Hi folks...I just purchased a 2016 Neko 18" so I guess this thread is for me. I'd post a photo but they are currently in Verizon Cloud and I am not sure how to get them here. Copy to Flickr and then link? I have a flickr account but haven't used it for a while.

I am 56, female, just shy of 5'8" with an inseam just shy of 33". I also tried a men's FX 20" but thought the Neko might be better for our riding conditions. I didn't try the DS, but looking at the photos, the standover doesn't seem all that different. My current bike is a 1971 Raleigh Sports, refurbished. It rides great and is so comfortable you could go 100 miles on it. As long as the road was relatively flat and you didn't want to go too fast. I nearly killed the pretty thing on Monday riding a 25 mile crushed gravel/paved trail with very steep hills and lots of washouts and horse-chipped sections of the crushed gravel part. And did I mention that the low gear slips?? My husband has a Specialized Expedition that is about 6 years old, so he had to put up with me slowing through the deep footing of the washouts and grinding slowly up the hills. So we decided to get another bike for me. My previous bike was a Schwinn Sierra "comfort" bike, purchased from an LBS. Can't remember the date, but it was a women's step through, not a swing through like the Sports. It is anything but comfortable. I've given it to my daughter for college. I didn't like the upright bars, it's considerably more upright than an old Sports, which has Northroad bars much closer to the seat in height. The saddle was awful and I didn't like the grip shifters. They were hard on my hands and tough to budge.

Took my Neko for its first ride this morning. 13 miles, which included a single track path with some serious ruts hidden in the grass, gravel, some paved path with a few buckles, and road. Not much elevation change, but some long slight incline, a short steep downhill with a bit of washout, railroad tracks, bridge and curbs. I didn't take my phone because I don't have a bag on the bike yet, but probably about 12 to 16 mph most of the time. It rides great, shifted mostly in the medium range, for me about medium 7 or 8 is easy on the gravel.

I had the bike shop replace the stem with one more angled so that I could bend my arms more. Changed the grips so that the long ridges of the OEM grips wouldn't put ridges in my hands as I blister easily. Had them put on an old used Brooks 66 we had at home, so they had to sell me a $10 seatpost since it wouldn't go on the OEM post. Have no idea why anyone would ride a seat with cushioning, but that's just me. I find cushioning uncomfortable for more than short distances. Got a water bottle holder and a kickstand, and put on an old bikerack.

Currently practicing swinging my leg over the back from the ground. You'll probably find this funny, but I've never had a bike with a bar. Next I'll have to practice the coasting mount and dismount. Hoping I can do this, because I am not very flexible, but I think I would like to learn in case I have to bail sometime.

Anyway, the bike is great and not heavy at all compared to an old steel bike!

I'd like to see about getting bar ends, I've never had them before, but I guess they must be useful. And maybe the computer and sensor. I've used map my walk for everything so far, the free version, not even map my ride. But I often start the workout before I leave and forget to pause it when I stop, so it's not all that accurate, especially if there are a lot of road crossings.