I rode my friend’s dual sport and loved it (I attached a google screen shot of what bike I think she has). I saw this for sale and want to try it out but realized the top tube is very low and different. It says Dual Sport 2 and it’s a large. I don’t exactly love the way it looks, and can’t find any info on it online. Also I’m 5’7” so it may be too big? Her M was nice but I didn’t raise the seat enough so it did feel a bit small.
by RepresentedOK
3 Comments
Some bikes have a “step-through” frame with a top tube that angles down and attaches lower, I think that’s what we’re seeing here. It’s to make it easier to get on/off without having to swing your leg all the way up over the frame. Sometimes the same bike will have a step-through option and a regular option.
As far as sizing, I would look up the year and model of the bike and find the recommended size ranges by height and inseam. You should be able to google “2022 Trek Dual Sport” for example and find info on which frame size fits which body size. Beyond that the best thing you can do is test ride it.
Dual Sport had few variations. The first picture is DS Lowstep, the second is Women. Important to know, that there is also “regular” and it had bent frame too in S size and straight top tube in others.
Also, DS gen4 is being phased out now, gen 5 is coming in (stiff fork, lighter, bigger tires).
I think M would be perfect for You, from the height table, but every bike should be first tried on, as different body features makes us fit different frames even with same height.
Some misinformation is making things a bit muddy. Figured worth clearing stuff up.
They don’t have a WSD model (women specific design) which typically just means narrower bars, bigger seat to accommodate narrower shoulders and wider sit bones.
It came in **stagger** frame (**low step** is basically no top tube like on the Verve’s) often time sites/people list things with stagger and step through/thru, low step, frames as women’s… there’s nothing women specific about them though and Trek themselves have gone for a unisex approach a handful of years ago. Bars can easily be cut shorter if needed and saddles already can be extremely individual regardless of gender.
The gen4 is pictured on both of yours. One stagger and the other likely a size S pictured despite being labeled an “M”. A lot of times as they scale the bike bigger for larger sizes the toptube bends straighten out a bit or add/remove butted reinforcement. If they just grabbed an internet picture without validating it is the same size of the sku that may be potentially confusing to someone that hasn’t seen it before as their expectation will be slightly off.
I’d opt for a gen5. As others noted they lose the heavy suspension fork and opt for larger tires. It’s a lower weight solution to add comfort and one less thing to break (Or rust). They’ve also gone 1x and makes your shifting smoother and simpler… and looks better. But if you find a killer deal on a last gen one, you ride it and like it, then why not?