In the history of Mountainbiking, there have been more than a few women who have made huge impressions on the sport, both in the beginning and currently. Wende Cragg, Jacquie Phelan, Juliana Furtado, Ashley Korenblat, Cindy Whitehead, Alison Sydor, Marla Strebb, Shonny Vanlandingham, Jill Kintner, & Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesja; just to name a few.
However, with such a stellar cast of past pioneers & current champions, it seems that a majority of mountainbike manufacturers have made only token efforts to accomodate this sizable segment of riders. Gary Fisher & Trek have long led the way when it comes to designing a line of women’s specific mountainbikes, with Specialized & Giant following suit. There are a few others out there that make women’s mountainbikes, and several are European manufacturers (Merida is one). Others, such as Titus, do not offer floor-model women’s editions, but will build a custom bike for a female customer; and of course, this will cost more than a ready-made men’s bike. Fisher & Trek’s house-brand, Bontrager, has even developed a line of women’s specific components; bars, saddles, and stems. Specialized also has their own house branded components that support a woman’s unique physique.
The only other option is for a woman to contact a small-scale custom builder. This is I think one of the best choices currently available for females. Not only does it provide the proper fit, but it helps support a struggling frame-building cottage industry.
But for the rest of the big money industry, the general response to the needs of women has been half-hearted.
This leads me to the grist that I wish to grind.
With such a stellar group of women that I mentioned earlier, it boggles my mind to think that the marketing departments have pretty much ignored them. Many of the current female champions in XC, Mountain-Cross, & Downhill, either ride scaled down men’s frames with one-off custom components, or entire bikes built specifically for them. But for the rank & file of the average female rider, this is a problem. For those marketing minds that get paid the big dollars and spent years in school to ignore the potential riches in supporting women’s cycling is mind-blowing.
Too many women I think have been turned off on mountainbiking because they had to resort to a men’s frame that didn’t fit them, and it made the experience uncomfortable enough to make them give it up.
This issue is a sore point for me, as my wife has struggled to find a bike that’ll fit her for a long time. Fortunately, she found that Fisher has bikes small enough for her that make her rides enjoyable and comfortable. But many other women who may be interested in the sport aren’t aware of those few places where they can obtain bikes to fit them.
So as fellow mountainbikers, we need to inform our wives, girlfriends, coworkers, and family about those companies which support women, and steer them towards women’s cycling groups like WOMBATS and LunaChix .
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