New Bike for a Parent - General Fitness

[TZ2102]

Hi,

Pretty much have got my whole family into cycling, even now my mum wants to get a bike.

Preferences:
- Flat Bar Road Bike
- Comfortable, but can go at a decent pace (so she can keep up with my dad who has a Cannondale quick 2 - $1100-$1300)
- Will be Used for General Fitness, no racing

Body Characteristics:
- 5"2
- Quite Fit, does walking and pilates, physio

So the preference would be under $1000, what should she go test ride or have a look at?

Thanks!

[antipodean]

You haven't mentioned where you live but this looks like a bargain.

http://www.bikes.com.au/p/8304720/2012- ... -bike.html

[TZ2102]

You haven't mentioned where you live but this looks like a bargain.

http://www.bikes.com.au/p/8304720/2012- ... -bike.html

NSW, some other bikes people have suggested to me - Specialized (sirrus/vita - entry levels), Giant Cross City (or CRX), Cannondale Quick 2 (slightly expensive) etc.

how does the malvern compare to these?

[il padrone]

Trek 7.3FX is a nice bike in the sub-$1000 price range. We set one up for my daughter to ride a 1000km tour of Tassie with us and it performed very well. It's lightweight, has a nice geometry and can be fitted with mudguards and pannier racks should you desire. The only thing I was wary of was the alloy forks (stiff?) but my daughter did not complain and they could be replaced with some steel ones if we wish; and the shifters (seemed a bit cheap design), but again no problems so far.

[antipodean]

Two things I like about the Malvern Star are:
1. Great price with decent equipment.
2. Compact gearing on the front (2 cogs) which are far less confusing and relatively trouble free compared to a triple.
A Giant would be my second choice as often Specialized and Trek are overpriced and underspecced imo.

[yarravalleyplodder]

I just went through this process with my dad

He ended up with a giant seek 1
http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-au/bikes/model/seek.1/12043/58346/

its not as heavy as it looks, about 12kg is my estimate

He wanted disk brakes and after trying the kona dew, a cross city and a cube went with the seek.

Basically he felt comfortable and with the triple ring and hydraulic disc brakes it was a winner. He was close to the cross city but disc brakes was the deciding factor. I have had a couple of spins and I still prefer my felt it is a nice machine to ride on

[jdimitri]

Why not buy her a ladies Quick as well? Seems to be the easiest solution and no one can play the "your bike's faster than mine" card

[Byke]

Regardless of brand, make sure you get something appropriately geared. (Other than a crash) nothing is likely to put someone off quicker than if they have to hop off and walk at any point.

I don't want to make too many assumptions but has she ridden much (or at all) in recent years? Are there many hills around where she lives?

Most traditional hybrids and lower-end flat bar road bikes will have a MTB triple chainset like a 44/32/22. Higher-end flat bar road bikes often come with a compact 50/34 crankset. If she's only going to ride on pretty flat ground then on the basis of what you've told us the compact should be fine. But if there's a few hills she might miss the 'granny' gear.

[TZ2102]

All good suggestions.

Should weigh up the extra gearing of the 3rd cog vs. the extra confusion haha.

[Ken Ho]

All good suggestions.

Should weigh up the extra gearing of the 3rd cog vs. the extra confusion haha.

If the expense of the Quick was OK for Dad, why not for Mum ?
It always bewilders me when a person using a computer wonders if gears are too complicated. Give her some credit. It ain't really that hard.