A couple years ago, we had a customer with a full carbon Specialized Roubaix Pro, probably a 16 or 17-pounder, on which he intended to ride brevets up to and including PBP. He was referred to my shop because we had bags with leather straps that could be safely attached to carbon bars and seatposts. On a lark, I offered him a ride on a Rambouillet, and he thought it was pretty nice (of course). A week or so later, he decided to buy that Rambouillet, but it had already gone to a good home. I had one other that I thought was too big, but he assured me that he wasn't sensitive to trivialities like frame size, standover clearance, and bike fit, and he bought it. He told me later that the Rambouillet, despite being 6-7 lbs heavier than his plastic bike, was, for whatever reasons, quite a bit faster on some of his regular loops. I keep an eye on the local brevet series because many riders are friends and customers, and have noticed that this guy (on his Rambouillet) is usually among the front wave of finishers, even on his "heavy" bike. While weight does have some effect on speed and effort, in this case, at least, other factors were more than enough to compensate for a substantial difference in bike weight.
On Sep 29, 9:57 am, Tim McNamara <tim...@bitstream.net> wrote: > On Sep 29, 2009, at 9:19 AM, John McMurry wrote: > > > On Sep 29, 9:46 am, Bruce <fullylug...@yahoo.com> wrote: > >> Weight is more a mental thing than a real physical factor for the > >> recreational/touring rider. > > > I disagree. For a recreational/touring rider who may stop and start > > quite often, and doesn't push for high speeds; weight matters and is a > > real, measurable, physical factor. > > > I'm not suggesting gram shaving a commuter at the expense of > > durability. But if you're carrying around unnecessary extra pounds; > > they generally won't add to the enjoyment of riding a bicycle unless > > your ride is all downhill. > > I don't know about that. I have a 21 lb bike (my old race bike, with > a heavier and more comfortable saddle than I used to use plus having > swapped out the Campy Ergo stuff for more "sensible" components) and > my All-Rounder which weighs in around 28 lbs with fenders, front > rack, handlebar bag, generator and lights, 30+ year old Brooks Pro, > etc. My speeds on the A/R aren't any slower and I enjoy riding it > much more on hilly or flat rides. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
