Originally Posted by
cplager
Hi Tom,
If somebody was not climbing hills (the OP is), then the weight of a bike is almost irrelevant, except to somebody who's racing. Once it's up to speed, there's very little difference between a light bike and a heavy bike.
If you are climbing hills, weight matters. But it's total weight (bike + rider + stuff) that matters. At my weight, a 10 lbs difference in bike weight is less than a 5% difference over all.
Lighter bikes often have better (lower friction) hubs/wheels and higher pressure tires (lower rolling resistance) and that can make a big difference, similar to what you describe above.
Cheers,
Charles
It isn't just the overall weight, its where the weight sits. If you have to spin the weight, you will be slower than just strapping on the weight, so lighter wheels, tires, pedals and shoes do a lot for speed and reduced effort. That said, the best way to reduce effort is just to slow down and gear down. If speed matters on your commute, you are bound to be frustrated by lights/stop signs and traffic that will slow you down much more than weight. Just my $.02.