The Specifics of Women-Specific Design

The Specifics of Women-Specific Design

FOLLOWING THE THEME OF BIKE FIT BEING SIMILAR TO clothing fit, it stands to reason that there should be offerings out there from the bicycle manufacturers that are made just for the ladies. But until about 15 years ago, women had one choice—a men’s bike with which they could later swap out parts to make the best possible fit. A little like trying to steal your dad’s shirt and rock it as “oversized chic.”
As more women got on road bikes, research was done into how male and female bodies differ and how that might affect the bike they would want to ride. On average women have longer legs (usually in the thighbone), shorter torsos and arms, narrower shoulders, and smaller hands and feet. Of course, supporting the added upper body weight of breasts puts more strain on hands and wrists. Additionally, women have not only wider hips but also a deeper pelvis from front to back, which puts more pressure on their nether regions as their torso tilts forward to reach the handlebars.
So what to do? As the first bicycle manufacturers developed their bikes for women, they were known for “shrinking and pinking” men’s bikes. They were using the same geometry and materials as traditional men’s bikes—just in smaller sizes with a shorter stem, narrower and shallower handlebars with a shorter reach, and a slightly wider saddle. It was a good try, but solved only half of the actual fit differences—and not even the important ones.
As demand increased further and women became savvier shoppers, women-specific bicycles began to be designed with a tailored geometry that worked better for females. The top tube became “sloping,” which angled it down toward the cranks and gave more room to stand over the frame. It was also shortened, which helped relax the reach to the handlebars. This was good news for short torsos, but made the front wheel so close to the pedals that you could hit it with your foot if you were pedaling while you turned (called toe overlap). Some manufacturers have compensated for this in recent years, but some of the smallest frame sizes are still very tight.
At the same time, many manufacturers changed the angle of the seat tube to give longer-legged women more power than they ever had before. Stems that were already short became a little taller to help relieve pressure on the handlebars, and designers found ways to make the brake levers fit more diminutive hands. The smallest of bikes come with shorter crank arms. Saddles became not only wider, but also come with sections down the middle cut out to compensate for a deeper pelvis.
It’s important to note that research also found that women have a much wider variety of body types and range of heights than men—which makes sizing females harder to generalize. All these women-specific designs were approximations for the “average” woman, so there are many female riders who will find themselves not fitting into this mold. As the ladies’ lines developed, bikes for men started to be referred to as “unisex.” Many women will find unisex bikes actually fit them better with a few tweaks. By the same token, occasionally there are men who—because of their height and proportions—find a woman-specific bike fits them better than a traditional unisex bike. Thankfully, after the first 10 years, the industry caught on that there was crossover, so they stopped making bikes for women with flowers, swirls, polka-dots, and pink handlebar tape. Now you can find both women-specific and unisex bikes in neutral colors.