thdave

No apparent reason? This category bike has functional gear for transportation purposes that many find useful. Many bikes sold overseas come this way.

It weighs a lot because it's got a wheel lock, kickstand, integrated lights, generator hub, IGH with lots of range, fenders, rack, chainguard, and thick, kevlar belted tires.

It's about 4 pounds heavier than my Breezer. I assume the difference is mostly in the hub and lights.

Fizzaly

There is no circumstance to why my bike weights what it does.

ItsJustMe

I'm at 11 miles and fairly hilly, with a 37 pound bike. I weigh 180. With the bike, 217. If I had a weightless bike I'd still weigh 180. The difference is not that much.

BattleRabbit

I weigh 190. There is a reason why over flat and level ground I am only about 10% faster on my 19lb bike than I am on my 28lb bike.

Of course when the big hills come I'm about 40% faster on the 19lb bike, but I think that is because it has 2.5x's the gears.

v70cat

This seems like a much better price not sure about weight.

https://www.performancebike.com/bikes...mmaryOnly=true

tjspiel

The Nuvinci hub is like 5.5 lbs. all by itself. Loose that, the rack, the lights, the lock (heavy), the fenders, the chain case, the suspension seatpost, and the generator hub and you have something in the mid/upper 20's. Most bikes are sold without all that stuff.

tjspiel

But it's a significant difference in the amount of unsuspended weight.

Besides, ask someone to carry an extra 10 or 15 lbs of stuff up a couple of flights of stairs. Bet they notice a difference.

jeffpoulin

I weigh 140, commute 22 miles each way, and live in the alps. Given my parameters, the weight matters a lot more.

tjspiel

I think what people are saying is that you can outfit a bike with all the necessary commuting gear and still have it weigh a lot less, especially if you're going to spend $1,300.

cerewa

but you would have to live without a high-quality dynamo-hub & nuvinci continuously variable transmission.

those two parts add a lot of cost and weight, but some people want them anyway.

colleen c

It wouldn't matter. They would have to raise the price if they made it lighter. End result will be the need for a heavier lock. All thing being equal.

dwellman

Ah, but will it run Crysis?

pallen

Bicycling doesn't care that much about "value".

cyccommute 

No, no apparent reason. These bikes




do everything that Breezer will do and both, with battery powered lights, do it with 10 lbs less weight. Since I've switched to Li-ion batteries, they do it for close to 12 lbs less weight. Neither bike has been built to be overtly light weight either.

...And, when I don't need all the extra crap for winter riding, I can strip them down to around 15 lb less than the Breezer. There's not much you could lose off the Breezer to reduce weight.

The mountain bike is even about the same cost as the Breezer.

tjspiel

Agreed. The built-in wheel lock is a nice feature too but it's heavy and a lot of people would consider that alone to be inadequate to secure a bike.

That sort of bike isn't going to appeal to too many "enthusiasts" who would rather select their own accessories but it's nice for people who don't want to fuss with all that stuff. It's not a bike for me but if it helps make commuting more accessible to people who don't want to have to learn a ton about bikes, then I'm all for it.

It would be great if it were lighter, but there's a weight penalty that goes along with the convenience/comfort features.

edit: now that I think about it, the extra weight might be a feature. The wheel lock alone is enough to keep someone from riding away with the bike, and the extra weight is enough to keep anybody from walking away with it.

fietsbob

I like, the convenience of the Ring Lock

I upgraded mine, to get a lockup chain that was integrated to the design..
AXA 'defender' ..

crhilton

And that's with a 250 gram penalty for the brook's on one bike .

crhilton

And if you're in the city hillbilly with a pickup messing with you isn't a big threat.


I talked to someone who has used a wheel lock for decades without theft. But her bike didn't look very nice (although it was a fine bike) and this isn't a high theft town.

tjspiel

Kind of cool how two very different trends are happening at the same time. On the one hand, you have SS/Fixed where the whole point is (mechanical) simplicity and minimalism. Even hand/coaster brakes are considered optional or just plain undesirable.

On the other hand, you have the rising popularity of European inspired bikes that come with everything.

I suppose they are similar to each other as far as ditching the derailleur goes.

no1mad 

I actually had my LBS weigh my rig with everything* except for the water bottle and my backpack. Came in at roughly 35.5 (give or take .1) pounds. Don't really notice the weight except for when I have to pick it up to put it on the bus or throw it in the back of the SUV.

*stock plus Ergon GP1 grips, rear rack, cheap cable lock w/QR mount, mini-pump (that I hope that I'll never have to use), kickstand, rear blinky, cheap wired cyclocomputer, seat wedge with Park MT-1, nylon tire levers (3), glueless patches, and a spare tube. Oh, almost forgot about the two water bottle cages...

Andy_K 

This.

Your body adapts to its normal load. While this means that eventually pedaling and carrying a 37 pound bike might feel normal, switching to a 25 pound bike would still feel nicer. Not to mention, lighter bikes are more fun to ride. They handle differently.

velocycling

I do a bike/train commute with a guy who has that very bike. He is completely happy with it. And he rides it pretty fast, too.

iforgotmename

Nice bikes but please do me a favor and even out the fenders on the salsa...sorry ocd

irclean

Naked (and stock), my bike weighs 27.3 lbs:



Fully kitted, with fenders, lock, lights, tools & other miscellaneous accessories, studded tires, trunk bag full of lunch, and a pannier full of spare clothes & other assorted sundries, I wouldn't be surprised if it's well over 40 lbs:



When I'm on it, and my legs are pumping, my heart's racing, my lungs are filling with clean air, and all I can hear is the sound of the studs chattering and the wind rushing past my ears... I'm weightless.

mrleft2000

I've heard people can really get up to some solid speed on bakfiets. And those look like some hefty beasts of burden.

Anecdotily, for periods of time, my personal records have been on rides carrying a few extra pounds into work. I think once your over 30 pounds naked, it probably doesn't matter as much as having the creature comforts.