billyymc

My wife is slowly coming around to the desire to have a road bike. Her current "road" bike is an mid 90's Gary Fisher Marlin with slick tires...it's a nice bike for tooling around town, esp after I put new shifters and brakes on last year, but she wants to go farther and faster. I ride a Tricross Comp (2007 - triple), and between the bike and the fact that I weigh considerably more than her, she sees how fast I'm rolling along when she is often peddling hard to keep up. Plus she spins out on flats, and I'm just not going to put the $ into the Marlin to rectify that problem.

So - I'm looking for a something more road oriented. Having a cross bike myself, I'm kind of drawn to one for her. Comfort will be important for her. AND - one key thing is that we live near the top of a decent size hill - about a mile of 6 to7% climbing to get home. Shorter but steeper if we go another route. And right now at her current level and depending on how her knees feel, she might be in the next to lowest gear on her Marlin which has MTB gearing (don't' know the ranges off the top of my head).

With that, I'm kind of worried about a double for her. Was looking at the BD Fantom Cross SRAM which has APEX with a cassette with a 32 tooth cog...and I think the small ring on the front is 36. Seems like she'd be able to get that up our hill without too much difficulty. Anyone riding APEX? How does it compare to 105? Are the gear changes too wide?

Also - I haven't ridden SRAM at all -- are the double tap levers better for smaller hands? I"ve played with them at my LBS, but never ridden them.

Any comments or suggestions are appreciated. Going to see what the LBS's have to offer too...last year my fav shop had a Tricross Sport on the floor that was discounted pretty good so we'll see how that works for her. My preference is to go with a LBS bike so she can ride it and have it feel right from the get go, but I won't rule out BD completely if I can't find anything at the LBS that works for her.

In her head the budget is around $600. In mine it's up to around $1,200. What she doesn't know won't hurt her

AMFJ

I have all sram red, but for serious hill climbing (like 6 gap in Georgia) I switch to an apex RD and Apex 11-32 gearig. I have a compact double up front.

You get into those last few gears she should be fine.

It shifts great with my red shifters. No problems at all. I personally prefer it over my bike with an Ultegra triple. But you really should put her on a bike with each and let her hands dictate which you go with. You can swap out the shimano to mountain bike gearing and be in the same place.

bobonker

My wife's bike came equipped with a mix of 9 speed Tiagra and 105 components. She has small hands and the long swing to move the front derailleur was often hard for her. Sometimes I'd see her reaching over and pulling the FD shifter with her right hand.

I put a full SRAM Rival group on that bike and she has been much happier. It seems to work well with smaller hands. The shrows are shorter (but do require a little more effort). She had an 11-32 and did complain about some of bigger jumps in the cassette. The 12-32 has been much better. It's only 1 tooth difference, but you're trading it for a cog that tightens up the spacing quite a bit.

Bob

ericm979

Let her pick the bike. Take her to the LBSs and have her ride a selection of bikes in your price range. If she picks something that isn't what you expected, keep your mouth shut and let her ride it. She'll ride more if she's happy with the bike vs taking what you think she should have.

I usually reccomend a triple for new riders. A double with a 34x34 low is ok but it'll have gaps in the gearing.

ColinL

I like ericm's advice, very good ideas.

My wife liked a few road bikes similarly, and picked the one with the paint she liked best. Which was a black & white Specialized Dolce Apex. She doesn't have any complaints about the wide ratio cassette, but she had been riding a Cannondale hybrid with 3x9 and a 11-32 cassette, so she was acclimated to the big jumps. The cassette also lets her minimize front shifting, in fact here in flat Kansas she can often use the big ring for a whole ride.

fstshrk

We just got a specialized ruby w/105 and fulcrum wheels for my wife together with a BG fit. So far so good. I like the shimano way of shifting as opposed to the sram double tap.

kayakdiver

While Apex isn't something I would choose.... It was perfect for my GF's new bike. She'd been riding a triple and really didn't want to give up the lower gearing she had with it. She's been really happy with the Apex group. Not sure she's crazy about the racket that SRAM tends to make when shifting(even louder than her old Sora). She does love the gearing and the function and the shape of the hoods. So, after a number of months now I would say it's been a pleasant surprise.

sced

I'm wondering about the stiff shifting of Apex. Shimano and Campy shifters are much smoother and require less effort.

ColinL

Nah, it's no big deal after some acclimation. My wife doesn't like the slow, tough throw to go into the big ring, but it's not a dealbreaker. For sure, though, the front shifting sucks compared to her X9 triple with twisters. That thing is smoooooth.

billyymc

Thanks everyone...good input. Definitely plan to get her to test ride at the LBS's. As I said, for her my preference is to buy there and not buy online. I'd have no issues buying a bike for me online - from BD or anywhere - but I'd be ok changing things if it didn't fit quite right either. For her, I want her to walk out of the store and be happy right away. Like I said, my biggest concern is that she's used to MTB gearing to climb the hill to our house.

SlowSpinner

Have the Scram Apex 12/32 and compact cranks. Better than triple cranks I had on a Trek. Scram does not shift as smooth as any of my Shimano groups. Scam is better for small hands. The Scram 12/32 and compacts are great for some of the 18% grades I rode today. Go for the Scram if you have steep grades.

foresthill

SRAM really doesn't take much if any more effort to shift. It just has a more definite click into gear, similar to campy. It is definitely not intended to have the smooth-as-butter feel of Shimano. It's all a matter what your preference is in that regard.