Why It Matters That Liv Cycling Makes Bikes Exclusively For Women

With the vast array of bike brands on the market, does gender matter where design is concerned? When many of us were growing up, the difference between boys’ and girls’ bike design was that the former had a straight top tube, while the latter had a u-shaped or step-through frame (historically, to accommodate dresses). Where remnants of that design ethos remain in the low-end kids’ market, these distinctions are more about marketing than performance. But for adult women, frame geometry is a real concern. Many brands make bikes purportedly designed for women, but do they really fit women’s bodies?

Liv Cycling, the sister brand of Taiwan-based Giant, is exclusively devoted to designing and manufacturing bikes for women’s physiology — from frame design and stiffness, to component design and selection, to positioning — in order to provide women with optimal comfort and efficiency on any kind of bike. Designs are based not only on anthropometrical data but also on the lived experience of women on bikes: Liv has women athletes in every bike specialty consulting on every nuance of design, and it’s the only women’s brand that makes its own bikes in-house from start to finish. This means they have control over the entire process, from conception to realization.

Liv was founded in 2008 by Giant Group Chairperson Bonnie Tu, when she wanted to participate in a bike event and couldn’t find a bike that really fit her well. Tu’s personal search resulted in a fuller understanding of the cycling market and its gaps where women riders were concerned. Women’s interest in cycling has grown each year, and the COVID-19 pandemic catapulted interest to new heights, Women’s cycling continues to be one fastest-growing fields in the cycling industry. The brand manufactures road, mountain, cross and gravel, electric, and kids’ bikes, with many variations on each theme for different styles of riders and budgets.

I demoed a Liv Intrigue Advanced mountain bike, whose 27.5″ carbon frame full suspension trail bike was stunningly light. The bike was very easy to customize for someone who hadn’t been in the saddle for, oh, about two decades. It rolls beautifully over rocks and roots, and it seems to have a good amount of forgiveness and stability in muddy conditions. Best of all, it fits my 5’2” frame perfectly. The position of the shifters is ergonomically sound, and the seat height and angle are easy to adjust. Its light weight makes climbing much easier than I anticipated! I can’t wait to develop my skills to see more of what this bike can do.

To get myself in the headspace for mountain biking, I watched the guide content on the Liv website, which includes topics such as basic maintenance, bikepacking, and an intro to mountain biking skills. In 2014, Liv partnered with Ladies AllRide, founded by mountain biking evangelist Lindsey Richter, who has devoted her career to inspiring and empowering women and girls to get on bikes. Ladies AllRide offers instructional camps all across the country, and there’s a ton of content on the LAR YouTube channel, all of which gave me the confidence to give mountain biking a go.

I also spoke with Jen Audia, who works with Liv’s global team in Taiwan, who said that just as important as bikes made for women’s bodies is the issue of representation. “You have to see it to be it,” she offered — “girls and women coming into the sport at any level need to see people like them on bikes — having fun, taking risks, facing fears, accepting challenges — and Liv is investing in women and women only.” Audia added that, “Our welcoming community is the other part of the equation. We’re not only creating bike products and gear, we are also creating the community and the education.”

The partnership between Liv and Ladies AllRide is a natural progression of the movement of women toward sports like mountain biking. Having a community to welcome you, to walk you through any apprehensions, and to help you learn the skills you needs to achieve your goals is invaluable. And if the experience serves to build women’s confidence — both on the bike and in life — all the better.