Bike Weight?

Question

I’m a road bike rider and curious about weight in relation to performance. My first question is: on average how much do the tour bikes you see the pros racing weigh?

Also, what’s the lightest bike you can get as a seasonal race bike?

And finally, how much does weight really matter? Say, a 15 pound racing bike (top line components, etc.) vs a 17 pound racing bike with the same setup?

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

All things being equal, a lighter bike can make a big difference. What I mean is, the same rider in the same physical condition on the same ride will probably have a better experience on a lighter bike. In theory, the strength to weight ratio will be higher therefore creating more speed and power.

Now, the distinction between 15 and 17 pounds is a fairly big difference in bikes. A 15 pound bike is going to be super expensive and have a lot of parts that are designed for performance only - not durability. Unless you have a team of mechanics and an unlimited budget, lighter is not always better. The thing that you will quickly learn in bike racing is that stuff breaks for one reason or another. If you have a 15 pounder, these things can often be forks, wheels, bars, stems - things that are expensive not to mention vital for your safety. I personally would not ride a machine like this every day.

If you look at the pro bikes in the peloton, notice that you don't see many carbon bars. The reason is that mechanics are very savvy. They realize that having carbon bars means replacing them every time they crash or get scuffed. Not doing this puts the rider at risk. They see the balance between weight, performance, durability, and safety.

Answer 2

The UCI weight limit for pro race bikes are 6.8kg, or 14.96lbs.

You can buy a bike that weighs less than that, but most are closer to 17-19lbs (no matter what the brochure says).

You will be better off losing 10lbs from your butt than spending $800 to drop a single pound off your bike.

But in pro racing, every little bit counts. Last year in the Tour de France, George Hincapie came in 25th place, 52 seconds behind Landis. Compare that to the overall time of the race, and it's something like 0.0001% slower.

One ten-thousandth of a percent = 25 places in a grand tour, so a 2-3% increase in efficiency, aerodynamics or power output is HUGE to those guys.

Answer 3

All the pros race bikes that approach the UCI limit - 6.8Kg, 14.99lbs. You wo't find them much over that except in races like Paris-Roubaix where they ride heavier parts to handle the tough cobble stone sections.

you can build bikes lighter than that, but it's wicked expensive. Production bikes are readily available in the 16 pound range.

Finally , bike weight really only makes a difference if the riders are evenly matched. If you put me on a Scott F1 and any tour-level pro on a nashbar mail order bike, he would still kick my butt. For racing at the amatuer level, fitness and rider weight figure far more than the bike weight. If you have a riding partner who regularly kicks your butt, getting a lighter bike isn't the answer, unless you going from a walmart bike to a race ready bike.
Want to get faster? Lose a few pounds. It makes all the difference.

Answer 4

The minimum bike weight in a U.C.I event is 6.8 kg. This has been the limit since 1st January 2000 and applies to all forms of cycling (including track). Here is the rule (and the reasoning)

http://www.uci.ch/modello.asp?1stlevelid=B&level1=3&level2=0&idnews=849

Most manufacturers can make a bike well under the 6.8 Kg limit

A light bike is not necessarily a good bike since it may flex, warp and even break. It needs to be light and ridable at the same time.

The lightest one I now of is the Litespeed Ghisallo (in modified general production) @ 3.56 kg (7.84 lb) . This bike is not only light it is stiff. (Titanium frame)

http://www.light-bikes.com/bikegallery/BikeListing.asp?id=747

To ride it in U.C.I events you would need to add another 3.3kg to its weight. Once you have put on all the imaginable measuring equipment you can find there will still be a fair bit of lead.

Does it matter ?

Say you are 150 lb add 15 or 17 lb, It is only 1.21% difference in weight. In the case of a 10% grade about 0.3 mph. (calculated @ 12 mph)

Edit.. Sorry a little tired last night added 2 kg not 2 lb so the difference is about 0.14 mph

It matters as much as about 0.14 mph on a steep climb does.
The ones that need that extra 0.14 mph are probably not paying for their bikes anyway.

But it is nice to know which bicycles to drool over and which bicycles to pay for.

Answer 5

You seem like you already know the answer- the pro's bikes are 14-16 pounds. Mine however is 19.4, and my SO's is 19.0. This is just fine for the average competitive rider not racing crits or TT's. IMO, it costs a lot more to spend money to lighten your bike than to lose a pound yourself (within reason, of course). I try to drop 5 pounds before racing each season instead of spending a grand upgrading to lighter components. I'd have to look it up, but over 100 miles, 1 lb of weight "cut" also "cuts" 1-2% of your effort/power. Unless you're aiming to race in an elite category, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Answer 6

with road bikes, weight is everything. the bikes that pros use are around 10-15lbs. the lightest bike ive ever seen was only 8lbs but everything was either carbon or titanium, i would not feel safe riding it.

if you can get a bike around 15lbs or so, you should be fine for a while. you dont need a super light bike unless you race or have nothing else better to spend you r money on.

the weight affects your acceleration and braking performance. think about it - its easier to speed up and brake in a sports car than in an SUV. thats an extreme example, but you get the idea.

Answer 7

Most top of the line frames these days are pretty close in weight are they not?
Your weight saving comes in wheels and components and of course the heaviest component of all YOU. Unless you are as lean as your gonna get I don't think 15 vs 17 makes a huge difference. Another thing to consider, are you giving up stiffness or lateral stability for a few ounces of weight? I also don't mind time trialing on a slightly heaver bike (as long as it's not uphill) once it's rolling it holds momentum better, you don't feel every little gust of wind or short slight rises in the road

Answer 8

a couple of pounds can make a big difference, as long as your body weight is also at its peak
you are talking a lot of money if you want a professional quality LIGHT weight bike..
check out Orbea, Cervelo, Colnago, Specialized, Giant, and BMC
go for as much carbon as you can get, and either all DuraAce, Campy Record, or SRAM Force for best components