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7 wicked women’s bikes for mother’s day

For road, adventure and mountain biking

Outdoor sport. Bicycling

Trek Domane SLR 6 Disc Women’s

Trek Domane SLR 6 Disc Women’s

$7,450

This past July, Trek revamp many of it women’s bikes, including the bumpy-road managing Domane. With the IsoSpeed features on the seat tube, you can tune the amount of flex you need when riding gravel, cobbles or the local pothole-ridden routes. There’s also IsoSpeed technology in the head tube, which will keep your hands and wrists comfortable as you log many miles. Wide, 32c tires by Trek’s Bontrager line provide great traction and a bit more squish than skinner tires over bumps. Shimano’s Ultegra components take care of getting you going (from the 50/34-tooth crankset to the 11–32 tooth cassette) and slowing you down (with hydraulic flat-mount disc brakes). With the Project One program, you can tweak the components and get a custom colour scheme.

Liv Hail Advanced 1

Liv Hail Advanced 1

$5,699

If you are looking to steal all the QOM downhill sections in your area, then it’s worth looking at the Hail Advanced 1 from Liv. With 160 mm of travel, few rock gardens will slow you down on your quest for top speed. Tuned with pedalling efficiency in mind, the Hail is no sloth on the climbs, but the spec sheet shows that the Hail wants to be pointed downhill. Truvativ Descendant bars and cranks offer up serious durability, while SraM handles the transmission and braking with 12-speed GX Eagle shifting and Guide RS stoppers. It all rolls on 27.5″ DT Swiss E 1700 Spline hoops. All Hail the new QOM.

Felt VR3W

Felt VR3W

$4,600

Felt has always been meticulous with its carbon-fibre layups. The Vr3w may use the company’s second-tier composite, Uhc Advanced, however, it’s still a top-performing material. Each tube features different carbon-fibre layers to get the right amount of stiffness, low weight and durability. The shapes are important, too. For example, the skinny seatstays help to soak up road vibrations. The fork can flex, but also has the right rigidity to manage the forces produced when the 160-mm-diameter rotor and Shimano rS805 hydraulic brake are slowing you down. At the bottom bracket, you have the Rotor 3d30 Adventure crank with 46/30-tooth rings. This sub-compact gearing is highly spinnable up almost any incline. This bike will have you trying all-new routes, and thoroughly enjoying them.

Scott Contessa Genius 710

Scott Contessa Genius 710

$7,399

After Scott redesigned its Spark line of bikes, it focused on the longer-travel Genius. With a similar silhouette to the Genius, the Contessa Genius 710 also sports some serious technology including Scott’s TwinLoc remote. It has three settings, including a climbing mode that reduces rear-wheel travel from the 150 mm to 110 mm and slightly changes the bike’s geometry allowing for a much better position for going uphill. A host of light parts including SRAM Eagle 12-speed shifting and Shimano XT brakes makes this one of the best-climbing 150-mm travel bikes out there.

Ridley Liz SL40

Ridley Liz SL40

$3,500

While the Ridley Liz SL40 is fit for the pros – it’s been ridden in the Tour of Flanders and Giro d’Italia Femminile – it’s a bike that will also work well on your long rides. It has endurance features, such as a slightly taller head tube to put you just a bit more upright than a race frame would and flattened chainstays that address many of the vibrations produced by the road. The bike comes with 25c Vittoria Zaffiro Pro tires, but you can run treads as wide as 28c. If taking QOMs or town-line sprints are your thing, the frame has the stiffness to channel all your watts from the Rotor 3d30 crankset (50/34-tooth rings) to the Shimano 105 cassette (11–32 tooth) to the DT Swiss r460 rims. The stem, seatpost and handlebars are all Cirrus models by Ridley house-brand 4Za.

Specialized Rhyme Comp Carbon 6Fattie

Specialized Rhyme Comp Carbon 6Fattie

$4,709

Tackle any terrain with the Rhyme Comp Carbon 6Fattie. Butcher 27.5 x 2.8 tires and 150 mm of travel let the Rhyme monster truck over almost any obstacle. Rock gardens become easier thanks to the plush RockShox Revelation RC fork and Monarch RT Women’s RX Tune shock. The bike leans into corners well thanks to the dialed-in geometry. With the SraM GX 11-speed shifting and a Specialized dropper post also in the mix, you might start using the Swat storage offered on the Rhyme to stash all the added confidence this bike will give you on technical trails.

Trek Remedy 9.8 Women’s

Trek Remedy 9.8 Women’s

$6,500

When it comes to slaying trails, the Remedy 9.8 Women’s gives you all the tools you need to conquer any terrain, and have a blast while doing it. With 150 mm of rear-wheel travel and a 160-mm RockShox Lyrik fork, the Remedy won’t shy away from steep technical challenges, while also possessing the agility to get you back to the top. Trek’s Re:aktiv thru-shaft technology ensures the rear suspension has the ability to soak up big hits and maintain great small-bump and pedalling performance. If you have a fever for getting loose in berms and ache to launch jumps, you should really find a Remedy.