So… The rental bike with 26” wheels in Gesunda got the 8-year old going. It became obvious that he needed a bigger bike with full suspension. To cut it short… this is the new family member:
Finding a bike for youngsters just short of 140cm is not easy it turned out – if you want a full suspension. …And if you don’t want to spend ridiculous amounts of money.
I started searching and found the following bikes the most interesting:
- Giant Trance Jr with 26” wheels, similar to what he was riding in the bike park
- Cube Stereo 140 Youth with 27,5” wheels
- Trek Fuel Ex Jr with 26″ wheels
Not willing to pay the 2000+ Euros for a brand new kids bike I started looking for used ones. But, with no success. No one out there! But hang on… Looking at the geometry and comparing with some “women’s” bikes there wasn’t too much of a difference. That’s how I found the Trek Lush. As of 2017 they call it Trek Fuel Women’s. The bike we came across was a 2016 year model but only used two seasons and in mint condition. On top of it; sold by someone who loves biking and seemingly happy to pass it on to someone that would grow into the sport. In spite of arriving home late with the new family member it had to be tested on home turf immediately.
The good old Felt Q24 was up for a new owner in spite of all the great memories it had given us
- The first real MTB ride in the mountains in Romania for my oldest son
- The first MTB race victory for my daughter
- An entry ticket into the MTB world for my youngest son
I posted it on a site and 15 minutes later it was sold. Bye bye…
To the riding… Erik tried my good old Giant and off we went for a boys ride
The Trek is a 15,5” frame with 27,5” wheels but it doesn’t look too big in spite of Carl not yet reaching 140cm.
Great to see Erik enjoying the 9 (!) years old bike.
Carl is totally blown away with the ease of climbing and how it rolls over stuff where he got stuck with the old one. And of course… the speed it gives him 🙂
In a steep corner he takes a crash but the pain is soon gone when realizing that he landed in the middle of blue berries
The bike is great and it becomes the longest ride for him so far – 3 hours away from home. The last part is a pleasant cruise filled with that great feeling of having made a great investment for Carl. Well… And for me :-). Now we just need to find a 29” bike for Erik…
