[brewster]

Just seems like an obvious question when one is worrying about why the bike is hefty at 18lbs?

 

[cwg_at_opc]

ok, i'll go first:

i'm about 165lbs, 5'8", pretty average.
my bike was light when it was first built, right
around 20lbs. i've got lighter wheels on it now
so it's probably 19 and change.

i'd get lighter parts, but i'm saving up for a new ride;
i'm still using SIS on the downtube ;-)

 

[Juanmoretime]

Bike and me.

The one bike weighs 12.95 lbs the other just under 15 lbs. Me, I weigh currently 167 lbs and 155 lbs in season.

 

[alienator]

175lb rider (+/- 3 depending on holidays, intestinal viruses, and access to krispy kreme doughnuts). Bike is currently 16.4, heading south of that when I receive the new wheelset and cranks. Then, it'll be 15.4ish.

Why? Is this gonna be one of those threads where weight weenies get bashed? Believe it or not, there are actually people that understand that the light weight more expensive bits aren't gonna improve their performance. They just like the technical exercise of lightening the bike and/or appreciate the ingenuity/craftsmanship in some of the lightweight stuff.

 

[VictoriaJujitsu]

Just thought I'd throw my two cents in;

I'm with alienator. I like the idea of lightweight parts, and buy them when it doesn't detract from rideability. The idea is not to shave a second off a century, but to enjoy the process of creating a machine as efficient and ingenius as I can afford. The creative simplicity of lightweight is what attracts me to it.

After all that, I weigh about 170, 165 when I'm riding lots, and although I'm not "weight-obsessed", with all other things equal, lighter is undeniably attractive.

 

[cwg_at_opc]

yeah, i'm never gonna race, but i like to _know_ i'm not pushing any
more weight than i need to, especially since i'm an old fart ;-)
i have enough problems getting up hills without hauling extra tonnage.

175lb rider (+/- 3 depending on holidays, intestinal viruses, and access to krispy kreme doughnuts). Bike is currently 16.4, heading south of that when I receive the new wheelset and cranks. Then, it'll be 15.4ish.

Why? Is this gonna be one of those threads where weight weenies get bashed? Believe it or not, there are actually people that understand that the light weight more expensive bits aren't gonna improve their performance. They just like the technical exercise of lightening the bike and/or appreciate the ingenuity/craftsmanship in some of the lightweight stuff.

 

[ericm979]

I'm 148lbs and 8% body fat now. These days I usually get down to 142-143 and 6% or so. I was a bit lighter when I was younger but at 45 that's about as light as I can get.. I like long rides and long climbs. I can feel the difference in my climbing speed when I lose a couple pounds. Neither of the road bikes I have now are weight-weenie bikes.. the Vitus is a rain bike so I don't care what it weighs, and the Airborne Zeppelin comes in at about 19.5 lbs. I'm considering doing some racing again, but only races that involve a lot of climbing. So I am thinking of buying or building something lighter. I've been doing the weight weenie chart thing and I can easily get a bike that's below 16 lbs and still reliable, comfortable enough for all day rides, and not hideously expensive. And without resorting to tubulars.

I enjoy seeing the engineering work and thought that goes into super-light bikes but I don't think I'd want one as my regular bike.

 

[bikeuphill9]

I weigh in at 145 right now and 137 in season. 5'11" 58cm Cdale. My bike is about 18 lbs, but is slowly loosing it. New wheels, new seatpost, new seat, new handlebars and it should be around 16 - 16.5lbs. As for my riding, lots of hills/mountains down here in the southwest corner of VA. Not to mention I love racing, particularly hill climbs. My goal isn't the lightest bike in the world (though it would be nice.) My goal is a light climber that is stiff enough for crits yet will last me a while and won't cost me an arm, leg, and college education. That is why my new lighter wheels will never tough rubber on a course that is less than a mile long.

 

[SantaCruz]

Both my "new" bikes

.... are about 20 lbs (61 cm, & ready to ride). But I love it that there is a whole bunch of people out there buying super expensive weight weenie parts. It's good for the industry, good for innovative companies, good for lots of reasons. And at some time in the future, most of us average cyclists will benefit from better designs, materials, etc.

 

[capt_phun]

I ride a a sub 15 pound giant TCR. I am 177cm tall and weigh around 144, but once i start riding full swing I get to around 139.

 

[spin150]

It all adds up

I agree with the others, it is fun and fascinating to explore lightweight technology that functions and lasts. Performance increases are minimal. But here we go:

Bike: 16 lbs, with lots of lightweight goodies
Rider: 140 lbs
Not bad, the combo at 156 lbs.

But wait.

Add:
two bottles (3 lbs),
seat bag (1.5 lbs)
Carnac Quartz shoes (almost 2 lbs)
another bottle for those non-stop 60 milers
extra tools and spare parts for those rides in the back country
food

And then I just took my lightweight rear wheel out and replaced it with a Powertap. One pound more. Power to weight ratio is not bad, but it is time to work on the power part of that ratio, the weight part is done.

 

[SDizzle]

Just seems like an obvious question when one is worrying about why the bike is hefty at 18lbs?

Deaner: 19lbs. Me: 6'3", 148 lbs.

My only weight obsession: my goal is to put on 10 lbs before the season comes to a head. Seeing as my first race of the season was last weekend, I doubt it's going to happen... Needless to say, I'm having a lot of 6000 calorie days.

Deaner will lose about 1.5 lbs in a few weeks with a new wheelset, but they'll only be for HC and RR events - no crits.

Thanks for posting this thread: my biggest question about WWs has always been the rider to bike ratio... I've heard all sorts of excuses about "it's a hobby" and "I've got the money - why not?" But it all seems like hooey when you're fat.

 

[alienator]

Thanks for posting this thread: my biggest question about WWs has always been the rider to bike ratio... I've heard all sorts of excuses about "it's a hobby" and "I've got the money - why not?" But it all seems like hooey when you're fat.

Interesting. So what is a good reason for getting WW stuff, and what is an excuse? When I bought some of my stuff, I didn't see the sign saying I should have a good reason.

What does it matter why someone buys the stuff? Whatever the reason, I'm sure they appreciate the condescension and the fat comments.

 

[cmatcan]

i hope the o.p. realizes that some of these weenies are lying about their weight just as they lie about the weight of their bikes.

 

[flying]

5' 8.5"
144lbs
Bike is Cervelo R2.5 Just a hair under 15lbs now with clinchers.

Like other have said it is just a hobby & fun to do the WW thang
Of course it is appreciated on any climb too.

So Brewster since you asked....... What is your weight & the weight of your bike? Just curious

 

[brblue]

I'm no weight weenie (I think). I weigh about 73 kg (since i'm not riding very much right now), am 186 cm tall,and my bike weighs in at 10.something kg. The bike will be on a diet though

 

[cyclewvu]

Notice the weight

I'm just a hair under 5'8" and weigh 139 give or take. My road bike weighs a hair over 15 lbs w/the carbon tubies which I ride most of the time in training/racing, and just under 16 w/the clincher training wheels. I more or less have lucked into good deals that allow me to have one of the nicest bikes in the world and ithappens to weight not much at all. It is a noticable difference, particularly for me as a relatively light person. I'm not sure how much difference a couple pounds makes, and I don't think I'd be significantly slower on a bike that weighed a pound or two more. But, considering that two seasons ago I was racing a 23 pound steel noodle, everything about my new bike is significantly faster.

Plus, I'm addicted to pretty things.

 

[mrcrabbiepattie]

let me be the fat guy to post................205 on the average, bike is about 18 lbs. just started riding right before winter last year. winter is working its way out of here and will started riding to and from work and when I can get out of the house.

 

[imetis]

I've got you beat. I'm 210 lbs and my bike is 15.5 lbs. I've got about ten more pounds to lose to slip into single digit body fat %, but at 6'3" there's just a lot to carry. I figure every pound helps. This bike certainly accelerates much better than my ~20 lb fixie.

 

[pjr]

I'm 5'6" 125lb. and my steel bike is 17lb. proudly.