Originally Posted by
Rustyoldbikes
The width of a bike's tires are the best clue as to its design limits. A 21mm wide racing tire with an ultra-light racing rim is designed for a rider weighing 120 pounds to 180 pounds. A hybrid with a 35mm tire and a heavy duty rim is designed to handle riders weighing up to 250 pounds or so. A mountain bike with massive tires and heavy duty rims can handle 300 pound riders.
Sadly, bike shops tend to steer everyone with a "fat" wallet to the 16 pound road bikes...even the 300 pound people who simply wanted to ride around the neighborhood to lose some weight.
Wow. What a load of garbage post. Tires don't dictate weight capacity, wheel build does. I ride a road bike with 32 and 36 spoke wheels at 275 with no problems whatsoever, but my wheels were professionally built by a master wheelsmith.
Good bike shops don't practice that kind of sales tactic. You're just used to buying cars too much on credit.