Here's my slightly different take on the subject: Up until last fall I was riding around on '96 Bianchi Reparto Corse cyclocross frame. Nice bike to be sure (and now I race 'cross on it) but set up for commuting with moustache bars, 28c slick tires, compact crank. I decided I wanted to get more serious about road cycling and that I needed a real road bike. I had a Softride tri-style bike years ago - but that's another story. I considered roadifying my Bianchi some more, but found a gorgeous custom Rodriguez lugged steel bike on craigslist. Checked it out, it was my size so it came home with me. It was in minty condition for it's age (mid to late 80s) and was nicely kitted out with full Campy 9-speed - a mix of chorus, centaur and veloce - all in alloy, no plastic. Shiny FiR medium dish wheelset. I swapped out the bars and stem, put my Brooks on it and it was good to go. So I consider it a nicer bike, but it's clearly not new and I'm sure weight wise not much different than my Bianchi and probably a lot heavier than most of the bikes mentioned in this thread. But man do I love riding it, it's so smooooth. Campy Ergo is awesome. It's making me faster because I love riding it and I'm getting in some decent miles and looking forward to riding it some more, hence improving the engine. So yeah I think a nicer bike can make you faster.