Originally Posted by lhbernhardt

I think that the most noticeable effect on handling of a lighter bicycle is in the way it handles on corners, especially bumpy ones. In auto racing, you want to reduce what's called "unsprung weight." This is the weight of anything between the suspension system and the ground. Which is why race cars use alloy wheels; less unsprung weight means less mass to move, so the tires tend to stick to the ground better. On a bicycle with no suspension, YOU are the suspension system, so the entire bicycle becomes "unsprung weight." The reason you unweight your saddle and weight the outside pedal on a hard corner is NOT to lower your center of gravity (this is really a laughable presumption if you think about it), it is to reduce unsprung weight to just the bike. If you keep your weight on the saddle, the whole bike/rider system is unsprung, and you feel the jarring of the road as you go around the turn, and you're more likely to lose control. Unweight the saddle, weight the outside pedal, and now the bike will absorb the undulations while you enjoy a smooth, well-controlled corner.