Hey, so I decided to remove the Surly Nice Rack rear from my Cross Check because I just haven't been using it as much as I thought I would here in Korea where I don't commute much anymore since the school I work at is only 2 blocks away and everything really is just very close and convenient. Seriously, I live above a convenience store. No more long hauls loaded down with crap in my panniers. These days, I mostly just do recreational rides and sometimes I'll take it to go the bar, department store or bank...

Anyway, I just figured it was a useless dead weight penalty and thought I'd see how it handles without the 3 lb (1.3kg) rack. I'm actually kind of surprised that the difference is very noticeable, at least in my mind. Maybe it's a placebo effect but I really think that the bike accelerates faster, is more responsive to my hip steering (as opposed to handlebar steering), and is just a lot easier to haul up the stairs. I'm now only using my Wingnut backpack. Thoughts? Could removing 3lbs really make that much of a difference?


This got me thinking about the other weighty items on my bike. I don't think the stock wheels are the lightest, but that's okay with me for now. I think they're pretty strong. I also got the 420g MKS King Grip or Lambda pedals and a 860g sprung Brooks Flyer. I'm not willing to part with either of those for weight's sake but I might upgrade the wheels some day. So what's the heaviest component on your bikes? Is it worth it to you?