Step through bikes

When I was a kid, only kids rode bikes.  Essentially, no adults rode bikes.

A bike with a top crossbar was a "boys bike".  

A bike with a lowered crossbar was a "girl's bike".

Nowadays, lots of adults are riding bikes.  Partially for health, the environment, or just to have something fun to do.

A few years ago, they realized that older people, especially men, aren't really that flexible.  Getting your leg all the way over the top bar on a large adult bike is difficult.  In addition, when you are crossing the street and you need to precisely  establish your right of way, it's not helpful if it's hard to get off and on your bike quickly.  Also, if you have a rack and a lot of bags/panniers to haul your groceries and other stuff, it's harder to swing your leg over.  

I just changed my main bike for this reason to a step-through bike.  I can get off and on easily and it's much better for crossing streets and making short trips for errands, for example.  It's much more comfortable.   Check it out:
John S
PDX OR

My father in his later years had the same problem with his old mountain bike. Since he was in town with decent bike/walk trails he bought a cargo trike with a step-through frame. He put a lot of happy miles on that thing.

Yes, Portland is an extremely bike-friendly place.  Lots of weird cargo bikes and kid carrying machines.   One of my friends is planning on buying an adult trike for his wife, who is not really confident on a 2 wheeled bike.

John S
PDX OR

So now I'm curious: why does anyone use a "boy's bike" then?

I figured the high crossbar must be there for structural/stability reasons. If you are opting for a step-through bike and you don't perceive any noticeable downsides, it must mean that if bikes with high crossbars have a structural or stability advantage it's only at the extremes of performance requirements, right?

(Does this mean serious female cyclists use "boy's bikes"? I'm totally outside any cycling community and don't watch the Olympics so I don't know but maybe someone else here does.)

I can say why I personally have been using a bike with a high crossbar my whole life: acculturated gender roles! In other words, I would feel less manly otherwise.

Or at least that was true until I read the OP. Now, having read it and thought about it for 10 seconds, I think next time I'm in the market for a bike I'd probably be inclined toward a step-through design. I don't have trouble swinging my leg over, but it'd be nicer if I didn't need to, especially if I had to get on or off in a hurry.

When I ride my bike--my current one is a "hybrid"--it's pretty much always just around my suburb, and almost exclusively just for moderate exercise, so this isn't exactly a pressing issue for me, but it was interesting to think about so thanks for that.

My wife bought an even lower step-through frame Biria from a rental company at the end of the season a couple of years ago.  She'd had a chance to ride it for a day on Mackinaw Island, and took a shine to it.

She uses it a lot, in season - to and from work, down to the grocery store, just for exercise/pleasure, etc.

It looks something like the attached.

She loves this bike.

I've switched to a recumbent, which is decided;y un-handy in exactly the ways to which the OP has alluded.  But, on other counts, it's a vast improvement for me - I can ride again - so I'll deal with it.

Hi Ned,

It is my understanding that the design of the boy’s bike offers two benefits.   The frame is stronger. The way the frame flexes is part of the action of the suspension.  

It makes sense that a triangular shaped bike frame would be stronger. But my kids have smashed up a lot of bikes, and never damaged the frames. They've ruined wheels, handlebars, seats, and pedals. I've got to imagine that if you wreck your bike hard enough that having a high frame vs a step frame is the only thing that saves your bike, at that point a bent bike frame is the least of your worries.

Decades ago, a fellow came from Western Europe to work at a research institute and was looking for a "girls" bike, because he hadn't been raised with North American prejudices and had been taught that in traffic, the low bar bikes are much safer - if you have to jump off your bike in a hurry, it's easier to do and less risk of guys getting hurt where it really hurts.

My engineer Hubby insisted when he got a new bike that the better engineered top bar was the way to go. However, 15 years older, and it wouldn't surprise me if he would consider alternatives if he was in the market today.

When I was cycling a lot, I was talked into the top bar due to engineering reasons. You could get a lighter frame by getting a top bar bike, and since at that time I was loading the bike in a car a lot, I agreed.  Later, when using it to bike the kids to school, it was more hazardous with the top bar. We eventually replaced the handlebars to the up-sweep kind which helped, but it was a bit of a Frankenstein job, and so eventually we replaced the whole thing. The new low bar frame was definitely heavier than the old frame, but the comfort and safety was worth it.

I am over 60 years old.  The idea of going off jumps, etc. doesn't intrigue me. If I wanted a real mountain bike for single track tough stuff, I'd get one.   I have fallen over many times trying to get off the bike with a high bar.  I don't think that I will ever damage the lower crossbar on a step through.  

Mine is a bit heavier than my old bike with the high crossbar. Partly that's because it's a pretty cheap bike.  I bike to work and shopping, to parks, to play pickleball, to go skateboarding, all over.  I like having a cheap bike that no one wants to steal.  I use it for shuttle when paddling white water rivers. Some of my friends won't bring their bikes because they cost thousands of dollars and will get stolen. It's inexpensive in many ways. It's stress free.   I also worry about it less, because no one wants to steal, then hold onto a cheap, strange looking bike until they can sell it for $25.

John S
PDX OR

My cargo bike is so long and with a rear basket and panniers a step through is a must.

My son and I just started restoring my Grandma's Schwinn Breeze. It's a gorgeous old step-through. We started by cleaning off the decades of dust so that some of the beauty will show again. It's got a Sturmey-Archer 3 speed rear hub. So I look forward to learning how to regrease it. Of course, the first step is to put all-new rubber on it. The tube and tire were Schwinn, so they might be original. The front was still holding a bit of air.

Jeremy VanGelder wrote:It's got a Sturmey-Archer 3 speed rear hub. So I look forward to learning how to regrease it..

A good place to start for technical and maintenance info on the old S-A internally geared hubs might be the Sheldon Brown website:
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/sturmey-archer_tech.html

That's a gorgeous bike Jeremy. So glad to see that it's going to get some love!

Hubby is a total fan of internal hub gears because they aren't as bothered by mucky roads. If the ratio isn't quite right for your local terrain, you may be able to shift it up or down if you can find a different sized chain wheel. I have a modern one, but it could cope with the two steep hills I have to deal with, so we changed the chain wheel to make it more uphill friendly.  It means I top out sooner going down hill, but I'm OK with that as I'm not into speed.