On Monday, January 14, 2013 2:58:13 PM UTC-5, Skenry wrote: > > > The only real way to compair weights is to have a frame built up with > normal duty "heavy" Riv-ish parts and then build it again with lighter > "racing" parts. Then you'd be able to notice a weight diffence. > Scott >
If that's the case, I'll weigh in. I have two identical steel frame bikes - same exact fit on both. One has a full-on race build for CX and weighs about 17lbs. The other has a stouter build for gravel-grinding/rough-stuff and is around at 20-21lbs - but is still worthy as a pit-bike for CX racing and/or fast club riding. I absolutely notice a difference between the bikes, but that difference is irrelevant to 90% of riding I do ... it doesn't matter and I don't think about it. We're talking seconds (and not a lot of them) on a long climb or a TT. That's what any "performance" gain amounts to from dropping a few pounds off a "go-fast" bike, or a rider's weight for that matter. Seconds. Maybe a couple minutes on a long ride. In my experience, step function improvement in performance primarily comes from improved fitness/power, particularly functional threshold power (basically the max power one can sustain for an hour). Far bigger gains in performance can be had there. Would I rather shave 5lbs bike/body or increase my functional threshold power from 300w to 325w? It's a no-brainer. Lightweight might feel good, but being strong and fit feels better - in my case, to the point where I don't sweat a carrying a few extra pounds on my frame or a bike frame. It's not all that different with running. A general rule of thumb that gets kicked around is 2 seconds per mile per extra pound of body weight. So if I weigh an extra 5lbs for a local 5k, i can expect to be about 30-45 seconds slower unless I improved my run fitness along with the weight gain. in any event, we're still talking seconds or maybe a couple of minutes on a 10 mile run. doesn't matter unless it matters, like trying to qualify for the Boston marathon or if somebody is serious about setting personal records (which a lot of runners are). -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/e-FvxKkL6lgJ. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
