Originally Posted by
terrymorse
There's more to a climbing bike than simply reduced weight. Add weight to a climbing bike to match an aero bike, and for many of us, the climbing will still climb faster.
Somebody did this test, but I forget who (maybe road.cc). Matched weight, same rider, same watts. The climbing bike still climbed faster. They chalked it up to more efficient energy transfer.
By how much margin? And how long ago was that test?
Even if the test was comparing recent bikes, I'm sure the gain is marginal. I'm not really on either side. My next bike won't have it's decision based on aero frame or not. It wasn't even a factor for why I picked my current bike.