Originally Posted by
Jim Kukula
It's certainly a good idea to get up off the saddle to navigate rough patches. But that tactic has its limitations too. If you've got loaded panniers etc., then getting your own weight off the pedals still leaves a lot of weight on the rims, racks, etc. Plus, out in the real world, there can be a lot going on, e.g. traffic and road signs and beautiful landscape etc. etc. so it does happen that one encounters a pothole by feeling it before seeing it.
Generally speaking, the load on the bike isn't going to outweigh the rider. The rider's sprung mass is going to be larger than the bike's unsprung mass so getting off the saddle at the moment of impact will take a lot of stress off the wheels.
As to avoidance, it certainly isn't possible to avoid all potholes but you shouldn't be so enthralled with what is going on around you that you don't keep an eye on the road surface to avoid
most of the potholes you might encounter. If you regularly find yourself in a pothole before you see it, you probably should pay more attention to the road than what is going on around you. You don't have to stare at the road constantly but you should be aware of what is coming up so you can avoid the wheel/frame bending holes.