For some time I pondered the idea of getting a different bike. One that would be lighter and well suited to recreational rides, centuries and light touring. My ANT is a beautiful bike to be sure. It was built with fully loaded touring in mind and it’s heavy.
The idea floated in my head for about a year. This July, I started looking more seriously. It’s still the case that I can’t find a serious mass-made bike that I want and that fits my very short stand-over height. The staff at Baltimore Bicycle Works helped me search. There is indeed at least one carbon frame model that would fit, but that’s just not what I want. You spend a lot of money on a good bike and a lot of time on it. It’s aesthetics should appeal to you.
John suggested looking at Soma’s Buena Vista mixte frame. When I have some time to think about it more, I want to write about the general impression out there that mixtes aren’t “real” bikes. John’s idea was the winner. For just a little more than a good off-the-shelf bike, I got a beautiful custom build. I think the BBW people were as excited to build it as I was to get it. They were so great to work with, I can’t say enough good things about the experience. Thank you Josh, Meredith, Brent, and Alex for your patience and enthusiasm. And to Evan at Soma for quickly answering my various questions.
To my surprise it was all built and ready yesterday. I dropped everything and went to pick it up. Here she is, my new beauty:
Yes we went out for a ride later that day. Impression one: this bike really fits me well. No hand numbness or shoulder soreness. Impression two: I am able to ride much faster on this bike. Surprisingly so. Impression three: Wow! Fun!
Mid-Atlantic Bike Commuting 
Georgina Terry…keep her name in mind should you look for another one down the road. Steel frames made by Waterford, semi-custom build…about $3500. Bikes designed for women, particularly women with short inseams.
Yes, that would be a great option to consider.
http://www.terrybicycles.com/Bicycles/Touring The $3500 is for a complete bike, too.
Quite a fair price for what is sure to be a great bike.
Congrats on the new bike. I’ve had my eye on the Soma Saga frame. Beautiful bikes, yours looks awesome.
Thank you, Jessica.
The Soma Saga looks like a great touring bike!
Very nice! I’m actually in the same boat you are. Although a great commuter/load carry, it’s heavy. I have my sights set on a Soma ES. Did BBW help you pick out a size or did you have one in mind?
Hi, Kevin. BBW advised me on size based on my measurements. They made helpful recommendations on components, too, based on my priorities for bike weight, quality and total cost. The ES looks really nice!
She’s a beauty!
I would not have imagined just from the photos of the frame how beautiful the bike would look!
Wow that is quite a beautiful bike – nice work! A good bike is definitely worth the search!
I’m partial to mixtes and the SOMA model is a delight indeed.
I love the Soma as a road bike. Haven’t yet tried it for light touring – looking forward to that.
Hi Nancy,
I am planning on building up a Soma Buena Vista for my partner, but Im still not sure what size to get her. The blogger at Lovely Bike had a great review of both the 50cm and 58cm frames, both built very differently. My girlfriend is 5’4” and has a 29in inseam. I want to build up her bike similar to yours for road riding and touring, so it will have standard road drop handlebars. It will also have 650B wheels. I was also told to have the height of the seat the same as the handlebars for good touring positioning. Anyway, I determined that the 50cm would be the best size. The bike is going to end up looking very similar to your build. I was hoping you might have some other insights you might provide me for making sure I get the right size frame? Thank you!
Hi, Arjun
Best wishes with this! I answered your Google Hangout message and hope the info is useful. I am in no way qualified to advise anyone on frame size! Nor am I very knowledgeable about other aspects of bike fitting; I rely on others for that expertise. But I sent a link for Rivendell Bicycle’s blog posts on the topic and offered a couple of other suggestions too. Thanks for reading our blog. Let me know how the Buena Vista works out!