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Many products in this world don’t need to be gender-specific: TVs. Computers. Baseball caps. However, many other items do need to be made to the specific proportions of one gender or the other: Clothes. Multivitamins. And, yes, bikes and e-bikes. Human anatomy is a fascinating thing.
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Within each
gender, there is wild variation in sizes and even proportions. Consider Laurel and Hardy. Despite all that variation, themes and trends do emerge. As a (very) general rule, for a given height, men will have shorter legs and a longer torso, plus longer arms. Also, on average, men are taller than women. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the average man in the U.S. is 5 feet 9 inches, while the average woman in the U.S. is 5 feet 3.5 inches.
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Because most of all bikes and e-bikes are bought by men (What’s up with that?), the majority of all one-size e-bikes are made for a man’s proportions. Practically speaking, what this means is that while many women will be able to adjust the saddle height on an e-bike to suit their needs, they will be left with a long reach from the saddle to the handlebar that will force them to lean forward more than may be comfortable. The more a rider leans forward, the harder it becomes
to control the e-bike and to maintain enough comfort to ride for more than a short time.
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