Lazyass

Yes, this is a female model, Arien 1 endurance bike with a 105 group for $780 corporate discount, but if you didn't know would you be able to tell by looking at it? It doesn't have any girly colors.

jon c. 

I couldn't tell.

WizardOfBoz

"girly colors"?

stacysaul

No.

Retro Grouch 

The key is the seat-to-handlebar dimension. Women tend to have longer legs relative to their torso length so consequentially, most often fit better on a bike with a shorter top tube.

Lazyass

I was also looking at the Raleigh Merit 3 (same company). That's their male 105 endurance bike with basically the same components. The frames look similar but the Raleigh costs more. The reach on a 54cm Raleigh is 373mm, the Arien is 371mm and either is fine with me. The TT lengths are 54.5 vs 54. The biggest difference is the Arien has a stack that's 24mm taller but that's fine with me as well. The only thing that wouldn't work for me is the female saddle but I would change that anyway.

CliffordK

You know, some women like a little extra pink and purple and "girly stuff". Others reject that notion and want to pound it out with the guys.

It may actually be a unique marketing niche to have dimensions and seats suited for women, but otherwise, a bike that looks just like the others.

If many women are more flexible than men, why do women get the step-through frames? Yes, skirts... but that may not be needed for many women.

That looks like a road bike, but for Diamondback, I'd think that rugged looking women's cross and MTBs might sell well.

CliffordK

Oh...

Perhaps a pink Men's bike called the San Francisco?

jefnvk

Does it have boobs and lady parts? If not then no, it isn't a female bike.

If you are asking if I saw you on the trail and saw "why the heck is that guy riding a bike marketed towards a woman", no, I wouldn't give it a second thought.

philbob57

Women's torsos are said to be shorter than mens', but apparently they're not. See, for example, Are Women's Body Proportions Different From Men's? -. She concludes it's a center of gravoty issue.

I don't know what girly colors are. I like blue. We dressed our son in blue when he was little. We also let his hair grow to page boy length. People kept asking me about 'her.' Our grandson is archetypically boyish. His favorite colors have included pink and purple. 65 years ago, one of Brooks Brothers power styles was charcoal grey suit with pink shirt. And over in C&V, c&v pink bikes get a lot of love. Stereotypes tell us pink is for girls, and blue is for boys, but let's not allow stereotypes skew our view of reality....

stanman13

If you roll the bike over on its back and look down between the chainstays, you'll be able to tell the sex.

str8jakett

I'd ride it.

Lazyass

I was also looking at this gravel bike for $750. I would never be able to tell it's a female model.

Wheever

Wins the internet today!

jefnvk

Just an aside, if you are looking at Raleigh and DB, you do know about the corporate code right? Not sure, doesn't seem to change the price of that last bike at all, but it can have some significant savings on others.

EDIT: duh, nm, didn't read the first post well enough

Wheever

Sometimes "women specific" models seem to come with "girly" colors, somewhat lower specced parts and, saddles that are supposed to work better for women and nothing else. Don't know if that's the case with the above. I would say that if the geometry works for you, buying a "girl's" bike shouldn't be a thing. It's fit that matters, and the colors of those bikes above are totally gender-neutral and very nice looking. (I would only wonder about the saddles, but people tend to pitch the stock saddles, for something that works for them better, anyway.)

Stormsedge

fietsbob

Metals products of mankind do not need to reproduce sexually so have no gender..

northtexasbiker

As long as you hang some truck nuts on it, nobody will know the difference

indyfabz

Or you could just roll it in flour....

Lazyass

Found a video of a guy who bought himself a '16 model haha

CliffordK

I have an older Trek Lexa that I was going to fix up for my nephew. Nothing remarkable about the color scheme.

However, kids can be cruel, and I was afraid that if anybody ever found out it was a "girl's bike", he would never hear the end of it.

tagaproject6

That looks good! I'm partial to red, so there is some bias there.

Leebo

Fit, reach, bar width as needed for anyone. OP, trying to make a point? What? It's marketing more than anything.

79pmooney

Some of my bikes are male, some are female. Looks do not give that away. Riding therm does. Others are just bikes.

Ben