Bike for my girl... Help!

[Jaysin]

Ladies, I am stuck in a pickle and need your advice/help!

My girlfriend wants to get into biking, and I have decided to purchase her first bike for her. I told her that it would be smart to start out on a Hardtail, but she wants to get right into the squishy aspect of things.

She's a tidbit nervous right now, but with a bit of riding on some mellow stuff at first, she should progress along nicely.

She is 5'11, 170 pounds. (3/4 of that is boob, so recommend as well a nice upper body suit!:P)

What would you outfit her with? I was thinking of buying something like a L Fluid to start her off on....

Suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Jaysin

[Jonathan]

She needs to try some bikes at a shop that knows how to fit a bike and has bikes to ride. Every bike feels a bit different and what feels good for you may not for her.

[Smoke]

Fluid is a good call for the OK area. Also the Devinci Hectic. or the Brodie line, something like a Nemesis or similar.

Jonathon nailed it though. Go check out some reputable shops and build a relationship. It's her ride, not yours. Girls not only fit bikes differently, but usually approach the sport differently.

[sheffy]

Personally i think she would like it alot better if you bought that sled you were looking at and rip up Hunters Range with us......lol

[danielb]

My wife also falls into the nervous cautious beginner category and we recently upgraded to full suspension bikes from some fairly basic hardtails. She is now riding a Norco Six One and its done her confidence & technique a world of good so far, she'd have freaked out on a hardtail (used to ride a 06 Giant Yukon) on some of the stuff we've tried. I've got a Norco Six Two with an upgraded front fork, fox air something, same as the Six SE I think.

Dual suspension bikes are more forgiving and may be the better way to go with a really nervous beginner, as she'll probably gain more confidence and want to keep riding vs. learning on a hard tail (which would probably give better technique) would probably involve more falling which may put her off for good. So in my book better she has fun gets confidence and can work on her technique later rather than get the hardtail to get the technique only to be put off for good by the extra crashing involved...

One thing to watch out for though is the extra weight of a dual suspension bike can make man handling the bike when walking a section allot more tiring for new beginners who don't have allot of strength yet. It sounds silly but we tried Nicoles trail on Burnaby mountain a week or two back and I think we walked about half of it which didn't bother me but then I'm about 105 kg guy so my six two is a much lower % of my overall body weight (which makes it easier for me to carry) than my wife's who is much lighter than me, net result is she got totally knackered really quickly trying to walk her bike over/down things. All of this is a long winded way of saying get her a dual suspension bike but don't get her a monster freeride machine that's built like a tank and weighs a tonne as it will most likely frustrate the hell out of her, there is nothing more annoying than not being able to push a bike over an obstacle if your tired...

My 2c.

[DARTHYOGA]

A special thing about women who downhill is their patience and support when it comes to riding with all skill levels. Get her to post a ride or come along with the Muddbunnies and we'll get her confidence up.
Oh yeah, they might know of a good bike for her too.
www.muddbunnies.com

[Jaysin]

Appreciate it!

Thanks

[Zedbra]

Can't you just deflate a little air and tape that doll to your camel back?

[bunny]

i may be different than most "girle" riders, but i don't think it really matters what you buy her. she'll either love it or won't. i do see the validity in both suggestions of getting a hardtail so she gets good skills, and a dually so she gets confidence.
it comes down to what happens after the "learning phase".
if it's a passion it will flourish no matter how/what she starts with, if not pretty soon she'll be asking you to go to the ballet. :P
good luck to both of you!

[Nelson]

Can't you just deflate a little air and tape that doll to your camel back?

Alternatively you could just fill her with water and use her as a Camelback...

[jparkin]

I have always been a strong fan of learning on a hardtail
it teaches you how to pick the right lines and how to land stuff and everything

[J-Kwon]

I have always been a strong fan of learning on a hardtail
it teaches you how to pick the right lines and how to land stuff and everything

hardtail= more jiggle.

[enduramil]

Ladies, I am stuck in a pickle and need your advice/help!

My girlfriend wants to get into biking, and I have decided to purchase her first bike for her. I told her that it would be smart to start out on a Hardtail, but she wants to get right into the squishy aspect of things.

She's a tidbit nervous right now, but with a bit of riding on some mellow stuff at first, she should progress along nicely.

She is 5'11, 170 pounds. (3/4 of that is boob, so recommend as well a nice upper body suit!:P)

What would you outfit her with? I was thinking of buying something like a L Fluid to start her off on....

Suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Jaysin

This thread is useless without pic's.

But seriously,

Take her around to a couple of shops. See what's available that fits her and she likes. You might be lucky and be able to buy what she likes second hand, and save some money.

[smoochy]

i may be different than most "girle" riders, but i don't think it really matters what you buy her. she'll either love it or won't.

QFT - i went through the same thought processes last summer and concluded much the same.