How important is weight?

[Quick Shifter]

I'm an old guy (mid 60's) who has been riding on the road all my life. This winter I've been feeling that time has been catching up with me - I've been feeling tired and lacking in energy on my rides and my leg muscles have been aching. Today I went for a ride on my best bike and felt great! I seemed to have loads of energy and apart from not feeling tired at all, felt that I could have done another ten miles.

I have two bikes, both with identical frames (Reynolds 525) my winter bike has Shimano Tiagra, fairly cheap wheels, and mudguards, while my summer bike has Campy Veloce, some nice hand-built wheels and no mudguards. I would guess that the winter bike weighs a couple of pounds more. Both are well maintained and the wheels spin freely, with no brake drag or mudguard contact. Here's the question: can a couple of extra pounds make that much difference?

 

[cyclintom]

Well, here's my opinion. I have some older steel bikes - my favorite is a Basso Loto. On the road with a water bottle and seat pack it's 26 lbs. I have spend most of the last 30 years riding Colnagos. They were in general heavier than other brands. But when I was young the slight difference in weight didn't seem to even be noticeable.

Now I'm in my mid-70's but I still like the latest and the greatest but can't afford the needlessly expensive. So I'm

riding a Campy 10 speed group on a Colnago CLX-3.0. Ready for the road it's about 20 lbs. Early in the season when I'm out of shape again I can tell the difference in bike weight but it isn't a lot. One of the problems is that if it is easier to ride you tend to ride faster and expend as much or even more energy.

The first ride after a short layoff makes you feel like superman because you're completely recuperated. But the first ride after a longer layoff you feel slow. Do a ride the next day and you feel like the remains on your lawn after all the neighbors walked their dogs past your house.

So, if you want a lighter bike, get it because you want one and not because it will ease the pains in your legs or help you keep up with the younger guys because it won't.

 

[jhuskey]

A couple of pounds won't make a difference unless you are in a heated race on steep inclines. Bike fit is much more important and if you want to trim weight start with your body.

 

[ACyclingRooster]

Hi Quick Shifter. I have also found that as I have got older my body is taking a beating from just about everything.
I can no longer play golf - knees; the left one was totally replaced back in November of 2007 and hips ache like hell but my latest grumble is my right elbow joint is giving me some grief during riding on the hoods when I am on my Steve Goff.
I have recently moved the saddle a little further forward to reduce the straight-line effect on my elbows,I am not so bothered when I am on my Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Alu Carbon Flat-bar Road Hybrid.
It does however hammer home that at 73 years young I am no spring chicken and I just might end my cycling days on the Bianchi.

 

[cyclintom]

Hi Quick Shifter. I have also found that as I have got older my body is taking a beating from just about everything.
I can no longer play golf - knees; the left one was totally replaced back in November of 2007 and hips ache like hell but my latest grumble is my right elbow joint is giving me some grief during riding on the hoods when I am on my Steve Goff.
I have recently moved the saddle a little further forward to reduce the straight-line effect on my elbows,I am not so bothered when I am on my Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Alu Carbon Flat-bar Road Hybrid.
It does however hammer home that at 73 years young I am no spring chicken and I just might end my cycling days on the Bianchi.
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That sounds to me more like position than weight. Now I do a lot of climbing and very much on the same dozen climbs. So I can tell the difference in weight. But a lot of It is early season training. I have a Time that has a low gear of 39-25 and I normally climb in the 21 or 23 so that I always have a bailout gear. I go up the same climbs as anything else though I probably go slower in the high gear lighter bike than the lower geared heavier bike. Most of these climbs have 12% grades on them. One is as steep as 16% for a quarter of a mile. I wouldn't take that high gear bike up that.

Then my Colnago is the lightest and I don't much notice it being any easier to go up hard stuff on.

 

[BrianNystrom]

There are a few things going on here. Your heavier bike is going for be harder to pedal uphill and it has the added disadvantage of extra aero drag from the fenders on all terrain. Heavier wheels make the bike harder to accelerate. The combination of these factors should make a significant difference in the way the bikes feel and the effort required to pedal them. That said, how you're feeling physically on any given day will make even more difference.

 

[cyclintom]

There are a few things going on here. Your heavier bike is going for be harder to pedal uphill and it has the added disadvantage of extra aero drag from the fenders on all terrain. Heavier wheels make the bike harder to accelerate. The combination of these factors should make a significant difference in the way the bikes feel and the effort required to pedal them. That said, how you're feeling physically on any given day will make even more difference.

You don't think that this guy is going out and climbing 10% hills do you? He probably rides mostly on flats with a bike with fenders on it. In that case the weight of the bike only makes a difference in accelerating from stop signs. While that is common enough being a little slower off the stop is hardly something that is going to make him feel better by decreasing the weight of his bike.

 

[BrianNystrom]

I don't make uninformed assumptions about how, where or what someone rides. I simply pointed out the effects of heavier wheels and fenders so that the OP and anyone else who reads this can determine what they may experience based on their own riding.

Do you actually have a problem with that?

 

[cyclintom]

I don't make uninformed assumptions about how, where or what someone rides. I simply pointed out the effects of heavier wheels and fenders so that the OP and anyone else who reads this can determine what they may experience based on their own riding.

Do you actually have a problem with that?

Uninformed assumption such as a man who rides is interested in performance? No wonder you went out of business.

 

[banana muffin]

Uninformed assumption such as a man who rides is interested in performance? No wonder you went out of business.

You previously have argued that you bore no responsibility for the tendency for threads on this forum to devolve into juvenile arguments. Your favorite sparring partners have abandoned the forum, yet here you are making a personal attack on someone else. You appear to be the common denominator in all these spats.

 

[cyclintom]

You previously have argued that you bore no responsibility for the tendency for threads on this forum to devolve into juvenile arguments. Your favorite sparring partners have abandoned the forum, yet here you are making a personal attack on someone else. You appear to be the common denominator in all these spats.

While I agree with you, I wouldn't do that with virtually all of the members here though Brian makes a point of arguing for no other reason than to argue. The difference in ergonomic energy in a 20 lb bike and a 28 lb bike with a normal rider of the OP's age (normal weight for a 60+ year old lifetime rider could be assumed to be 180 lbs.) going 15 mph - rather fast for someone having exhaustion problems, is about 3%. We don't have to make any brash assumptions to say that a lighter bike isn't going to change his exhaustion.

Since I am over 10 years older than him an have the same problems at the start of every season I would suggest that it is due to lack of training. Or possibly not pushing his training regime. Because of rain here in the SF bay area and other things, I haven't been able to ride for almost 4 months save on rare occasions. So I get tired after a 22 mile ride whereas after I've brought my training up, metric centuries are no problem whatsoever. Two years ago I went on a century with some people and we deleted a silly side route that took 20 miles off of the ride. It was almost entirely climbing and over the last 10 miles it was flat and I averaged 28 mph trying to catch up with the others who had gotten one light in front of me. So I had good reason to have almost total exhaustion because it is seldom that even pro-racers are called upon to do 45 kph for 10 miles solo.

Though my suggestions should only be taken in a general manner and if someone is feeling what he considers to be exceptional exhaustion he should see a doctor about it. This could be a sign of diabetes or other serious diseases which a normal blood test could identify. These sorts of things occur to senior citizens with far more regularity than a 30 year old.

But nevertheless they are RARE taken as a proportion of the aging population.

 

[BrianNystrom]

Uninformed assumption such as a man who rides is interested in performance?

Have you completely lost your mind? He asked about why his performance on his two bikes seemed so different. How much clearer can it be than that?

No wonder you went out of business.

What in the world are you talking about?

 

[cyclintom]

Have you completely lost your mind? He asked about why his performance on his two bikes seemed so different. How much clearer can it be than that?


What in the world are you talking about?

Brian, I suggest you attempt to grow a sense of humor. Even at your age it can be done. Performance Bicycle is in bankruptcy if you think about it.

No 65 year old man is doing hard climbing on a bike with fenders. What goes up must come down and the easiest way to kill yourself is a rapid descent on a bike with fenders on it. If you try to moderate your speed you can lose your brakes and if you go fast in order to coast down to a lower speed on the flats you can have a fender bending under and locking a wheel.

So this isn't making an unfounded assumption to say that he is riding on the flats since he did state that he was a life-long rider. That would mean that he has learned the inherent dangers of riding.

I don't know what age you are but I suspect you're approaching senior citizenship. At first you don't feel any effects of aging. At just 70 I was giving some fast guys a head start up the hills - up to 1/4th mile and then running them down before the top. But each year after that the power output I'm capable of doing comes down.

There is NO WAY of stopping the aging process and the speed at which it occurs is different for different people. My best friend who saved my life isn't 60 yet and is a cripple whose joints are giving out and who now has sciatica so badly that he is laying on his back on the floor most of the day and taking opioids like breathing. He is supposed to see a spine specialist tomorrow and hopefully the worst of his pain can be alleviated. Just hope that something like that doesn't occur to you. I am lucky enough to come from a very healthy family who managed to kill themselves from their own poor judgement whether from smoking or using drugs or not following the rules for treating diabetes.

Buck up man and get that chip off of your shoulder because you're likely to need friends at any minute.

 

[BrianNystrom]

Brian, I suggest you attempt to grow a sense of humor. Even at your age it can be done.

If you actually posted anything funny, I'd recognize it. So far, it's been nothing but stupidity and insults.

Performance Bicycle is in bankruptcy if you think about it.

What does that have to do with anything in this thread?

No 65 year old man is doing hard climbing on a bike with fenders.

There you go making stupid, uninformed assumptions again. I know some riders who commute that would kick your ass up one side of a climb and down the other.

What goes up must come down and the easiest way to kill yourself is a rapid descent on a bike with fenders on it. If you try to moderate your speed you can lose your brakes and if you go fast in order to coast down to a lower speed on the flats you can have a fender bending under and locking a wheel.

Are you from another planet or something?

What in the world do fenders have to do with losing your brakes while descending? As a point of reference, my girlfriend and I did a dirt road ride in Vermont last year with long descents in the 10-17% range with fenders on our bikes so we didn't get covered in mud. We were regularly well over 30mph and we didn't lose our brakes or die, obviously.

BTW, my girlfriend will be 70 on Saturday and she could probably kick your ass, too. With fenders!

So this isn't making an unfounded assumption to say that he is riding on the flats since he did state that he was a life-long rider. That would mean that he has learned the inherent dangers of riding.

It is absolutely another mindless, unfounded assumption. I would hope that he's learned about the real risks or riding, rather than the made up ******** you posted above.

<mindless rant about aging deleted>

Yes, Tom, I'm not a young guy and I'm feeling the physical effects of aging. At least I still have a sound mind, something that you apparently no longer do. You've demonstrated that repeatedly with these insane, wandering rants that are so full of misinformation that they're dangerous. For a while, you seemed to calm down, but now you're back to your old **** again. If you're on medication, you need to get it adjusted, because what people here see in you is a crazy person spouting off nonsense.

Buck up man and get that chip off of your shoulder because you're likely to need friends at any minute.

Says the man who has gone out of his way to alienate everyone else here. That's too funny! What a hypocrite!

I guess I'll just have to go back to posting this warning to others here:

"For anyone reading the above post from "cyclintom” , do not take his word for anything, as he frequently posts inaccurate or misleading information that could be potentially dangerous. Make sure that you double-check everything using reliable sources of information before making any decisions that could result in physical or financial harm to you or anyone else. We don't think he does this maliciously, he simply doesn't know what he's talking about and refuses to listen to anyone who attempts to correct him, so don't waste your time. Unfortunately, he seems to be a lost cause."

 

[cyclintom]

In another thread on another site someone said that cycling prevents you from turning into a jerk. He most assuredly hasn't met you. Every single comment you make shows that you have no intentions of making the slightest attempt at saying anything sensible. You are here for one purpose only - to exercise your right to be a jerk.

I would REALLY like to see you doing a 17% grade on a bike with fenders without riding the brakes the entire way since on a 10% grade you can go well over 40 mph. And on the local 18% grade you can do 60. Well it must be those fenders slowing you down to 30.

By all means do brag about how great you are. It gives me a good idea of what you're like in person. If your girlfriend is 70 why do you have a picture of yourself as a young man racing? Or is that simply a picture from a local crit and you're trying to make everyone think it was you? Or are you a young man with a mother complex?

 

[BrianNystrom]

In another thread on another site someone said that cycling prevents you from turning into a jerk. He most assuredly hasn't met you. Every single comment you make shows that you have no intentions of making the slightest attempt at saying anything sensible. You are here for one purpose only - to exercise your right to be a jerk.

Have you ever heard of the psychological term projection"? They should have your picture in the definition.

I would REALLY like to see you doing a 17% grade on a bike with fenders without riding the brakes the entire way since on a 10% grade you can go well over 40 mph. And on the local 18% grade you can do 60. Well it must be those fenders slowing you down to 30.

Whoever said that we didn't use the brakes? What I said was that we didn't lose our brakes, as you incorrectly assumed would happen. We were also riding on dirt which was damp or wet at times, on bikes that are more upright than our road bikes, wearing clothing for 45 degree temps and making no effort to be aero. There were loose sections and corners that required us to keep our speed under control.

BTW, neither of the 'cross bikes we used is designed to accommodate fenders (no eyelets or through-drilled forks), so I had to jury-rig some of the attachment points and yet, they stayed on just fine while we bounced over rough surfaces and we didn't die as you predicted would happen above. So much for you wisdom...

By all means do brag about how great you are.

What have I bragged about, Tom? You're projecting again.

It gives me a good idea of what you're like in person.

You don't know me and I'm thankful that you never will.

If your girlfriend is 70 why do you have a picture of yourself as a young man racing?

Are you talking about the post icon? That's some stock pic that the forum uses by default. I just never bothered to change it. Look at any thread and you'll see the pic. You thought you were being clever, but how stupid do you feel now, Tom?

Or are you a young man with a mother complex?

You are a sick, disgusting individual, Tom. Talk about showing your true character...

 

[jhuskey]

Tom you will receive no more warnings. It is obvious you cannot get along with others.

 

[BrianNystrom]

Tom you will receive no more warnings. It is obvious you cannot get along with others.

Hi jhuskey,

Is that why Tom calmed down for a while? Did you warn him previously? For a couple of months, we were actually able to have rational discussions and it was rather enjoyable. I hoped he had turned over a new leaf.

I'm glad to see that someone is stepping in to moderate. If you feel that I've crossed the line anywhere or that I'm getting even remotely close, please let me know. I don't want to be a source of conflict here.

My interest is in helping other riders. I would much rather not feel compelled to correct Tom's misleading posts, but I don't want anyone else here to get hurt by something he says.

 

[cyclintom]

Tom you will receive no more warnings. It is obvious you cannot get along with others.

I find it really interesting that after the sort of comments that Bryan has been making you are warning me. Well you don't have to "warn" me again. A man that said that he descends wet dirt roads on a road bike on 17% grades has all of the great ability necessary for this group.

 

[jhuskey]

I find it really interesting that after the sort of comments that Bryan has been making you are warning me. Well you don't have to "warn" me again. A man that said that he descends wet dirt roads on a road bike on 17% grades has all of the great ability necessary for this group.

This not the first time you have been warned. Far from it.