Mens versus Womens Bicycles

[Revoltingest]

Never knew women and men had different bicycles!!!!
Isn't that sexist?

Since men & women have different proportions for arm length, leg length & torso length, wouldn't it make sense that bike frames should be designed to fit them optimally? Again, this is more important for performance/competition bikes, where such differences give on an edge.

 

[Smart_Guy]

Since men & women have different proportions for arm length, leg length & torso length, wouldn't it make sense that bike frames should be designed to fit them optimally? Again, this is more important for performance/competition bikes, where such differences give on an edge.

Don't even among men themselves and women themselves exist those with those differences? A good bicycle should be adjustable to any creature...

Wait, men and women have different arm length?

 

[Revoltingest]

Don't even among men themselves and women themselves exist those with those differences? A good bicycle should be adjustable to any creature...

Wait, men and women have different arm length?

There are enuf differences betwixt guys & gals (ratios of arm, torso & leg lengths) that competitors want demands caused manufacturers to make different frame lines. Using components to make these adjustments could work, but in the ultra-competitive cycling world, they'll do anything to save a few grams or get that perfect fit.. Not all men & women are so different, but the great many are. Some people still need custom frames. And Bike Friday (in Oregon) even makes bikes for dwarves, whose needs are very different from children of the same height.

 

[Marisa]

My son and I are wondering..Does anyone know why the bar is straight across on a mans bike..and on a ladies its angeled down?

Physically I cant see why a woman would need the angle..or vice versa why a man would need the bar there..

Is this a sexist thing?

Love

Dallas

Pain maximization.

 

[Smart_Guy]

There are enuf differences betwixt guys & gals (ratios of arm, torso & leg lengths) that competitors want demands caused manufacturers to make different frame lines. Using components to make these adjustments could work, but in the ultra-competitive cycling world, they'll do anything to save a few grams or get that perfect fit.. Not all men & women are so different, but the great many are. Some people still need custom frames. And Bike Friday (in Oregon) even makes bikes for dwarves, whose needs are very different from children of the same height.

Dude, I'm only trolling

 

[Revoltingest]

Dude, I'm only trolling

And that matters to me?
I'll take any excuse to pontificate!

 

[Smart_Guy]

And that matters to me?
I'll take any excuse to pontificate!

Ponytail? Come one, don't be a troll

 

[Revoltingest]

Ponytail? Come one, don't be a troll

How can I not be a troll?
I live below the Mackinac Bridge!

 

[metis]

When our youngest daughter was in elementary school, and a friend of hers came down with mononucleosis, she told us that her friend got it from "kissing bicycle seats".

Our daughter now is a nurse.

 

[suncowiam]

Never knew women and men had different bicycles!!!!

Isn't that sexist?

We have different bathrooms, different cloths...

But where are the feminists concerning this discussion?

 

[Smart_Guy]

We have different bathrooms, different cloths...

Hey that's cool, so do we

 

[Sakeenah]

My son and I are wondering..Does anyone know why the bar is straight across on a mans bike..and on a ladies its angeled down?

Physically I cant see why a woman would need the angle..or vice versa why a man would need the bar there..

Is this a sexist thing?

Love

Dallas

They designed the lady bike without the bar so that women could ride a bycicle with a skirt.
I grew up in a country where there's a bycicle culture.. You'll probably see more bycicles then cars in the morning. I think i went to school with the car a couple of times and thats primary,secondary and college.

In Holland most women still use the dames fiets (lady bike) because its more comfortable when commuting..and you can wear skirt or trousers.
But the herenfiets ( gentlemen's bike) is stronger because of the bar..and goes faster. So as a child I defenitly used to prefer the bycicle with the bar in the middle..but when I got older the lady bike because it was more 'stylish'

 

[Revoltingest]

My Breezer Uptown is pretty fast.
Improvements.....
- Turned the handlebars upside down for a more aerodynamic (but still comfy) position.
- Put a Thudbuster seatpost to handle rough roads.
- Use a Terry Fly seat (performance type).
- Install pogies for winter riding (down to -5F).

 

[Sakeenah]

cool bike...I get homesick when I see bicycles : )

 

[Penumbra]

My son and I are wondering..Does anyone know why the bar is straight across on a mans bike..and on a ladies its angeled down?

Physically I cant see why a woman would need the angle..or vice versa why a man would need the bar there..

Is this a sexist thing?

Love

Dallas

It's mostly a marketing thing at this point. So when a woman is in a bike store, the salesperson can come out with this ladies bike and talk about how it's designed just for her.

Originally, bikes for women had the angled-down bar so that it's easier and less revealing to put a skirted leg over it, at the cost of making the frame of the bike weaker. But who rides bikes while wearing a skirt these days?

Bikes for women today have a stylistic slope on the bar as like a nod to the old designs, and they often come in more stereotypical female colors.

Wait a minute ...maybe its based on average height?..So she can mount and dismount without hitting the bar???...But then why is his straight across?..Is a straight acorss bar more aero dynamic?

Love

Dallas

Not really. If you go to a professional place to buy a good bike, they will have you sit on the bike to make sure it fits you, whether you're a woman or a man, including for tall women and short men. Both mens and womens bikes come in multiple frame sizes, and other components can be customized too.

The straight bar is stronger.

 

[Penumbra]

But where are the feminists concerning this discussion?

I ride a "men's" mountain bike.

Because uh... down with the system?

 

[Revoltingest]

Some male-v-female bike differences are style, but some are rooted in function.
Some resources.....
The Difference Between Men and Women’s Road Bikes
What Is the Difference Between Men's & Women's Bicycles? | LIVESTRONG.COM

Be an informed consumer.
Know what you want from the bike.
Get advice if it's useful.

Btw, my Breezer (fancy commuting bike) has no top bar, & it's a guy's bike.
Why?
Riding in winter clothing with low bars & a high seat, it's much easier to get on & off.