If you’re looking for a classic, sit up and beg style bike, Mango might not be the first brand that pops into your head.

Better known for custom road bikes and fixies, Mango should not be overlooked however, by fans of the Dutch style frame.

Want to WIN a Mango Classic Ladies Bike? Enter here…

The Mango Ladies Classic is the prettiest bike in town. Its upright posture makes you feel like the love interest in a 1930’s movie. It also has a wicker basket that you want to put a bunch of sunflowers in every morning.

Twice so far, I’ve returned to where I parked it to find people taking pictures on their phones.

How Does It Ride?

If you’re used to riding a road bike, or even a hybrid, this bike will feel huge on first ride – but not in an unpleasant way.

After hunching over your bike handles for months, the upright riding style of this bike makes you feel instantly more sophisticated on the road without losing any of your speed.

With seven gears, the bike rides best when you make full use them all and don’t sit on the middle gears. It may not be a racing bike, but for a classic frame it’s fast!

The smooth ride is definitely set up for commuters, with the chain guard making it the perfect skirt-friendly frame and the basket and pannier rack at the back making it easy to carry work bags.

As well as looking rad, the sit up and beg style means you’re fully aware of your surroundings. It made me feel a lot more aware of other road users than other styles of bike have in the past.

Comfort

One of my favourite design features on the bike are the leather handles and saddle with hand stitching.

The wide saddle makes for a seriously comfortable ride and proved consistently so during a ride that lasted over an hour and a half.

The saddle suspension helps with the smooth ride, cancelling out any bumps along the way.

The handles look very stylish and I love the swept back handlebars. The stitching can sometimes feel a little irritable on long rides.

So what’s the catch? So far we can only find one. You have to build it yourself. With no physical shop, Mango Bikes are delivered in parts to be set up on arrival.

The bike set up is pretty simple. The frame is done and you only have to fit the wheels and additional parts. It can easily be done without the help of a professional (although  it took two clumsy Cooler writers a fair amount of time to figure it out!)

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The bike comes in two frame sizes. For anyone under 5″5, I would suggest the smaller frame.

After a history of trying to pick up second hand Dutch style bikes online to pretty up myself, I can definitely vouch that it worth buying a bike like the Ladies Classic new – it will make all the difference to your ride.

With its vintage feel and up to date technical features, you get the best of both worlds.

We’re looking forward to cruising through long weekend afternoons on our new stylish ride.

Fancy winning the Mango Ladies Classic bike? Enter here. Find out more about the Ladies Classic on the Mango Bikes website