# Santa Cruz Juliana - Who has one and what do you think?



## Carolyn807 (Mar 10, 2009)

Hey ladies!

I'm on the hunt for a good XC race bike that can also work as a trail bike - I don't do any crazy jumps or heavy technical riding so at 100mm or 120mm front fork will work for my needs. The Santa Cruz Juliana has peaked my interest as an option other than Trek and Specialized which also have bikes that would meet my need.

Anyone have one and want to weight in on your experience?
Thanks!


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## SuperKat (Mar 27, 2005)

You might want to check out the SC Forum if you haven't done so. I've seen a few threads on the bike in there.


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## Trails4Two (May 12, 2008)

*2nd hand report*

My wife tested a Juliana and liked it quite well. Ultimately we ended up with a Santa Cruz Blur instead. I think it depends on fit and suspension preference. The Juliana has a woman specific design, but that only helps if you are the same as the woman they designed it for. My wife (at 5'4" and a lanky 115lbs) found the Blur to be as, if not more comfortable. The suspension on the Juliana is a good design, but quite old. If you are racing some, you might want to check out a few other designs first. Honestly, if we were looking for her right now we would pick up one of the clearance Yeti ASR frames at Jenson. http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/FR289B00-Yeti+Asr+Alloy+Frame+2009.aspx The yeti is a very quick but surprisingly supple bike.


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## MtbRN (Jun 8, 2006)

I have no experience with a Juliana, but I rode a SC Superlight (the "men's version" of the Juliana) for three seasons. I raced the bike two of those seasons. I loved the Superlight, but really wanted a Blur, so I upgraded last year. 

I thought the Superlight was a great all-around cross country bike. A very good climber and very fun and stable on descents. True, the suspension is an older design, but it works very well (which probably explains why it is still being used). 

Two of my riding buddies bought new bikes recently: one bought a Superlight and one a Juliana. The woman who bought the Juliana is racing expert, and she is just as fast on the Juliana as she was on the Trek Fuel she was riding before. She logged one of the top ten fastest women's laps at 2009's 24 Hours of Moab. So as a race bike it ain't bad  

I like my Blur, but sometimes I miss my Superlight


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## Carolyn807 (Mar 10, 2009)

Thanks everyone! I'm on the hunt now to find one to check out at a bike shop in the SF Bay Area and am hoping SC brings one to Sea Otter that I can check out!


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## MTBmoose (Dec 31, 2003)

My wife rode the earlier version of the Juliana for a couple of seasons and really liked it (and still has it as her backup bike). As her personal mechanic, I can vouch for how easy it is to maintain. The earlier versions actually had more differences between them and the Superlight they were based on, like shorter top tubes, lower standover, smaller grips, lighter sprung forks, etc. This really isn't true anymore with the latest Juliana/Superlights. Other than the Juliana being offered in an x-small, there is no difference between the Juliana and the Superlights other than the stickers. 

My wife does prefer her BlurXC over the Juliana, but that's mostly because the pedaling is slightly more efficient and it has an inch more travel in the x-small size versus the previous version of the Juliana (I think the new ones are all 4" front/rear, but not sure, while the older Julianas only had 3" in the rear in the two smallest sizes). The BlurXC is more complex to maintain with all the extra pivots, but not annoyingly so, and is more expensive than the Juliana. The Juliana continues to be a relative bargain in the mountain bike world, but if your wife is over 5'4" or so, then a small Superlight will fit identically to the small Juliana. 

Good luck in your search. 

MTBmoose


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## Carolyn807 (Mar 10, 2009)

haha - Thanks MTBmoose - I'm the lady shopping  and I'm 5'8" so am right in the middle of sizing for mens and at the top range for women...I'll see if I can check out a Superlight if a Juliana proves harder to find!


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## mtnbikej (Sep 6, 2001)

Carolyn807 said:


> haha - Thanks MTBmoose - I'm the lady shopping  and I'm 5'8" so am right in the middle of sizing for mens and at the top range for women...I'll see if I can check out a Superlight if a Juliana proves harder to find!


At your size, the Medium Superlight and Medium Juliana are the same exact bike, with different stickers and different Ano color options.

The only real difference between the Superlight and Juliana is in the sizing breakdown:

Superlight: S - XL
Juliana: XS - M

Look at the geometry numbers on the S & M frames on the SC Website.

Basically, they don't make the Superlight in XS size anymore, and the no longer make the Juliana in a L size anymore.

I usually recomend buying the Superlight for resale value. Men or Women will buy the Superlight....where as chances are men will overlook the Juliana just due to name.


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## adventuregirl (Mar 24, 2008)

I would suggest you test ride as many bikes that fit in your criteria as possible. There are a number of great bikes that have newer and more efficient suspension designs.
I went to Sea Otter with the intent of riding as many bikes I could get my hands on. They have a loop you can test on...as I recall it's about 5-6 miles long and has a variety of terrain. It's important to get a proper test ride. I do recall that Santa Cruz was not set up for test rides at Sea Otter though...so you may want to check.
Tread is have a demo at Santa Theresa with Santa Cruz representing this weekend. Here's a link;http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=603592
Happy shopping


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## 246366 (Jul 3, 2004)

*try a blur*

I owned one for two years and never got on with it. I'm 5'6" with a 32 inseam and even though I'm short in the torso, I always felt cramped. I switched over to a medium Blur and loved it. I now have a med. Blur LTc and love that too. You might want to do a comparison to see what works (I tried everything to make the Juliana work as my husband surprised me with the frame, but after several stem/seatpost combos, I just switched to a Blur and my riding improved by leaps and bounds).

Good luck in whatever you chose.


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## Carolyn807 (Mar 10, 2009)

Thanks adventuregirl - I've started test riding and you are right they didn't have Santa Cruz to test ride at Sea Otter. I talked to one of the SC guys at Sea Otter however and there is mtnbikej is right there is no difference between the superlight and julianna other than the Juli comes in a smaller size option. I missed the Tread demo day sadly due but they are having one at Demo next month I'm planning to check out if I can't get a Superlight/Julianna before that to test from a shop...


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