Our daughter had a 7 speed Specialized that worked great. We bought it used (aye, another craigslist advocate), and sold it when she outgrew it. Because it was a good quality bike the 2-3 years only cost us $20 (if memory serves) plus normal maintenance. Because she learned on geared bikes she has much better tempo and candence than most of her friends. Although she still won't stand up (never had to).