Originally Posted by
chelleshock
Hey guys, this is my first post here, wasn't sure if this was the right forum so please forgive me if it's not!
So we recently went carless, we're getting a scooter at some point but right now, it's bike and bus and the occasional car2go. My current bike is a single speed cruiser, which just isn't cutting it, but I do like how comfortable the ride is and the upright position, so I've been looking at bikes similar to that. I was looking at the Electra Townie, the 7 or 21 gear version, but when searching I saw someone on here say that their wife was too short for it, which probably means that I am, too. (Since I'm all of a whopping 5'2".) I'm planning on checking one out in person before too long, so I'll know if I can ride one or not, but I wanted to see if y'all had any recommendations for similar styled bikes (in roughly the same price range) that will fit someone as short as me. I was thinking about maybe the Dahon Briza, but wanted to get other recs too.
Oh, and I work at home, so this isn't really a commuting issue. We're getting ready to move to a pretty bike friendly neighborhood where there's a huge grocery store like, 3 miles away, so this doesn't need to be a long-distance thing. Just a bike that's good for riding 5-6 miles at a time, that's comfortable, and pretty, because I'm very picky.
Thank you!
As you say you'll do, I suggest you try out several of the cruisers at your local bike shop; this also should give you an idea of where you fit well, in terms of sizing. While you're there, also check out a few non-cruisers, to see whether that's a design in which you have interest.
The thing with sizes is, the choices are quite limited, yet the variety, in terms of comfort, is large. The smallest bike one manufacturer makes — let's say it's a 50" — could be very different in how it suits you compared with how another's 50" does.