davis26

Hi, Im a 26 year old female. 5ft3 / 5ft4.

Me -
Little/no experience of road biking before.
Will be used mainly on cycle paths/trails/road. No real off road element.
Fitness levels, fairly high. attend high intensity spin classes 3-4 times a week, but i am fully aware that riding outside will be a completely different and challenging experience!


After weeks of research I was almost ready to buy and then came across the forum which has made me question my original decision (which is good, i want to make the right choice)...

I want to buy within the next couple of days, I am down to the following bikes...

* Specialized VITA
* Specialized VITA sport
* Specialized VITA elite .... I know practically the same bike but upgraded components as you go up... but.... will i really feel the difference between the base model compared with the elite? Im prepared to pay the exta if so.

After reading some threads on here, the cannondale Quick 4 and Quick 5 are also options.

What would you go for?

I have emailed the only local (ish) supplier to see if they would have my size in the above so i can see them in the flesh, but any advice regarding the above bikes (re spec / reviews) would be most appreciated.

Many thanks in advance

SlimRider

Hey there Davis26!

Of the bicycles that you've listed, I'd go with the Vita Elite from Specialized. I'd pretty much stay away from a suspended fork, at that price point. Also, if you're not really dealing with a rough terrain, with a bunch of bumpy dirt trails, the extra moving parts in the fork, just aren't worth the headache. Therefore, skip the Quick CX's! A Cannondale Bad Boy 9 might be more worth your while.

The only other bikes that I would suggest at your approximate price point would be the Jamis Coda Comp Femme for Ladies. Also the Signature Schwinn Sporterra Comp or the * Sporterra Sport, for Ladies.

They all come with similar componentry (Alivio) at more or less equivalent prices. The Schwinn is a really sweet deal at more than a hundred bucks less. However, I can assure you, it's a great bike!

Specialized Vita Elite = $810

Jamis Coda Comp Femme = $775

Ladies Schwinn Sporterra Comp = $660

* Ladies Schwinn Sporterra Sport = $495

Cannondale Bad Boy 9 = $800

Good Luck!

- Slim

PS.

* Alivio is good and reliable entry-level componentry. It's present on all of the above. That's including the Schwinn Sporterra Sport at $495!

jbchybridrider 

All I can add is get the bests you can afford without going broke and left thinking I wish I spent a bit more for that.
You could also look at whats kicking around second hand thats hardly been used you might find something way better than you could afford new because bikes devalue very fast from new. Just a suggestion and good luck.

davis11

Thank you both for your replies. I did look at the cannondale 2012 bad girl. And do like the appearance. What are the key differences between this and the vita elite ( sorry I don't have much knowledge of components yet) but I saw the elite as more of a road bike and the bad girl as a Mtb?

davis11

I will be buying my bike on a cycle scheme from work so from the better bike brands people have mentioned I'm limited to cannondale, giant, specialized, Felt and rayleigh.

The cx4 looks a nice bike and so does the trail sl5.

I really can't decide on what would be most suited for me because i don't fully understand the specs. I have a list of ;

Vita elite 2012
2012 cannondale bad girl 3
Quick cx3 2012 women's
Giant escape rx2 2012 women's

contango 

If you're looking at the cycle-to-work scheme read the small print carefully to figure out just who owns what and when. I've heard a few stories of people who made all their payments on the bike only to find they still didn't own it, and by the time they had made the balancing payment to buy it outright they'd have been better off just buying the thing in the first place. I have a vague recollection (and I know this is anecdotal evidence over the internet, so put whatever weight on it you want) of one friend who reckoned he'd have been better off just buying the bike on his credit card and paying it off at the same rate.

If you go into the bike shop wielding pound notes (or a plastic equivalent) you can probably get yourself a bit of a discount, or some accessories thrown in or discounted, or similar. From what I hear if you're buying with a cycle to work voucher you pay full list price for the bike and any accessories.

contango 

In terms of the specifications, in very simplistic terms each component on the bike will come in a range of price/quality points. So you can get the entry level components that will work perfectly well but are likely to be heavier, slower to change gear etc. Or you can get the high level components that weigh a lot less, shift gear much faster etc.

The key question for you to decide is where you want to be on that price/performance curve. If you were racing you'd want to be looking at a lightweight bike with high end components. If you're riding for fun you can get away with much lower grade components, and if you're riding for fun then the chances are the top-end components would be a bad thing to buy, on the basis they cost more and require more ongoing maintenance. It's much like the way cars work - if you buy a Ferrari you get the insane performance and the drop-dead looks of the car but if you buy a Ford you don't have to pay someone silly money every couple of months to service it.

When I bought my bike I hadn't cycled at all for 25-odd years. The guy at my local bike shop pointed me towards a stronger frame (I weighed slightly over 20 stone at the time, so needed something I wouldn't break) and said that if I wanted to buy something with top-end components he'd gladly sell it to me but I'd most likely be wasting my money.

Depending on just what kind of bike you're looking at, take a look at how the controls operate. My mountain bike has gear shifters where the forefinger pulls one lever and the thumb pushes another. A friend recently bought a bike where his thumb operates both controls. Personally I prefer the two-way shifters my bike uses. Both work, it's just down to whether you have a preference for one over the other.

jsdavis

The Cannondale Quicks are rigid bikes with alloy or carbon forks.

Pendergast

How does the price of that Giant compare with the Vita Elite?

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/....w/9320/49926/

https://www.specialized.com/gb/gb/bc/...name=Multi+Use

davis11

Very little. £40 between the escape rx2 and vita elite. The escape being the slightly more expensive

BigRedNole

I just went through the same thing and finally purchased yesterday. I found that LBS were hit or miss depending on the salesperson. My experiences:

Performance Bike: EXTREMELY hit or miss on the salesperson. I did get one excellent one that walked me through all of their options, opinions, my needs and what I was looking to get out of it. The problem is they had limited stock and pushed you to look for what you want online at home instead of going over it online at the store. Still a lot of good options. If they had the GT Transeo 2.0 in my size, I would have bought it.

Jamis dealer: The sales guy I got was in a rush to get out to class I think and probably the reason my first visit was horrible. I talked with owner yesterday for about 30 minutes. Jamis bikes come with all the bells and whistles at a lower price point. However, this dealer makes it a policy not to sell any bike with shocks on the front unless it is a mountain bike only. He has his reasons and I can respect that.

Giant/Specialized dealer: Helpful, but wanted me on one of the "granny" bikes instead of a hybrid. I could not get it through his head that I was not going to buy one of those bikes. Maybe 20 years into collecting social security, I would. I think he just wanted a sale because they did not have the Giant or Specialized in my size.

Trek/Cannondale/Specialized dealers: Generally, all were very helpful. However, their in store stock was limited in my size. I did get steered towards mountain and hybrids pretty evenly. I was getting ready to purchase the Trek Marlin 29er mtb, but decided on the 8.4 DS. Either way it would have been a perfect fit either way.

Look around and test ride the different bikes. I was truly shocked at the size and feel based on position. Based on price, I was about to purchase from BikesDirect.com. After feeling the differences in my back based on position of the different bikes, that was not going to be an option.

jsdavis

Those bikes are more or less the same. One has better derailleurs and such, the other has better hubs. Ride both and figure out which feels or fit better.

SlimRider

You're right JS!

I was mistakingly referring to the Quick CX models. However, the Quicks seem a liitle pricey, given there components. The only one that I would recommend would be the Quick 3...

Sorry...

- Slim

richard4993

I would say to take a look at the Trek FX series as well. I don't own one but have rode one once and it was a very nice bike. I seem to see them everywhere too so there must be a reason why everybody is buying them. Also, don't buy anything without first giving it a test ride, it may look nice but you have to be comfortable on it as well.