Hello all,

Trying to research a bicycle for my 11 year old daughter, and am having a hard time. She is about 4'-8" tall, and an okay rider, and will typically be on paved trails, easy gravel trails and maybe single track.

We looked at Specialized Myka Step-Through. She liked it, but I can find no reviews on it. Any one know anything about it? Any recommendations on what to look for in a Bicycle?

Thank you

ALITE 40 | KHS Bicycles
here's another option

Do you recommend it? If so, why?

Think front suspension is worth getting, or is it just extra weight?

Thank you

The Specialized looks decent, certainly a worthy starter bike for an 11 year old. When my son was about 9 or 10 he was about your daughter's size. I bought a used Trek 800 from a LBS without suspension that worked just fine for 3 years until he outgrew it. I don't especially like suspension forks for casual riding, but I wouldn't consider it a deal breaker either.

I tend to think of front suspension as gimmicky, extra weight, one more component that can fail...

It might be useful, depending on where you daughter will ride it; but, I think the cons outweigh the negatives. If the fork doesn't have a lock out, it will be annoying to ride on a paved road, especially up any small hills. On a trail with reasonably large rocks, on the other hand, it's a godsend.

At least the Specialized will probably be of decent quality, what really scares me are the $200 dept store bikes with front suspension (and sometimes rear), which is why I use the term gimmicky; in that price range, it's practically a non-functioning part (not sure how much better Specialized fork is, if at all).

That said, it's nicer than any bike that I had at that age. I wouldn't hesitate to buy it for my daughter (if I had one).

Most-all brands (sold in professional bike shops) will have something like it ..

the suspension fork is part of the style..

When our son was that age, we got him a specialized vita, size and fit were great for him. He rode the bike about 2000 km in one season, including a 500 km sagged tour with us.
when he outgrew it, a bike shop swap had an older Japanese road bike, also fit him well. It was $90, replaced the tires and brake pads - it had down tube shifters, which took him a couple days to get comfortable with. Among the four bikes he's had, I think that was his favorite - about a season and a half before he outgrew it. He is riding a cx bike now, but wanted a steel frame bike with "lever shifters".

We sell this brand at the bike shop I work at on weekends ("will work for bike parts"). This is a solid reliable starter mountain bike. Unless you plan on riding hard rocky, rooty, rough terrain the suspension fork is just extra weight. Additionally I can't speak to the quality of the Specialized fork, but at that price point I would suspect something "low end".
Best of luck with your search, be sure to explain that what ever bike you buy is to be treated like a best friend and not abused, thrown around, or left out in the rain.
Pirk

I'm not a fan of suspension forks for casual riding but I don't think that it's something you should worry about either.

Low end suspension forks basically consist of a sliding tube and an elastomer spring. That's it. It's not a component that frequently fails or that demands much, if anything, in the way of maintenance.