rtotheb

I'm a 59 overweight woman with some spinal stenosis. Dodgy hip and had 3 years of treatment for leg problems. But now I'm building up my fitness again - 3 years ago I swam half a mile every other day. I can now walk 5 miles a day (but due to Covid there is no swimming in the UK). I'm going to buy a new bike - I used to cycle constantly - and DH and I have agreed that I can spend about £700/£800.

I want a bike that will be comfortable, ergonomic and last me well. I don't want to become a bicycle engineer, or cycle 100 miles a day - I'm thinking trips to the shops, maybe a fitness ride of 10-20 miles occasionally.

I like the look of both the Pashley (8 speed SA gears) or the Trek FX 3 stagger - the Pashley is steel and about 20KG, the Trek is aluminium/carbon and 13Kg even with mudguard, pannier etc.

Anyone have any suggestions as to which is the best investment, the most ergonomic, the most reliable and over all the most fun and easiest to maintain? Am I just falling for the look of the Pashley??

Carbonfiberboy 

Most bikes are compromises of some sort - excepting all-out race bikes. What you'll like down the road a bit depends on how you want your compromise balanced. I would say a couple things about this:
1) However the compromise is structured, you want your purchase to do one thing extremely well.
2) It often happens that what one thinks one wants of a thing is what it will do for you now. However, depending on #1 , sometimes the thing by its nature tempts you to do things that you never expected you would enjoy doing.

There's a good illustration of these principles here:
The Pashley Princess: a Retrospective from a Former Owner

Bluesfrog

Ergonomic? That is individual. You might test ride the bikes and see how they work for you. Usually on a test ride one or the other will shine. Also talk to any friends who might know how bike fit works. My buddies got me aimed in the direction of proper frame size and it helped greatly. Good luck and Be Well, Bluesfrog.

canklecat

Pashleys are lovely but I'd go for the Trek or something similar, lighter and still pleasant to ride.

20 kg/44 lbs is close to the weight of my comfort hybrid/errand bike with rear, panniers, lights, etc. The weight isn't bad on reasonably flat terrain but a chore on serious hills. That upright ride is comfy on flat roads, but makes poor use of our adductor muscles that lift the leg for each downstroke. Moving a handlebar and stem just a little farther forward and lower can help significantly for hills or headwinds. But on mostly flat terrain and upright bike is fine. Even the weight won't matter much. Millions of people have ridden bikes like that, no problems.

But I wouldn't want to lift it if I lived on a second floor walkup or higher. Fortunately I'm on the ground floor and in much better shape than I was in 2015 when I bought it. So I've kept it even though I rarely ride it now.

I much prefer my early 1990s Univega, which is steel but weighs only 30 lbs with rack. It's much more manageable, especially on hills and rolling terrain. It would still be a chore to carry up stairs -- I've had to do that a few times on group rides where stairs were the only way to get somewhere.

Even in a hybrid I'd rather keep the weight closer to 25 lbs. Eventually I might convert an older steel road bike to hybrid using swept bars like the Nitto Albatross, North Roads or porteur bars, an appropriate saddle and flat pedals. And that may be the future for my Centurion Ironman road bike in 10 years if my neck continues to deteriorate.

Helderberg

As stated before you really need to test ride what ever bike you buy and I mean a good few minutes on smooth and broken surfaces. Also earlier stated, I can attest to the "what I bought then is not what I want now" thought. I found the Cannondale line of bikes fit me best. I bought what I thought would be my last bike ever and have bought two other bikes that were either a better version of the first and a bike I would have never thought I would be able to ride at 71 years of age. I am not talking about a race bike or some exotic machine just now I have different goals as my fitness level has changed. Buy what fits you and has a good base quality that if you want to you can improve upon or have a decent resale value to put toward a better version. Just my experience as I cost myself some real money not thinking far enough down the road. Best of luck and what ever you get I hope you have many, many miles of enjoyment.
Frank.

big john

I think lighter is better, especially that much of a difference (14 pounds!) The Pashley seems more like a novelty or art object than something to go 20+ miles.
I'm not a weight weenie, I've ridden cross country on a 50 pound touring bike and my current road bike is about 18 pounds which is not light by today's standards.

A friend has spinal stenosis and she can no longer ride a road bike but she can go fast and climb well on her full suspension mountain bike which weighs about the same as that Trek. She does ride a hybrid on the road but I don't know how much. I'm sure the position on the bike is the most important thing for you to consider.

sch

Disc brakes and light weight are a plus if there are any hills in the area you are riding or if rain occurs while on a ride. If flat then the weight variance is
not so important, unless you have to pick it up or move it even a little bit without riding. If anticipating some shopping a rear rack and
basket is more stable than a handlebar basket. Maintenance will be a bit simpler with the Pashley but neither bike
should be a maintenance problem. i would favor the Trek.

Bluesfrog

I'm a Trek fanboy as I have used them for commuting for 12 years, fun rides and some fund raising rides that included my first century. I have four of them now. The main thing is to test ride them quite a bit. Then buy it and roll. Be Well, Bluesfrog

PaulH

The Pashley is clearly more practical for daily transportation and likely far more reliable and with less maintenance, but the Trek would be more fun. The Trek has an exposed chain that can foul or shred clothing and lacks a headlight or taillight. Both are quality bikes. It all comes down to your use case as to which is best. Have you ridden either -- that's an important test.