Trek makes 2 women's 7.2 bikes in a 17 inch. The WSD and the Stagger. We have not found a LBS that has both so we have been unable to compare side by side. Is there a downside for going with a Stagger as far as efficiency or comfort. It would be easier for my wife to get on and off.. She has osteoporosis. I appreciate your thoughts. Thanks

The 7.2 FX is not available in a stagger-frame version. Only the 7.1 and 7.0 have a stagger option. The 7.2 is the first step in the FX line at which Women's Specific Design becomes a factor. The WSD bikes are generally designed to have more comfortable geometry and contact points for female riders; however, if your wife has difficulty mounting and dismounting a standard frame, then I'd recommend the stagger frame. That would mean a step down in terms of the specs and such, but there's actually less of a difference this year between the 7.2 and 7.1 anyway. On the other hand, if WSD and a lowstep frame design are both important, then I'd recommend also taking a look at the women's Verve line the next time you're at a Trek dealer.

Based on my experience, I'd recommend staying open to either a WSD frame or a regular/unisex frame. The Trek FX 7.2 WSD (I have this in 19", 2015 model) has a short top tube and seems very compact, which may work for your wife if she doesn't have long limbs. It does have a WSD saddle, the most comfortable stock saddle I've tried. I'm finding the bike to be a bit too compact for me and I've compared it to the stagger version's geometry. The stagger has a longer effective top tube and would be a better fit for long-limbed me. The web site says they have stagger available for 7.2 and I called the Trek store and they said they could order it. I also sent an e-mail to Trek headquarters to confirm b/c I've not had a great experience at the Trek store and don't really trust what they say about anything. Still waiting for a response from headquarters. I see a member below says the stagger is not available for 7.2 - not sure where that information came from, but I wouldn't immediately discount it because there seems to be quite a bit of inconsistency out there about Trek's 2015 7.2 FX.

Regarding "ease of use", I've test ridden several WSD bikes lately and I find the stagger/step-through much more manageable getting on and off. I highly recommend that she try the Giant/Liv Alight bikes. (Basically, Giant's 2015 WSD lineup is now branded "Liv" and the Alight model is what was formerly known as the Escape.) It is a great bike and the Alight 3 has a step-through frame.

My first hybrid was a stagger frame. I liked it precisely for the reason you suggest, ease getting on and off, especially when wearing winter boots and insulated pants (year-round commuter).

The downside is usually that there's only one easy place to mount a water bottle (there are workarounds for this, though), and the frame might be a little heavier than the equivalent regular frame. The FX bikes are nice and light in the first place so that shouldn't be a concern, either.

Piggybacking on the post above: my mom just picked up a Giant/Liv Alight stagger/step-through and is in LOVE with it. I get daily e-mails about how far she was intending to go versus how much further she ended up riding.

That information came from the fact that, apparently, there is no 7.2 stagger option available in the U.S., and that particular market is all I'm able to look at. I've double-checked Trek's U.S. website, along with their dealer and tech sites (which I'm able to view as an employee at a Trek dealer), and there is no 7.2 stagger listed on any of them for either this year or last; however, after some more checking, I see that it is available in the UK and Australia, at least, and likely elsewhere.

Man, this is why I wish people would include their location in their profile: so I wouldn't go around making myself look incompetent.

You definitely don't look incompetent. Can't necessarily say the same for the folks at Trek who are responsible for their web site content and communication to dealers. The stagger is listed on the 7.2 FX WSD duo-trap (their 2015 model) size chart on the consumer U.S. web site. There is no communication about country-specific availability - not that I saw, anyway. The Trek retailer here also told me that he could order the 7.2 stagger but it is likely that he was clueless. I am STILL waiting for a response from Trek headquarters - I had e-mailed them to ask if stagger was available in the U.S.

Well, I will a little bit now...

I just re-checked yet again, and I realized that I was misreading the dealer site. The 7.2 does indeed have a stagger-frame option available in the U.S. That's on me for not checking things out thoroughly. I wouldn't put any blame for the confusion on Trek. My apologies for the misunderstanding!

In that case, my response to the OP has changed: go for the 7.2 WSD stagger/lowstep frame. The geometry and features should be the same as the standard 7.2, with the only difference being a frame that would be easier to mount & dismount.

That's awesome news, thanks. For me, I'd go from a 19" WSD to a 20" stagger and the geometry of the stagger is a bit different in that ETT is longer. The seat tube angle is slightly more slack. AND it will be easier to get on and off. I'm thinking I'm going to exchange my 19" WSD for the 20" stagger and I sure hope they don't give me any trouble about it at the Trek store. I've had the other one for about 3 weeks and have ridden it around the neighborhood twice :-/ They knew it was too small for me, and so did I but I didn't trust myself.

I have a 2014 FX 7.3 with a stagger frame. When I was test riding, I road the "normal" frame... it was fine. The salesman asked if I would prefer the stagger -- I rode it and felt no difference. And I considered the possibility that, while I don't need the stagger frame now, I might appreciate it in the future (you know... when I replace the rear wheel with a Copenhagen and turn it into a 3-speed).

As Miss Daisy said, you only get room for one water bottle cage (and for me I had to pay extra to get a side-entry cage -- couldn't clear the bar with a top-entry). Otherwise, it rides fine.

For me, WSD fits well (my legs are long relative to my torso). So I'm happy with the WSD stagger geometry. YMMV.