

Gearing needs to be considered - the bikes on your shortlist and the suggestions have everything from a 1X set-up to a mountain triple.

As a marathon runner, Mrs TB must be in a better position than most new cyclists to cope with a higher geared bike.

But there have been complaints of the compact doubles on CX bikes being inadequate for general distance cycling.

The wife might get away with a compact double, but I suggest she avoids the 1X on the Whyte.

The safest choice would be a triple.

On the topic of drop bars, one of the things I didn't like was the end of the drop got in the way, particularly setting off and dismounting.

That may have been pilot error, but it has since been pointed out to me there's no reason not to chop an inch or two off the end of the drop.

Very few riders use that bit, and getting rid of it would give extra clearance.

 

[NickTB]

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to contribute. We went out on Saturday, and ended up buying this in Decathlon.

She has a ride around the store and felt really comfortable on it. And when I checked the spec I really thought it was excellent value.

Collecting it tomorrow, and will take her out on Saturday morning for a test ride