Any Lightweight Step-Through Bikes?

Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

On Aug 11, 6:08 pm, wrote:
Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

Here's the closest thing I know of:

http://www.fietsgigant.com/assortime...k=stadsfietsen

For a test ride, you might have to take a trip to Holland.

Perhaps your wife could benefit from electric assist? I bet the good
fellows at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont could set you up
with a test ride on something like a step-through Estelle bike or an
eZee Sprint:

http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/im...Sprint1000.jpg
http://www.estelle.de/bilder/tour_28.jpg

Chalo

wrote:
Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

If you're looking for a bike like that sub-30 pounds, forget it.

Look at "http://www.biria.com/bicycles/".

Test riding will be hard, I get the idea that these are not normally
stocked items.

There are "step through" frames of a lot of lightweight bikes, but I
guess not as low as you're looking for, i.e.
"http://www.marinbikes.com/bicycles_2007/html/bikes/bike_specs/specs_redwood_w.html"

wrote:
Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made: http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.


What about this, "http://www.rei.com/product/744789" is it low enough?

On Aug 11, 4:47 pm, Chalo wrote:
On Aug 11, 6:08 pm, wrote:

Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

Here's the closest thing I know of:

http://www.fietsgigant.com/assortime...hp?id=3318&rub...

For a test ride, you might have to take a trip to Holland.

Perhaps your wife could benefit from electric assist? I bet the good
fellows at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont could set you up
with a test ride on something like a step-through Estelle bike or an
eZee Sprint:

http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/im...er/tour_28.jpg

Chalo

Thanks. That bike is over 33 pounds. It looks and weighs the same as a
number of "comfort bikes" on the market in the U.S. today. I was
hoping to find something in the 20-25 pound range.

She may need an electric assist, but I'd never get her to agree to
it. :)

On Sat, 11 Aug 2007 17:38:57 -0700, caseydoug3 wrote:

On Aug 11, 4:47 pm, Chalo wrote:
On Aug 11, 6:08 pm, wrote:

Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

Here's the closest thing I know of:

http://www.fietsgigant.com/assortime...hp?id=3318&rub...

For a test ride, you might have to take a trip to Holland.

Perhaps your wife could benefit from electric assist? I bet the good
fellows at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont could set you up
with a test ride on something like a step-through Estelle bike or an
eZee Sprint:

http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/im...er/tour_28.jpg

Chalo

Thanks. That bike is over 33 pounds. It looks and weighs the same as a
number of "comfort bikes" on the market in the U.S. today. I was
hoping to find something in the 20-25 pound range.

She may need an electric assist, but I'd never get her to agree to
it. :)

How about a folding bike? Most have have a low top tube. Bike Friday and
Dahon (and probably other manufacturers) have light-weight models in your
weight range.

http://dahon.com/index.htm

http://www.bikefriday.com/

On Aug 11, 6:09 pm, Gary Young wrote:
On Sat, 11 Aug 2007 17:38:57 -0700, caseydoug3 wrote:
On Aug 11, 4:47 pm, Chalo wrote:
On Aug 11, 6:08 pm, wrote:

Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

Here's the closest thing I know of:

http://www.fietsgigant.com/assortime...hp?id=3318&rub...

For a test ride, you might have to take a trip to Holland.

Perhaps your wife could benefit from electric assist? I bet the good
fellows at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont could set you up
with a test ride on something like a step-through Estelle bike or an
eZee Sprint:

http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/im...nt1000.jpghttp...

Chalo

Thanks. That bike is over 33 pounds. It looks and weighs the same as a
number of "comfort bikes" on the market in the U.S. today. I was
hoping to find something in the 20-25 pound range.

She may need an electric assist, but I'd never get her to agree to
it. :)

How about a folding bike? Most have have a low top tube. Bike Friday and
Dahon (and probably other manufacturers) have light-weight models in your
weight range.

http://dahon.com/index.htm

http://www.bikefriday.com/- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I'll take a look. A friend has a Bike Friday recumbent, which he likes
a lot. They apparently custom build each bike, which means you can
specify lighter components. Test riding would probably not be
available, of course.

These comments are confirming what I was seeing in my research. There
is apparently not much market for upright or step-through bikes that
are more high end, i.e., carbon fiber frames and lighter parts. (I
said something like this in an earlier post, but I must have hit the
wrong send button -- sorry). Maybe she will have to settle for a
hybrid bike or a heavier bike, or learn to get her leg over the seat.

On Aug 11, 7:38 pm, wrote:
On Aug 11, 4:47 pm, Chalo wrote:



On Aug 11, 6:08 pm, wrote:

Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.

Here's the closest thing I know of:

http://www.fietsgigant.com/assortime...hp?id=3318&rub...

For a test ride, you might have to take a trip to Holland.

Perhaps your wife could benefit from electric assist? I bet the good
fellows at Electric Vehicles Northwest in Fremont could set you up
with a test ride on something like a step-through Estelle bike or an
eZee Sprint:

http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/im...nt1000.jpghttp...

Chalo

Thanks. That bike is over 33 pounds. It looks and weighs the same as a
number of "comfort bikes" on the market in the U.S. today. I was
hoping to find something in the 20-25 pound range.

It's equipped with fenders, full chaincase, skirt guard, luggage rack,
lighting, and even a water bottle and cage. That stuff is in the
picture because it comes with the bike. With the convenience features
removed, you'll find that it's a lot lighter than a bike of comparable
weight that doesn't come equipped with all those things.

Because of the unbraced nature of a step-through frame, it takes a lot
more material to provide the necessary level of rigidity. This will
vary according to the material's strength and adaptability to
different shapes, of course, but all else equal I bet the ratio of the
weight of a step-through frame to an equivalently built diamond frame
is about 2:1.

I think you may also be underestimating the degree to which a 5-10
pound difference will give your wife the ability to tackle any terrain
or conditions that she wouldn't be able to take on anyway. Of course
a lighter bike is incrementally easier to climb hills with, but the
main benefit of a lightweight bike might not be how much easier it is
for your wife to ride, but just in how much it makes her want to ride
it.

It's probably not a bad idea to simply find an aluminum step-through
frame, of any pedigree, and build it up with racing MTB and road bike
parts. You could even consider getting a value-priced or secondhand
racy bike, and swap all the relevant parts over to a step-through
frame. That might be your best opportunity to get into the weight
bracket of interest without tracking down Damon Rinard to make you a
custom frame.

She may need an electric assist, but I'd never get her to agree to
it. :)

Tell her all the cool kids are doing it. It's incredibly fun, and a
great way to reduce car trips and get some exercise even when you're
insufficiently motivated for a ride.

Chalo

wrote in message
ups.com...
Because of arthritis and other problems, my wife needs a bike with a
low, step-through frame and a fairly upright seating posture, but not
so loaded up with "comfort" features and heavy low-end parts that she
can't pedal it up the hills of Seattle. I've looked, and the only step-
through bikes I've found are pretty heavy and clunky. We'd be willing
to spend the money for the right bike if it exists. Here's an example
of the right bike, except it's custom made:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/betty.htm

Can anyone recommend a make and model that comes close? It has to be
one she can test ride.



There are some older "mixte" frames made by Triumph, Motobecane, Peugeot and
others with very low top tubes that you may be able to find at a garage sale
or through craigslist, and swap out all the heavy steel parts with high end
mtb or road parts, especially wheels. You will have to do some work,
though.

Angle Lake Cyclery in Seattle should have some Moultons that fit her
needs.