This is a follow-up, a second look, actually more of a rebuttal to a piece that went live on BikeMag/Gear yesterday. In Tilting At Windmills – Mountain Bike Sizing I suggested that bike companies needed, in many cases, to double the number of sizes in any given model of bike to properly serve the riders buying their machines. Four or five stock sizes just don’t cut it when we’re dividing some 140mm of optimum Reach measurements up with only 15mm (35mm-50mm) of acceptable stem length adjustment on modern trail-through-Enduro bikes.
After all, how else does a brand build a bike for properly tall folks, in the 540mm Reach range with a 78-79³ effective STA, cover the concentrated average height curves for men and women, and hit a 400mm-ish Reach for the few 5′ tall folks riding amongst us? How indeed.
The counterpoint to my piece demanding that brands SKU up to some eight stock sizes is that there’s actually a significantly less expensive way to sort out short folks. It’s fast, it’s easy, it’s straightforward.
All you do is take the small bikes on your 4-5 rig spread, the ones optimized around riders who are say 5’4″-ish, and you write on the geometry chart that they fit riders down to 5′ tall. Actually if your marketing department is really on it you throw in a cheeky 4’11” instead. With a 35mm stem and a cut-down bar that 5′ tall rider is going to be able to ride that bike.
The Clairebarian can get on her mom’s rig and pedal it awkwardly up the sidewalk so it’s basically the correct size, yes? I test-ride the bike when I work on it and I can brake, shift all the gears, etc. So based on those two facts, I think it’s accurate to say her Waltworks fits people 4’3″ through 5’9″.
I know, you can’t just go off a geo-chart.
I’m sure if bike shops stocked XS/S sizes*, so Nina-tall folks could try a few, we could make something with a 410-420mm claimed Reach work. Maybe it has a really super-short headtube and by the time we input enough headset spacers, it would be in the sweet spot. Or it has a high enough bottom bracket to micro-mullet the bike with a 26″ rear wheel and with the seat pushed forward to compensate the effective top tube (ETT) and Reach would both be in her wheelhouse.
Some short folks looking for a full suspension rig are going out and picking up high-end kid/youth bikes, like the Chromag Minor Threat V2 or Rocky Mountain Reaper, and I’m going to leave that alone for the moment except to say if you do go down that trail definitely look into have the shock re-tuned for your weight.
Custom is the other option I wanted to touch on. Indeed, this doesn’t help a rider who’s looking at the budget friendliest full suspension rigs, but for anyone looking at premium level mountain bicycles, the cost of a plastic-fantastic frameset from Santa Cruz, Yeti, Specialized, Trek, Transition, etc., and etc., and etc. has you in the cost territory of a nice custom sag wagon from any number of small builders.
*[There’s a beggars/choosers factors here. I am aware of a couple of XS bikes that would fit Nina-sized folks perfectly, but there are other issues with them I’d rather avoid. I’ll also note I’m just using Nina as an example, she’s quite happy on her hardtail.]
The custom is likely going to be a steel frame and weigh a bit more than the nearest carbon size, but it’s going to be rad, fit you, and it’s going to be possible to min-max the parts spec to get just as good, and probably a better, complete bike optimized to your short-person preferences for the same money. Grab some Magura brakes with their HC lever blades or some Hayes Dominions with their SFLs. Save weight on a more diminutive fork chassis, and get the shock custom-tuned at the same time. Yes, resale won’t be as straightforward, and yes there will be a waiting period. Sorry.
Or, if you’re short or helping a short person choose a bike, go with whichever brand you like, buy their smallest size, and ride it. Maybe optimization isn’t everything? As mentioned above, you’re/they’re going to be able to ride it. I just think it would be more fun if brands made a bike for someone your height instead of just writing your height on their geo chart.
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