[Closed] Tell me I can have fun on a heavy bike.

JFDI 😀 . There you go.

Although I have to admit that lighter bikes are loads more fun.

I went out on an 11kg Alu gravel bike the other day, it was fun.

My fatty is my heaviest bike by far but without a doubt the best fun.

I'm lucky enough to have a moderately heavy full suss, a sensible weight hardtail, and ~11kg hybrid/gravel/old school mtb
I'l lride any of them on a ~30m gravel ride.. but the lighter gravel bike really is a rocket and possible to explore much further afield much easier and quicker, although.. i feel thats mostly due to the tyres and gearing.. i'm not sure the couple of KG weight difference makes much odds.
i wouldn't ride anthing else bar the gravel bike to work though as it is worlds apart on a road

I prefer lighter bikes, but genuinely believe that tyres make more difference more of the time. Don't get me wrong, I can feel extra weight if I'm not used to it (loaded panniers for example) but a heavier bike that you use regularly...not so much. In general, you're looking to save maybe 5kg? for a lightweight bike, so on a climb, the total saving on rider+bike weight will be 5-6%. The Watts required to overcome that difference will be 10-20W max, and only for a short period. A 3-5W difference in rolling resistance will make much more overall difference on anything over 30mins of riding.

Can confirm, my new bike is bloody heavy and fun has been had.

I ride my ebike on group rides with the power turned off. I think it's somewhere between 50 and 55lbs. It's still fun! I've noticed I end up at the back of the group on the climbs rather than at the front (as on my hardtail) but it doesn't slow the group down, just a bit harder on my legs. The hardtail that was my other bike weighed about 27lbs - it's just been replaced by a shiny new one that's definitely heavier, almost certainly 30lbs+ but it seems to be faster.

Bike weight feels a lot more significant than it actually is in terms of speed, effort, energy expenditure etc. Plus it's far easier to measure than things like rolling resistance, which doesn't help with it being given too much attention.

Rode my son's new, but cheap, gravel bike the other day and realised why he can easily keep up with me on my v.lightweight carbon hardtail.  Rolling resistance, position, etc all made a big difference but it definitely wasn't lighter.  not bad though - aluminium frame, carbon fork all for £749.  Felt really nice.

https://www.wiggle.com/vitus-substance-2-gravel-bike-microshift-2022

If you can't afford a lighter bike what about some lighter tyres or wheels for what you have? Tyres especially if they're supple and roll well seem to make a big difference.

Lighter clearly is easier going up but if your gears go low enough and you're not in a rush who cares. 🙂

Longitude, Vagabond, Big Dummy and Pashley Mailstar all brilliant fun. I love my heavy bikes

On the road I’d say lighter is more fun tbh - whilst it’s not a massive speed increase the feeling of quicker acceleration and a more chuckable bike just feel nice. A lot of that comes from the wheels and tyres though - so lighter wheels / tyres can hugely change how the bike feels if you can’t afford a new bike.

Off road I think it’s less important - so if you’re going to be doing gravel / bridleways then I don’t think a lighter bike is something to worry about it too much. I’d be more worried it’s sturdy enough to hold together and not get too many punctures / beat you up too much.

I doubt I’ll ever buy a gravel bike as I’d rather be on my mtb, but if I did I quite like the look of the PX Space Chicken and they have good discounts on them from time to time.

As above, start with tyres.
Fast rolling and as light as you can get away with for the riding type makes quite a difference.
Also as above, my fatty shod with 1.6kg Buds is the bike I'd keep if I could only have one.

Hmm. Mendip rider here, but entirely off-road focussed.

My carbon FS is 33.5lbs and my Ti hardtail is 32.5lbs. I have fun on both, so, uh. Yeah.

Off-road, I have found lighter bikes don't last as well and sometimes don't feel as composed when descending but feel jolly nice climbing, as long as they're not flexing to much under my (m)ass.

On road, I think its likely to be rather less of an issue.

my road bike is 35lbs. I everested it. jfdi.

My MTB is 37lbs...it's very very fun!

I wouldn't worry about the weight, as much as how well it pedals (kinematics, tyre drag).

My enduro bike is 35lbs, my ebike is 40 (kenevo SL). The Kenevo is more fun to ride as you can do more and don't have to worry about climbs.

A lighter bike doesn't really make that much difference to your climbing. It feels much quicker because it responds to pedal input faster, but it doesn't make a lot of difference on longer climbs. 2kg is a lot of weight in bike terms but when you combine 80kg of rider and 14kg of bike it's a pretty small proportion. Where it makes the most difference is when smashing through twisty singletrack as hard as you can.

But tyres, they do make a difference. You want lower pressures if it's rough, too, so it's less work dealing with bumps. That's why I use 2.3 Racing Ralphs run tubeless at 23psi on mine.

I’d concentrate instead on where you plan to be riding and what kind of riding you want to be doing.

I don’t have any really lightweight bikes I have a longitude I had a vagabond, happy to ride and pretty much anywhere (actually I don’t find these bikes ride massively heavy - 12.5kg ish - and Genesis put the Vagabond on a 1kg weight loss plan of late!) but then again I’m not a cross-country racer nor roadie.

Oddly - since receiving a re-injury six years ago (and it has been a long road back to fitness/repair) - the bike I ride most of all of late has been a 12-13kg retro steel tourer with flat bar and bar ends on it, some 28c Marathons and a heavy Brooks leather saddle. I’ll explore anywhere from the door within 50 miles. It rides like a dream and that makes all the difference- if it was an alu lump of the same weight I probably wouldn’t bother. I’ll drop it in the back of the car and take it to some railway line or tow path so somewhere with lots of little B roads on fire roads. I’m a bimbletourer by heart. I climb every hill though*, it’s just a thing with me and always has been.

*An exception to this was having a single speed hardtail for a while - and that was a completely different type of riding. I absolutely loved that too because everything from the door was now ‘interesting’, even the walking bits. Although that really did get my heart pumping even on short trivial rides.

If I had to describe what I want out of a ride it’s really just to get outdoors and explore/be free and pedal. Any weight will do, some of my best/most enjoyable evening rides have been on a 55lb Dutch utility bike. Just cruising around and exploring local (urban-city-town) neighbourhoods (say 20 mile radius) over the course of a year or two (an hour or two a night) combining it with some low light photography hobby, I found it overall totally enjoyable. Climbing with that beast was a full body workout but the downs and the flat bits were a zen-like feet-fwd cruiser-bar dream at almost resting rate. Everyone’s different. I find that I enjoy/ed different bikes in different ways and at different times of life. Most of all talk to your doctor - they may or may not to know too much about riding styles but I’m sure they’ll have something to say about Fitbit cardio readings or whatever? So make a plan of where you want to ride and how?

Have you had a look at those Boardman electric gravel bike

I used to have a 19lb road bike, then on a holiday I hired a road bike and it was a bottom end Specialized that was 27lbs. It felt like lead, but it was only noticeable when trying to accelerate quickly. At all other times it was fine, in fact very pleasant indeed to ride. More so than my own bike because it fit better, had slightly larger tyres and was brand new so the drivetrain was really smooth. It was aluminium too.

This thread came into my head this afternoon and I realised that since I learned to ride a bike aged four, that no matter what bike I was riding at any given time is that riding any bike is fun!

Do you carry much when you ride? I see people out for a couple of miles ride with 3l water and a tool chest. There are other ways to save weight.

edit - Like Sandboy said, bike riding = fun.

+1 @molgrips

More so than my own bike because it fit better, had slightly larger tyres and was brand new so the drivetrain was really smooth.

One of the reasons I like my old bike so much is because everything works like clockwork. The drivetrain is smooth it’s quiet almost silent. The old Ambrosio/Deore wheels gleam in the sunshine and run silently on fresh bearings and grease with rims trued to within a gnat’s chuff. I try to keep all my bikes this way - but some always tend to come out better. The 55lb Batavus brute was another case in point it ran like an absolute charm. 3 speed IGH and everything just meshed. Forks had decent flex/compliance - but the rear end was harsh as. A Spesh BG oversized sofa saddle sorted that. I’d agree that heavy bikes can be good/great/mediocre/awful ride depending on how how they’re configured, specced, serviced etc.

I’ve never weighed a single bike I’ve owned and they’ve all been fun. The only time I’ve really noticed it was when I had to pick up my Transition Trans AM to get over a gate. That thing had its own gravitational field.

Tell us more about your bike.

Maybe a tyre change is all you need.

Or you might be carrying some heft in a few components that you could change for lighter ones quite cheaply.

Or a sell you bike and buy a second hand cyclocross bike, rim braked ones should be cheaper than a disc version. But rim brakes still work fine. Cross bikes are fast, light and fun.

My Hello Dave is comparable to an 80's Grifter for weight but is pure 's$$ts and giggles' when heading down hill.

There's no beating the laws of physics.

A heavier bike is gonna take more effort to get uphill. For any given physical capacity you have, you'll be able to do less uphill riding on a heavy bike compared to a "similar" lighter bike or you'll be more tired after (and take longer, or more calories 😃, to "recover")

It's entirely up to you to determine which of the compromises you're willing to live with...

(I'm got a 16kg FS enduro bike which can be "fun" in a masochistic sort of way to wrestle up steep, techy climbs but is very dull on long fire road climbs. Either options leave me a lot more tired than dancing up the same amount of vert on my 9kg road bike.)

“There’s no beating the laws of physics.

A heavier bike is gonna take more effort to get uphill.”

Yes but conveniently for most adults, the weight of the bike is vastly smaller than their own weight. This means that the difference in total system weight (bike+rider) between a light bike and a heavy bike is pretty much insignificant unless you’re trying to win races by small margins.

Comparing road bikes to full-sus mountain bikes is illogical because the difference in rolling resistance of road tyre on tarmac vs MTB tyre off-road is far bigger than the small decrease in system weight.

Thanks all. I think that I recognise that I'd probably be better of with something like a Sonder Camino, at least at the moment as I'm virtually all on road. Having said that I get a good workout and enjoyment on what I have.

The wheels are Hope XC which I gather are a bit narrow and a bit heavy, but they do the job and the tyres are Vittoria Terrenos that roll suprisingly well, but obviously there are lighter choices.

Do you carry much when you ride?

Pre-heart attacks I used to, it was a big rucksack with a D-lock, drink, tools etc. but since starting back I don't carry anything (probably need to look at a waist pack for essentials).

if your gears go low enough and you’re not in a rush who cares. 🙂

I'm running an old 9 speed triple with a 10 speed 11-36 cassette, so have some silly low gears (22x36 being the lowest) & can limp up most things.

Anyway, I have what I have and intend to make the best of it. A bit more exploring and gravel sounds fun and I might take my camera and add a few highlights to Komoot.

Maybe one day funds might stretch to a new bike.

My current bike:

[img] https://db3pap002files.storage.live.com/y4miUNpsDiDPOLMCMemAJAp-iDrtBpc04CkvKKFIf3BEdiFeFMaPhw6pFxE_yjmvjJ30m0Pgwau69jIS7Kek4l8M_W52s1Eq_Xq0wt6JmnnMOkhpDLIYHISZRV8p8IyXGHZ0IBA_u8FTk-zOXwM8OlxC6MxS_eAhce8Dyz4flw0Vzg?width=4137&height=2616&cropmode=none [/img]

It's all relative to you're weight.

If you're 100kg, a 15kg bike is only 15% of you, and might feel light.

If you're 50kg, that same 15kg bike is 30% of you and will require more effort to move about. *assuming the heavier rider is stronger, which is usually the case.

Yes but conveniently for most adults, the weight of the bike is vastly smaller than their own weight. This means that the difference in total system weight (bike+rider) between a light bike and a heavy bike is pretty much insignificant unless you’re trying to win races by small margins.

Comparing road bikes to full-sus mountain bikes is illogical because the difference in rolling resistance of road tyre on tarmac vs MTB tyre off-road is far bigger than the small decrease in system weight.

I know you love your science, and I get the impression you ride a reasonable amount... but all a heavier bike has to do is make you slower than your pals, or make it harder to do a 1,500m ascent ride rather than just a 1,000m ride, for it to start getting annoying.

Not to mention when you have to carry it up a mountain for a prolonged period.

So I'm not quite sure why two of my three MTBs weigh about 35lbs, come to think of it.

😀

Nice ride PJay. Those are lovely bikes and the forks are to die for smooth... I don't get too hung up on bike weight as I am a 6'3" 95kg guy on an xl bike. I think the swift will be as light a ride as you really need. Just enjoy it: a classic, lively, lovely bike.

Scott

Maurice Garin won the first ever Tour de France, in 1903, riding a steel La Francaise bike which weighed in the region of 18kg.

Source - roadcyclinguk.com

Just saying

“ I know you love your science, and I get the impression you ride a reasonable amount…”

I don’t know if it’s loving science or just being unable to escape having such an engineering brain! I’d ride more if I didn’t have three small children (and now having got rather involved in writing and recording an album) but thank you! 😉

I probably have a fairly unusual mindset with stuff like this - partly because my internal engineer says “no, it might feel like a big difference but you know it’s only marginal in reality” but also because the “athlete” in me says “it’s not about the bike, just get on with it, work harder, toughen up, etc”. I spent 6th form at the army’s engineering officer college so had two years where going for a run in full weighted kit, or with a log on our shoulders or carrying on oil drum across the Lake District for 48 hours with minimal sleep, often with a scary/keen Welsh paratrooper shouting at us, was fairly normal behaviour. And your brain is very plastic at that age so it might not have typical wiring now…

I've never really taken weight into account with any bike I've owned.
Only time I ever notice is if I lift someone else's bike over a gate or wall for them.
Riding it doesn't seem to make much difference to me.

A pair of Marathon Supremes (35mm and 40mm, they size small) have made my ~13Kg Voodoo Marasa feel less of a burden, I've used the bike more for non-commutes since fitting them (still less fun on hills than my ~9Kg road bike with 23/32mm GP5000s, but no shock there).

Smaller sizes now out of stock, but 2" still available for £31 each https://www.merlincycles.com/schwalbe-marathon-supreme-folding-touring-tyre-28-1-233093.html

Maurice Garin won the first ever Tour de France, in 1903, riding a steel La Francaise bike which weighed in the region of 18kg.

Given the choice I expect Maurice would have preferred to use a 2022 7kg race bike with those new fangled gears and all.

I expect Maurice might be lurking in one of the many gravel threads, looking for a suitable steed.

There’s no beating the laws of physics.

A heavier bike is gonna take more effort to get uphill.

Yes, but not much.

As above, if you weigh 80kg and your bike weighs 14kg, it's 94kg total. If your bike were to weigh only 12kg, then that'd be 92kg all up weight, which is only about 2% less. So on the very steepest climbs you would only be 2% quicker. So on a 5 minute steep drag which is a fairly substantial climb in much of the country you'd end up getting to the top 12 seconds quicker. Important in a race, yes, but not when generally cycling.

On a longer climb the difference is even less because you are going faster, and more of your energy goes into overcoming wind resistance which is unaffected by bike weight.

When comparing MTBs you can say that xx bike is slower up hills than yy lighter bike, but there's often more to it than weight. If an MTB is heavier because it's cheaper, then it's probably got cheap heavy tyres on it, and cheap heavy tyres are significantly less efficient in terms of rolling resistance. On the other hand, if an MTB is heavier because it's say an Enduro monster vs an XC race bike, it's got much bigger tyres which also roll slower but it's also set up for descending and the ergonomics are probably worse for climbing.

My example of the road bikes I thought was relevant because the bikes were very similar in ergonomic terms, just one was a fair bit heavier. My new road bike is about 1kg heavier than my old one and less aero, but it's a lot quicker overall, I think because I am more comfortable on it and it has bigger tyres at lower pressure which drag noticeably less on rough roads. Also the higher front end paradoxically makes me more aero, because I can spend most of the time on the drops whereas before my drops were too low to do that.

Given the choice I expect Maurice would have preferred to use a 2022 7kg race bike with those new fangled gears and all.

Given the state of the roads he'd be starting 'what gravel bike?' threads 🙂

@PJay

Is it the speed of the journey or the journey itself that is more important to you? Lighter wheel weight and aerodynamics is where you can make the biggest difference to potentially going faster but is speed that important? Comfort makes a massive difference too. I ride a Surly Ice Cream Truck as my XC do everything bike. It is approaching 40 lbs but it gets me up hill and down dale. I love the fact that it offers so much traction and smiles for miles. It is upright with Jones bars but it works brilliantly for me.

Your Singular is a cracking bike. Sure, a gravel bike would make more sense on the road but what you have is a lovely bike already. Love the fact that you have bar ends and proper gearing.

The great thing is you are getting out on your bike despite your health scares and that puts a smile on my face. Good on you!

Cheers

Sanny

I climb my heaviest bike. A beefy built steel Hello Dave and it ends up being the quickest up a local fire road climb. Feels like a slug. My torrent was like this. Felt really slow but was much faster than expected. Very comfy though on the way up.

Is it the speed of the journey or the journey itself that is more important to you? Lighter wheel weight and aerodynamics is where you can make the biggest difference to potentially going faster but is speed that important?

@Sanny Thanks for the response, it's definitely the journey and no, speed's not important. Since the heart attacks and damage (and presumably also due to the beta blockers limiting my heart rate) I seem to be rather less able on the bike and get properly fatigued on long climbs, I'm also noticing that, at present, I'm almost exclusively road based (I might try and find some more off road options).

I think that I'm realising that a lighter bike might extend my range somewhat, but yes the Swift is lovely and I've spent a lot of time tinkering with it. It also gives me a good workout, which is the main thing for cardio rehab.

Thanks again.

All the best OP. Sounds like you’ve got it in hand. The Swift looks great.

I had a 29er (Longitude) set up almost identically to your Swift ie same wheelset, Deore/XTR, flat bar/bar ends, XC/gravel tyres. I said past tense because since buying a retro tourer I now have the bar ends on that and have switched to wide MTB bars on the Longitude.

Longitude gets used for gravel and MTB - tourer gets used for roads, tours, paths, errands etc. if I want to extend my range I always hop on the tourer and find it more pleasurable. It’s the bike I most often use to get my heart rate up, for some reason.

A few weeks back I had half a day free and sun was shining - so I grabbed the tourer and knocked off around 40 miles in no time at all, enjoying exploring (also househunting for some friends) - climbing some silly tarmac hills. Rest stop for a bite to eat/drink. Nipped to the shop adding another 12 mile loop. I know I probably wouldn’t have bothered doing all that with the 29er, because I remember it was the thought of the ‘lightness of being!’ pleasure of riding the tourer which got me out and riding that day. It’s not very many pounds if any lighter than the longitude, but the 28c and the compliance of the frame and my weight distribution when putting down the power speaks for itself - it just *feels* so much faster and so much easier to clock up miles and smiles.

I don’t know what all this/my ramble is about (or where is has gone! - sorry stuck in bed with Covid and few outlets) but I too really enjoy tinkering with bikes and think as long as you enjoy that, and as long as you enjoy riding the bike/s that you ride - then I think weight is not the question. PS how does the Swift ride on 32c tyres?

PS how does the Swift ride on 32c tyres?

I've not gone that narrow but I'd imagine that it'd feel fairly nippy (at least on the flat), it's fine on the 2.1" Terrenos. When I built it up first I used 700x47 WTB Riddlers which were good also (but a nightmare to fit and seat).

Climbing is where I get tired and often end up is really low gears going at a sub-walking pace (occasionally I've been known to trigger the auto-pause on my Garmin). I think that I just need to be a tortoise rather than a hare!