Originally Posted by
cyccommute
That's what I'm talking about. She's 115 lb and you've got her riding a bike that weighs in at more than 30 lbs. That's 26% of her body weight. Let's say you weigh in at 180 lb. You should go out and ride a bike that weighs 46 lb just to have the same weight differential. You could add half again to that weight to compensate for the muscle mass difference. How do you think you'd feel riding around all day on a bike that weighs almost 70 lbs. I bet you'd struggle up hills too.
FWIW, I'm not much taller or heavier (at 5' 6" and 135 lbs). I see your point, though. The Marlin must feel heavier and require more effort on her, if not by a huge margin. Given the input on this thread, we are now discussing trading the bike in for a lighter hybrid model.