Suggestions for an All Mtn Bike for the girlfriend?

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Suggestions for an All Mtn Bike for the girlfriend?
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flag hi-dr-nick
O+ FL
Posted: May 13, 2014 at 17:07 Quote
Hey guys!

First actual forum post on PB, sorry if this is in the wrong section or if I missed a bigger thread with help!! Also, I am new to mountain biking so I may not have the right technical terms or something haha.


I am looking at getting an all mountain bike for my girlfriend. My budget is $1000 and am looking to get something that is a bit more leaning toward downhill but still able to pedal uphill with enough ease. For comparison to what I'm looking for, I am looking for something that is comparable to the 2011 Trek Scratch Coil 8 which is what I am getting (although her's doesn't have to be coil, just something similar in terms of downhill and uphill performance). All in all we will be riding Trestle bike park in Colorado about 60% of the time and then in Fruita/moab and other similar terrain the other 40% of the time.

So far I have been looking at the Giant Reign for her, which I heard is similar although in my price range I can only get maybe an 08 model which I've heard is on the heavy side.

Thanks for any info!
flag TieMyShoe
Posted: May 13, 2014 at 18:35 Quote
I've gotten a few of my lady friends into riding (my girl and her friends).

What we looked for and in no particular order.

-Top tube height. All of them wanted a lower top tube with a bit of stand over. I think this was a mental thing as it seems easier to bail with a lower TT.

-Weight, the bikes needed to be pedal-able but handle what ever whistler could throw at them.

-Top tube length

-Ease of maintenance... ok well I'll admit that was because I know if something broke.. it's me who has to fix it.. so I don't wanna be messing about with a bunch of a fancy bits.

-Single crown fork

-Because of the age of the bikes dual front chain rings. Most single rings of that time don't have good climbing combinations.

This narrowed the search down to Free Ride / AM bikes.

Next thing was to just start seating them on bikes. I've always said when you find the right bike, you just know. You sit on it, pedal around and you know. It just fits.

2 of them ended up on Devinci Frantiks after falling in love with my bike. The Frantiks were a bit on the heavy side so Air shocks, Air Forks, and tubeless tires were added. My girl friends 09 F2 rang in at 1000 after mods, and my friends base 08 Frantik in at 800.

The two others preferred a shorter top tube and lighter base bike. They ended up 09 Norco Six's. These bikes were substantially lighter then the Devincis, but robust enough to take a beating. They also fit very small which was great for a 5 foot 2 rider. Both bikes in near new condition rang in at sub 1000 with no upgrades.

The third is on an older Devinci Seguaro. Maintly because it was only 500 bucks and a S frame.

The Giants were avoided due to their weight. I tried all 5 of them on Reigns and all said the same thing about how heavy the bike was.

Hope that helps a little bit?
flag hi-dr-nick
O+ FL
Posted: May 14, 2014 at 7:39 Quote
TieMyShoe wrote:
I've gotten a few of my lady friends into riding (my girl and her friends).

What we looked for and in no particular order.

-Top tube height. All of them wanted a lower top tube with a bit of stand over. I think this was a mental thing as it seems easier to bail with a lower TT.

-Weight, the bikes needed to be pedal-able but handle what ever whistler could throw at them.

-Top tube length

-Ease of maintenance... ok well I'll admit that was because I know if something broke.. it's me who has to fix it.. so I don't wanna be messing about with a bunch of a fancy bits.

-Single crown fork

-Because of the age of the bikes dual front chain rings. Most single rings of that time don't have good climbing combinations.

This narrowed the search down to Free Ride / AM bikes.

Next thing was to just start seating them on bikes. I've always said when you find the right bike, you just know. You sit on it, pedal around and you know. It just fits.

2 of them ended up on Devinci Frantiks after falling in love with my bike. The Frantiks were a bit on the heavy side so Air shocks, Air Forks, and tubeless tires were added. My girl friends 09 F2 rang in at 1000 after mods, and my friends base 08 Frantik in at 800.

The two others preferred a shorter top tube and lighter base bike. They ended up 09 Norco Six's. These bikes were substantially lighter then the Devincis, but robust enough to take a beating. They also fit very small which was great for a 5 foot 2 rider. Both bikes in near new condition rang in at sub 1000 with no upgrades.

The third is on an older Devinci Seguaro. Maintly because it was only 500 bucks and a S frame.

The Giants were avoided due to their weight. I tried all 5 of them on Reigns and all said the same thing about how heavy the bike was.

Hope that helps a little bit?
That definitely does help a bit, thanks!!

So I have on question, I thought all Norco bikes were notoriously heavy (only what I've been told by friends, remember I'm new to this as well) so would that even be a comparable option that would be similar in performance to my trek scratch? I just don't want her dealing with something overly heavy when she's learning, but I will take a look at all the suggestions in your post regardless. Thanks!!
flag TieMyShoe
Posted: May 14, 2014 at 19:56 Quote
Depends on the year, the bikes we found were 08 and newer style and fairly well specced. They arn't XC light by any means but light enough that they can load their own bikes into the back of my truck, and isn't a hellish climb. The older style frames were kinda tanks.
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