Specialized Beyond Gender

Specialized has redefined how they design bikes. Bikes are designed for riders, not genders!

For years, bike manufacturers were designing different bikes for men and women. They were working off of the claim that men have longer arms and a longer torso than a comparable height woman.

In 2012, Specialized started working closely with RETUL, a leading bike fit company and started to compile data from the professional bike fits that were being performed.

What they found out is that those claims were largely inaccurate and that ALL riders are equally unique. There is just as much of a chance of variability between two men or two women as there is between a man and a woman.

Designing bikes based on the intended use and different riding types are much more important than designing bikes around gender stereotypes. Going forward, Specialized is going to be designing the best bikes for ALL riders, regardless of their gender.

There still between riders. ON AVERAGE, women are shorter than men and they have wider sit bones. Therefore, Specialized specs wider saddles on the smaller sized frames to accommodate those averages.

There are real anatomical differences between men and women. Therefore, Specialized does still make different products where there is an actual difference. There will still be women’s specific saddles and clothing to address these true differences. But, there will be no difference between Men’s and Women’s shoes or handlebars as there is no data to back up any real differences between the genders.

You can view one of the first examples of the Beyond Gender philosophy in Specialized Roubaix. This amazing bike can be found at your local ERIK’S location or at shopERIKS.com!