bikerjp

The lbs has a good deal on one of these and I was thinking my daughter might enjoy it as she commutes to school and needs incentive to get some exercise as well. My concern is that it's not wsd. I guess if it fits it fits so the whole wsd might not be a big deal. Any experience with this bike - specifically from a female perspective? Thanks.

urbanknight

That's a great bike. If it fits, it fits. There was no such thing as WSD when I got into cycling 20 years ago. Just curious, but is she on board with this or are you trying to press it on her?

edit: Oh yeah, and if "school" means a university, you might want to get to know that area to determine if it's a bike thief hot spot or not. My university was known for bikes being stolen right off the racks, locked or not. Sometimes just parts were removed (seats, seatposts, wheels) because they were worth something. The smarter commuters rode girls Huffys painted with ugly colors of rattle can spray paint.

longbeachgary

Not much use for WSD unless the kid has long legs. That's not a bike that I would send my kids to school with - it would be stolen within minutes.

bikerjp

High school and yeah more my idea than hers. But she did express some interest in the school cycling club which seems defunct now. Still, she enjoys riding but the cheap mtb she has now in not really ideal for her use but then again not sure I want a $1200 bike sitting on a HS campus. Maybe less commuting and more rides with me if I can find the right motivation.

Thanks for the feedback on the bike and wsd not really being a big deal if it fits.

urbanknight

All a club needs is a few interested students and a teacher willing to host them. She can revitalize it if needed. I started a mountain bike club in my high school which continued at least 2 years after I graduated because we made sure to elect a sophomore as president-elect before the year ended.

FogVilleLad

Maybe check with the principal or an asst. principal re bike thefts.

urbanknight

They'll lie because they're always trying to skew numbers in their favor (low crime, safe environment, high test scores, low drop-out rate). Ask a tenured teacher.

bikerjp

With a quality lock it would probably be okay, but in retrospect I don't think I'd want her taking a nice bike to school and leaving out in the elements and getting abused on the racks even if was safe from theft. She has the cheap mtb for riding to school. I am just trying to find a good bike to fan her budding interest in cycling (like father like daughter kind of thing). It's a pretty sweet bike for $900 with 105 and at that price you usually get tiagra or sora.

urbanknight

That is a good deal. I bought a bike with 105 on clearance for a few hundred more than that last Summer.

Homebrew01

Make sure she has the hand strength for braking down hills or emergencies. I was going to build a road bike for my 14 year old, but I think she's better off with a skinny-ish tired hybrid type bike with flat bars and easy braking compared to road brake levers. If she decides she wants to do "real" rides, then consider a road bike.

bikerjp

Seeing her on the bike today I'm wondering about this too now.

Homebrew01

Maybe you can add those in-line cyclocross brake levers on the tops of the bars. I've never used them, so I don't know what their stopping power is like.