Hi

I cycle a lot - XC on a home build and road on a Trek 5200. My wife is keen to join me but a year or so ago I made the mistake of buying her a budget bike to see how she got on - well I wouldn't enjoy cycling on that bike.

She's 5'3", fairly small and 40 something. We went down to LBS today and they suggested a Trek 4500 or 7.5. The 4500 felt like it weighed a ton to me!!!), but I think they were right that it should be a HT or hybrid. I've also looked at the 6500 and 7500 on the web. LBS happens to be a Trek shop - not fixated about brand.

Any suggestions around the £500 mark - especially if its a good deal on an 06 bike. I guess it will mostly be used on hardpack or tar so should I bother with a suspension fork or not - comfort is probably the biggest factor. Also I suspect V brakes will be good enough, I have Avid single digits on my HT and one finger really is enough (at least for me).

No suggestions yet ??!!!

I ride a full sus not ridden a HT for years so not in any better position than yourself really to advise on a specific bike. I would definitely say a bit of suspension on the front in case you manage to get her onto bridleways. A lot of girls seem to like the Specialized womens specific and the Trek also.
You realise it could be expensive for you if she likes it....
Good Luck !!

I have a 4300 hardtail and it's good for me. (I'm 5'4" and 36) It was £300 so for £500 you could get the next model up or maybe get good disc brakes as an upgrade? I carry it on my shoulder up 80 stairs down and 110 stairs up in the Greenwhich pedestrian tunnel so it's not that heavy. :) There's a few threads in this forum worth browsing with lots of advice and recommendations. The Specialized bikes get mentioned a lot too. Be sure she tries it out of course - a few girls here have the Hardrock for example, but it didn't have enough standover room for me. So it'll depend on your wife's build. For what it's worth, I just have different tyres for road riding.

Thanks for the input so far. We went out yesterday on a hired 4500 and she seemed to get on fine. She did struggle a bit to get it up when she dropped it.

Based on yesterdays ride have decided that some suspension is neccessary, and probably semi-slicks (prefers roads to ride on but bridle paths got the edge because of lack of traffic). Will try Spesh shop next w/e. (First ride for many years so going out today not a good idea!). I think I should aim for the lightest I can find at the price.

I know it could get expensive if she likes it (hell I do) but the trick is that she does. Don't want to get something really expensive to live in the garage or end up hardly used on e-bay, but also want it to be nice enough that she has a good chance of getting hooked

Hi EXG, you're right to be concerned about weight. It can be really tiring riding a heavy bike when you're small and not used to riding much.
If you can afford to go up to £700 you'll find the frames much lighter and spec much better too. If not then this is the perfect time of year for a bargain. Get searching on the web, have a look at our Shopping Partners over the next few weeks and you'll see some great bargains.
Check out the Spec Rockhopper starting at £549 too!

Tsk tsk Tina, you're telling fibs! It's 87 steps at the Island Gardens end and 100 at the Cutty Sark end - if you don't believe me you'll just have to lug your bike up and down 'em all until you've counted right. :-p

Could be that carrying the bike makes me lose count around 90. ;)

You should be able to get a Kona Cindercone for £500. Kona hardtails tend to be pricey but they ride beautifully (I've had 2 of them - both bought in end of year sales). Lots of women ride them and they are popular to sell on afterwards.

They also have a short top tube which is good for smaller arms. She will need to take one for a quick spin to decide whether to get a 14" or 16" bike.
I'm just over 5'4" and have a 16" Kona hardtail. Spec is on www.konaworld.co.uk - you might need to phone around to see which sizes dealers have in stock.

Think about putting money aside for a ladies saddle if she doesn't already have one.