It's not just weight - it's a ratio of power to weight. If a person is 20lb over-weight, the knock-on of such a condition is often (not always) carrying the weight in the form of fat at the same time as lacking muscle and strength. I hover between 155lb and 175lb, but I only hit 155lb after a tremendous amount of exercise and the times I've been at that weight in the last few years have correlated with my body in its strongest form. I've no doubt that I'm significantly faster in that condition. Nowadays I work a lot of six day weeks and am lacking muscle - as a result, and conversely perhaps, I'm sure I'm more sensitive to a difference in bike weight, as I'm having to work harder anyway.
I suppose it could be argued that a body-builder with a minuscule percentage of body-fat could be considered over-weight, but their strength to weight ratio would be very high. So, there are just too many variables to draw a straight conclusion. Of course, a bike that one perceives as light and fast and enjoyable to ride helps to motivate a person to find the same efficiency in their own form. In short, one wants to go for a ride! The weight of a bicycle is only one component in the overall efficiency of the machine (aerodynamics, rolling resistance etc.) and the weight of the rider is only one component in the overall efficiency of the human being (strength, height, endurance, comfort etc.). IanA. On Sunday, May 11, 2014 12:31:59 PM UTC-6, Michael wrote: > > Assuming the 1-manpower engine stays the same. > > From time to time I think of shaving weight off bikes and I wonder if it > really matters for a non-racer person like me who could stand to lose 25 > lbs. > I think if I lost the weight it would be much easier to turn the cranks > than if I shaved 4 lbs. off the bike. > > But I am not sure how these mechanical things work, so I was wondering. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
