After making a few trips to the grocery store on my Raleigh Passage, I started to yearn for an old school ladies' bike with a step through frame.

Throwing my leg over the panniers and seat of my (way too big) Raleigh was a disaster just waiting to happen.

I test rode some bikes at Performance and Gregg's on Saturday and pretty much settled on the Womens' Townie 21, except that I wanted the 700C tires which would've been a special order and a few weeks' wait.

On a whim, I searched Craigslist for "Townie" and lo and behold, some woman had JUST posted her Townie 21 700C Womens bike, ridden only twice! A new one is $450 and she was asking $425. We settled on $400 so I feel like I got a good deal. She bought it earlier this month at REI so it's barely used and in perfect condition. :)

I can't wait for my next trip to the grocery store now!

You not only got what you wanted at a discount, but you saved sales tax too! Good deal. Enjoy.

Sweet! :thumb: You'll have to write up a little review when you've ridden it more. Many people come to BF and ask about Townies but many of our members have no basis for comparison. I think it's a really great bike for some specific applications, but besides riding one around the block, I don't have much real-world experience with them.

My wife's in love with hers. She calls it "life-changing", and is suddenly riding 5-10 miles per day!
(Actually she calls it Tallulah; the fact of owning it is what's been life-changing ;))

Pics!!! Or it didn't happen. :D

Here's a little Townie review: I recently changed my commute bike to a 700c Townie with the 8-speed Nexus IGH. I have a very short commute of a touch under 2 miles each way, and I've found it to have a fair amount of pep, honestly. I got it about three months ago, and I also put in about 30 miles a day on the weekends with it, and maybe another 5 miles or so running errands after an average workday. No long-term discomfort from the seating position. It does seem to work the tops of my upper legs more than other bikes, but it's a pretty quick adjustment.

I'm not super mechanically inclined, so I was shopping around for bikes that came with an 8+ speed IGH and fender/rack setups and lights(or could easily accomodate that stuff). I test-rode stuff like the Swobo with the 9 speed IGH and the Bianchi Milano. Ultimately, I decided that I really like that upright seating position on the Townie. My wife has a Dutch bike (a Gazelle), and there's just something psychologically satisfying about looking at your surroundings head on and upright instead of leaning into everything.

I'm not an ultra-fast rider, but I was looking for something with a little more top end than the Breezer Freedom I've been riding for the last few years, which has a 3 speed IGH and a pretty soft chainwheel/cog ratio. I can say with a few months of experience that the Townie is a fairly peppy bike. Obviously wind slows you down in such an upright position. That aside, my cruising speed is pushing 20 mph now, and I can sprint over 25 without too much trouble. I'm "keeping up" with other bike traffic now, anyway, and passing a fair share of folks on road bikes. On the Freedom, almost everybody was considerably faster than me even when I was spinning like a madman in 3rd. But of course any number of bikes would have a little more oomph than that bike--I'm just saying that the 8 speed Townie can hold its own nicely considering how un-roadbikeish its design is.

Hills aren't as bad as many say--you don't stand up, but you get plenty of leverage by pulling against the handlebars that gives you a similar feel. I'm digging it so far. I'm pretty close to car-free at this point, and I run 95 percent of my errands and all of my commuting by bike. It's getting me what I wanted--a little more top end zip, and that hard-to-describe feeling from sitting more upright. So I'll be turning my Breezer into a "winter bike" for ice and snow riding. Next purchase in a year or two will probably be a "utility bike" like the Kona Ute or Yuba Mundo or Long John or something.

Pics!!! Or it didn't happen. :D

If she ever gets back! She's out on another ride today.

OK, let's see if I can get this to work...


http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d920b3127ccec4d770da80af00000040O08AYt2jZi0Ztwe3nwE/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/


And here it is in relation to my "waaaaay too big" Raliegh.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d920b3127ccec4d718ee80af00000040O08AYt2jZi0Ztwe3nwE/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d920b3127ccec4d6112f618e00000040O08AYt2jZi0Ztwe3nwE/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/



http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47b8d920b3127ccec4d7720b807f00000040O08AYt2jZi0Ztwe3nwE/cC/f%3D0/ps%3D50/r%3D0/rx%3D480/ry%3D320/

First order of business was getting a rack at Gregg's and switching all of my gadgets from the Raleigh to the Townie. I love it so far! I'll post more once I've made a few more trips with it. My riding is pretty easy - the Interurban Trail in Shoreline is my main drag - and I can easily hit Safeway, Central Market, and Top Foods for my grocery shopping, plus it's a nice leisurely ride. :-)

Let's see?
1) A new bike usually comes with the first service and small adjustment free to original purchaser.
2)You will now most-likely have to pay $50 to $75 (first service) for it unless you can work/adjust it yourself.
3)Manufactures warranties are only good to the original purchaser. Unlikely, but what are you going to do if the frame develops a crack?

I only pay 1/2 the MSRP for something used that doesn't have a transferable warranty.
I'd say you paid $175.00 too much for the like new but USED bike.
Only my opinion.

After making a few trips to the grocery store on my Raleigh Passage, I started to yearn for an old school ladies' bike with a step through frame.

Throwing my leg over the panniers and seat of my (way too big) Raleigh was a disaster just waiting to happen.

I test rode some bikes at Performance and Gregg's on Saturday and pretty much settled on the Womens' Townie 21, except that I wanted the 700C tires which would've been a special order and a few weeks' wait.

On a whim, I searched Craigslist for "Townie" and lo and behold, some woman had JUST posted her Townie 21 700C Womens bike, ridden only twice! A new one is $450 and she was asking $425. We settled on $400 so I feel like I got a good deal. She bought it earlier this month at REI so it's barely used and in perfect condition. :)

I can't wait for my next trip to the grocery store now!

Let's see?
1) A new bike usually comes with the first service and small adjustment free to original purchaser.
2)You will now most-likely have to pay $50 to $75 (first service) for it unless you can work/adjust it yourself.
3)Manufactures warranties are only good to the original purchaser. Unlikely, but what are you going to do if the frame develops a crack?

I only pay 1/2 the MSRP for something used that doesn't have a transferable warranty.
I'd say you paid $175.00 too much for the like new but USED bike.
Only my opinion.

do you actually like pissing in other peoples cheerios?

:rolleyes:

I think it looks cool...
Enjoy your new ride.