After retiring in 1997, World Champion Juliana Furtado felt the need to provide women with a dedicated mountain bike similar to the ones she had custom built for her during her racing years. With nothing readily available off the shelf, Julie worked with Santa Cruz Bicycles to introduce one of the first women’s specific mountain bikes, the Juliana in 1999. Based off the Superlight platform, the Juliana was a lightweight single pivot design with women’s geometry. Now, the Juliana has evolved to include a full line of bikes, parts, and soft goods all tailored specifically to suit women’s needs. Like the original, the new bikes will be produced by Santa Cruz Bikes but sold under the Juliana brand.
Including both full suspension and hard tails, the Juliana line of bikes also includes every current wheel size, even multiple sizes on the same bike…
As the flagship of the line, the VPP Furtado is essentially a women’s Blur TR at 125mm travel, but it has 27.5 wheels. Sold in S, M, and L (16.3, 17, 18.5) all sizes are built with 650b wheels and should fit women between 5’1″ and 6’1″. Each model of Juliana bikes will have different built levels called the Terco, Segundo, and Primeiro with the Primeiro at the highest end of spec. In the case of the full suspension bikes, Primeiro level frames get the carbon treatment, while Segundo frames stick with aluminum. Juliana bikes also feature a mountain compact bar and grip system which yields a better fit for riders with smaller hands.
Dropping in travel, yet growing in wheel size, the Joplin retains the VPP suspension design of the Furtado yet packages it in a 100mm 29er platform. Again, the Joplin is sold in S, M, L (16.5, 17.5, 18.5) with all three sizes rolling on the big wheels. Offered in Primeiro, Segundo, and Terco, the Primeiro lightens things up with a carbon frame and higher end parts.
The aptly named Origin is the modern incarnation of the bike that started it all. As a light weight single pivot 100mm travel frame, the Origin mixes things up with an XS (15″) size which relies on 26″ wheels while the S, and M sizes use 29″. Because of the smaller wheel size, the Origin will fit riders down to 4’8″, quite a bit smaller than other bikes in the line. Sold in Primeiro and Segundo versions, the Primeiro Origin sticks with aluminum rather than carbon.
Finally, there is the Nevis – a simple aluminum hardtail built to fit smaller riders. Like the Origin, the Nevis is split on wheel size with the smallest version using 26″ wheels, while the S and M frames bump up to 29″. A 27.5″ hardtail remains to be seen.
All Juliana bikes will carry a Lifetime Crash Replacement and Pivot Bearing warranty (where applicable), along with a 5-year frame warranty to the original owner.
