Geo and handling

[Ypsylon]

I'm trying to help a friend deciding on what size Trek Madone she should get.

We've got a pretty good idea of her fit, but thanks to 21 different sizes there are at least 5 frames where she'd fit on with either a 100 or 110 mm stem.

Even though the contact points would always be in the same spot, give or take a couple of mms, the handling wouldn't always be the same.

The 52 and 54 in both the H2 or H3 are pretty much in the middle of the sizes that would work.

The H2 would require a +6° stem, the H3 a -6° stem, but actually less spacers than the H3 with the taller head tubes.

Aesthetics are not an issue, only handling. The H3 looks to have more a focus on stability, but that's not really what she's after. She's not going to race crits or anything, but she'd prefer a bike that doesn't have to be pushed too hard to go around a corner.

I have a favourite, but would really appreciate more opinions.

[rlpaul]

I recently changed the trail on my CAAD10, increasing it (43 vs 45 offset) and I haven't really noticed much of a difference. I suppose if I had ridden it back to back I would have, but I've always ridden with a "longer" trail geometry. It might be slow at low speeds, but at typical riding speeds, its never been a problem. Hell, even just dead-pedaling at like 12 MPH, I've never had much of an issue with it.

I will say, that riding a bike with twitchy steering is unnerving, if you're not used to it. My buddy has an extremely steep headtube angle on his BMX, and whenever I ride it, I feel like I can't even go in a straight line