What downhill bike for women

[bluride]

Hi - we are trying to enlist the experience and advice of women DHers - my girlfriend and I just started to go on DH rides and we both enjoy the challenge - there is a limited range of hire bikes in her size though - it looks like we would like to get a DH bike for her, but don't have the opportunity locally to try out different models/ sizes.
which model/ size seems to work well for women? any women DH riders care to share their experience of different bikes ?! how do you customise your bikes for this purpose?
she is about 5'8"

ta

ps sorry also posted this on the DH forum - I am not too familiar with the RM etikette yet

[Repack]

At 5'8", she shouldn't have any issues. Mens' small, or maybe even a medium. My gf is 5'6" and rides a small IH SGS. We put on the e13 reducers and a flat crown to make it ride smaller. Depending on how strong she is, you might want to put lighter weight wheels on it. If she isn't prone to breaking wheels, I would recomend Rhyno Lites. Every inexpensive pre-built DH bike I have seen has come with wheels built for bruisers. That is an easy spot to save a bunch of weight without breaking the bank. Also, depending on fit, if the bike comes with a lay-back style post, you might want to switch to a Thompson-style straight post. It will allow her to drop the saddle lower down and more forward.

[Freak]

My wife is 5'7" and she rode a small Nicolai M-pire this past year. And now it's forsale...hint hint!! :)

http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=105362

[Velocity Girl]

I just responded to your post in the DH forum. If you GF has any questions for the girls, send her over to this forum....we love more women getting into this crazy sport :D

[TreeSaw]

At 5'8", she shouldn't have any issues. Mens' small, or maybe even a medium. My gf is 5'6" and rides a small IH SGS. We put on the e13 reducers and a flat crown to make it ride smaller. Depending on how strong she is, you might want to put lighter weight wheels on it. If she isn't prone to breaking wheels, I would recomend Rhyno Lites. Every inexpensive pre-built DH bike I have seen has come with wheels built for bruisers. That is an easy spot to save a bunch of weight without breaking the bank. Also, depending on fit, if the bike comes with a lay-back style post, you might want to switch to a Thompson-style straight post. It will allow her to drop the saddle lower down and more forward.
I have a similar set-up, but I also changed to a 24" rear wheel as I am only 5'4" and it's a bit more comfortable for me. I too would check out the Buy & Sell Forum...there are a lot of nice rigs for sale on there (VG's Nicoli :drool: )

[dhjill]

I would have to agree with most everyone here...if she's 5' 8", she'll have plenty of choices...most all small frames or even mediums would fit her just fine. I'm 5'7" and I ride a medium Haro DHR (made by Intense) that I'm probably going to sell really reasonable...PM if you're interested.

Weight is a really important issue for us chicks...I'm probably going to open up a huge can of worms here, but we just don't have the same strength as most guys so the power-to-weight ratio is something to consider. A 50-lb rig in most cases is just too much bike and too hard to throw around.
:)

[Mocha]

I'm 5'7" and I ride a medium Santa Cruz VP Free ( I might have been able to get away with a small). I've got a Super T on it, but have still managed to keep it around 40lbs. It's only 2lbs heavier than the Bullit I used to ride, but has a lot more travel. I feel I have the best of both worlds....A beefy ride, but still light enough that I can maneuver it around and even use for XC riding.

[Capt. Jack Sparrow]

I'm 5'8", of small build, and I love my size small Cannondale Gemini 900. It only weighs about 36 pounds.

Glad to hear you and your GF are getting into DH!

[Damalur-sol]

If you're still trying to decide, maybe this will help. I'm 5'2" and 135lbs with good upper body strength. I ride a small Big Hit expert with Jr. T up front. When I was shopping for a bike, stand over height was a big issue for me. Having the 24" rear wheel made the Big Hit easier to get onto as well as fairly easy to pedal (I didn't believe it could weigh over 40 lbs and it's actually 43!). At 5'8", standover shouldn't be as much of an issue. I tried testing a Gemini but it felt very "cross country" to me. The Big Hit is very "choppered" feeling. It is extremely stable on and off the ground (flies straight and true, which I here can make tail whips a little harder) but very confidence inspiring. Zero complaints other than having to upgrade the Jr. T with a Super T cartridge. Good luck.

[DownhillnDunkey]

My friends girlfriend rides a heckler, and his mom and sister both have hecklers, so look into a heckler. also there are julianas

[onetime]

The important thing to keep in mind when fitting a women is that our legs are longer and our torsoes are shorter proportionately to men. Especially in women over 5'4''. This means of cource that we usualy need a shorter top tube. This is especially important in DH, where it is so important to be able to get get your body over the back wheel. I have just gotten a Specialized Demo 8 frame, and it's smaller than any other companies smalls that i've seen. I came off of a small M1, and it's deffinately a shorter reach.