That's a good point, as my wife, while not a petite little girly-girl (she's 5'10", and before she was pregnant she weighted about a buck and a half, give or take), has always had some trouble racking the slide on my Glock 21. She can do it, but it take a concentrated effort on her part.

We went to Gander Mtn. yesterday to look around (funny how the car just seems to auto-pilot itself there, right guys! Must be something wrong with the steering!) and I had her handle both the 4" XD9 and the sub compact XD9, and she really liked the 4" version alot. I had her compare the feel to a Glock 17 and she preferred the XD. She also was able to rack the slide without too much effort, which is good. I also really like the XD's grip. It feels more natural to me, somewhat more like a 1911 with a palm swell. It'd also be a great gun for CCW if my state ever pulls its head out of its butt and revises the "may-issue" to "shall-issue."

Mike