To think boys bikes are better than girls bikes?

[MumblingRagDoll]

DD is 7 and has realy gotten into her bike this summer. It's far too small and DH and I were jus looking online for a new one for Christmas.

She's a normal girl of 7 in that she is very active and likes to ride for long periods of time...we go for up to 5 miles together but her old bike is looking knid of shaky and tiny now. We thought we'd find really sporty, sturdy bike...some kind of mountain bike but they all look like pink nightmares with tassely handle streamers and shopping baskets.

The bikes marketed at boys look like they could withstand some riding..no streamers or shopping baskets.

AIBU to ask...what is the actual difference between girls and boys bikes? DO boys bikes still have a crossbar" and what is that FOR? Can a girl ride a "boys" bike?

Can you help me find a good one under 100 pounds?

Well, that is me, Rebecca. I just wanted a bike so I can follow my 5 and 2 year old on easy, flat bike tracks.

A big +1 for Islabikes here.

I bought one for my DD1's 7th birthday last year. They are very well made with quality components which won't wear out/snap/fall off in 5 minutes. The frame is properly sized for a child using smaller tube sizes which cuts down the weight. The lightness of the bike is incredible and really has to be experienced. Pick up any child's BSO (Bicycle-shaped-object) from Halfords et al and you'll pull a muscle due to the weight. Remember your child won't enjoy cycling much if he/she has to lug around something approaching their own body weight and oversized to boot. The BSOs tend to weigh about about 20 kilos. Think about what % of your child's bodyweight that is. The Islabikes weigh about 11kg.

They are seemingly pricey but you will be able to sell them on ebay and even after a few years you should recoup a good percentage of the price. Buy cheap, buy twice as the saying goes. My neighbours have cheap nasty BSO's for their DDs and they have spent a fair bit replacing brake levers + cables etc which wore out / broke very quickly. Also the brakes on them are frankly dangerous due to poor quality components making it impossible to adjust accurately. I wouldn't let my children out on such a contraption.

I paid about £240 for the Islabike and I expect it to last several years for all the children DD1 + DD2 + DS. As someone mentioned the colours and design are gender neutral. Getting several years quality use out of a bike and then getting a good secondhand price for it means that they aren't expensive at all.

Well I need a "ladies" bike as I can´t get my leg over a crossbar & I cycle in skirts/dresses.

But I thought that with mountain/trekking/y frame bkes there´s not such an obvious cross bar.

One word... marketing.

There is no need for a girls bike to be any different to a boys bike.

The strongest frame for a bike is the diamond or two triangle frame. Every single serious cyclist rides a frame of this shape. The dimensions will vary to accommodate people of different sizes and proportions but the basic shape is the same. Some women don't like to have a top tube (crossbar) so bike companies make frames without them, which compromises the strength of the frame. However, these are sold to people who will be pootling around town and not powering up a mountain or riding at 30mph so the compromise is considered to be acceptable. Kids, as I'm sure you know, abuse their bikes so you want it to be as strong as possible. For a 7 year old I think a diamond frame is essential and if that means going for the bikes targetted at boys then do it.

Another vote for Islabikes here. DS1 is on his second. well worth the investment for us because we cycle everywhere (no car) and will pass the bikes down to DD1.

Could I just say we also passed bikes down-we have two children, but never paid anything like the price of an Isla bike.

Plus they were in constant use from the age of three and a half to bike to Kindergarten everyday & anywhere else needed!

I want a bike with a dropped crossbar because I cycle not just when "doing cycling" but to get places, so I do it in a variety of outfits.

I used to have a lovely dropped-handlebar bike that fit my little bod well, with a 'mixte' frame so could ride it in a skirt. Much nicer than the rather lumbering 'hybrid' I have now for accompanying DD on cyclepaths.

I had a girls bike, because I tended to wear a skirt in summer and I used it to go to guides and sometimes needed a skirt (our guider was naughty, she let us wear jeans long before you officially could)

I have this one. It has an extra large seat and is very comfortable to ride. Not too expensive either and does well off road - ds seems to favour charging across ploughed fields (proper cycle paths but rather unmade).

Said Giant was the MTX 125 but we payed under £200,they've seriously gone up or we got a good deal.We have twins so maybe we got money off buying 2,I doubt it though as we've tried that one many a time to no avail.We bought them end of Sep last year and I think prices go down as they clear stock to get in the newer models for Xmas.

We really wanted suspension as they ride off road a lot,dp is a keen mountain biker and cycles many miles weekly.The boys are racking up the miles and going on pump tracks etc so suspension was actually key for us.Said Giants have been fab,they're quite petite 7 year olds so not too heavy and they have fab control and very sturdy.Look lovely too

Looked at Isla bikes and they didn't do the job for us, they were more expensive too which makes a difference when buying 2.Don't buy a bike that's too big as it really effects control and can be dangerous.We've seen several kids come off huge bikes they're growing into and are far too big.That was a another tick against Isla,a lot of people seem to ride huge models to grow into and basically kids have to ride the wrong size bike for 2 years.

Err Doesbuggarall just because it's not an Isla bike does not mean it's not a bike . There are plenty of cheaper bikes that does the job just as well. I had Raleighs as a child and never had a problem with them. E

MilaMae

Islabikes give very specific information regarding sizing of bikes. I spoke to them when making my purchase and was advised absolutely not to buy a bike for DD to grow into.

pigletmania

I agree but when looking for a decent bike for DD all I could find were poorly built fashion type bikes that weighed a ton, more than my adult size mountain bike in fact. Ok I may be a bit of a bike snob but I've learnt the hard way that buying cheap is often a false economy. For example with household appliances I only buy Miele now. I wasted far too much buy Hotpoint rubbish in the past. The washing machine I had before my Miele only lasted 13 months. That Hotpoint replaced another Hotpoint that broke down 4 times in 5 years. I will NEVER buy Hotpoint or the like again. EVER.

okay, I'm going to compare (hope that's okay, I'm happy that you're happy, MilaM, just want to see). And keep in mind I'm all for cheap and cheerful bikes that are fit for purpose. The Giant is considerably dearer than OP wanted, but what the heck...

Both 20" wheels, Giant comes with suspension, Beinn doesn't.

Islabike Beinn 20 Large:Not so cool paint job, overwhelmingly Al & chromoly parts; 6 speed, lots of SRAM & Shimano parts, £249.99; 8.8kg.

Giant MTX 125: Cool paint job, Mila paid under £200 but tending to cost 220-250 now, but always worthwhile to scour for a bargain price; mostly Al frame & wheels, 6 speed, Shimano rear derailleur, 12.22 kg.

It's the weight, especially...the buyer pays an extra 50 quid to shave over 3kg off the weight. 3.4kg might not seem much, but for a child who only weighs 16-25kg themselves, it's a huge difference, especially if you want to go out several miles from home & back.

Keep in mind, OP, you pay 100 quid less you can get something like this. Overwhelmingly steel, not the best quality components, over-large break levers & too long cranks, lousy mudguards and maybe 14kg weight. It just won't be that pleasant or easy to ride. That's why I suggest a carboot bike, if you won't have that great a bike why pay much for it? I've been quite happy with mine.

Sorry MilaMae just read that clearly: Often said that suspension is not ideal for pump tracks, not that it matters that much to you, but something to keep in mind when they go up bike size again.

Example discussion.

Suspension very good for bumpy bits & downhill & mtb races, don't get me wrong, suspension has its place, there are bridleways around here that I shudder at because I don't have suspension.

Unless we were into serious riding as a family, which we are not than we would invest in an Isla bike. Dd 4.5 (sn) has a normal seconhand bike, as she just wants to ride it on the patio in our garden anot outside. I just used to ride for fun as a child and a Raleigh suited me the best. It also depends on your budget, even though they are the best, not everyone can afford an Isla, there are other perfectly reasonably alternatives out there

Ooh, I take it back about pump tracks & suspension, this looks credible & says hardtail best.

I'm wondering why the Giant has gone up so much given it's last years model.

Hmmm we found that amount of weight didn't make a lot of difference,we tried out several in a bike shop(which I would suggest if you're spending over £100). Compared to my old carthorse my boys have extremely light bikes.

Doesbuggar re size I'm sure Isla don't suggest getting a bike that's too big but when you're spending £250 and above I think parents are tempted.If you're loaded and don't want suspension then go for Isla but if you don't have a lot of cash to burn I think Isla bikes are a bit of a waste of money. You'll be replacing a very expensive bike in a couple of years or making your dc ride a bike that is the wrong size.

Didn't see the op's budget,happily the inlaws paid for ours but if I was looking at under £100 I'd try E-bay,just before Xmas would be a good time as people will be selling to fund a new Xmas bike.

You don't need to have cash to burn to buy Isla bikes, just to be able to afford the upfront cost. The difference between the price we paid new and the price we sold on at was less than the OPs 100 pound budget.

Islabikes do a trade-up deal I believe, where if you buy the first one new, you can trade it in for bigger models as the kids grow?

Also, they keep their value and sell quickly secondhand, especially the racing ones. In fact, there are usually more people looking to buy secondhand than selling.

Best part of Islabikes is not so much the bike or the weight, it's the very sensible child-oriented features such as short-pull brakes, good gearing combos, etc.

If your child rides one, he/she will be a cyclist for life.

I'd get a good second hand one,you'll get mush more for your monet..We live in a hilly area and my DD (6) would start whining after about 5 or miles on her 'first' gearless bike.But with gears we can go a decent ride,pretty much all day.