Once you get used to riding a road bike, you start thinking about improving its performance.

There are two approaches to this.

First, improving your own power, as you are the engine. And second, reviewing parts that you believe are inferior and lightening them.

The theme here is lightening the bike.

What happens when you lighten a road bike?

When your bike becomes lighter, you'll notice the following changes:

・　Overall, handling becomes lighter and more agile.

・　Acceleration and deceleration, such as during sprints, become sharper.

・　Climbing becomes easier and faster.

・　Even at constant speeds, the bike feels lighter (more noticeable at lower speeds than higher speeds).

While this makes it seem like lightening a bike has nothing but benefits, what is the real story?

Why is lightening effective?

Since a bike's power comes from human effort, the discussion of lightening is sometimes approached from a slightly different angle than with other vehicles.

To illustrate with a car analogy, it's said that the human body corresponds to the car's body, the legs and arms to the suspension, and the entire bike to the wheels and tires—specifically, the unsprung mass.

As you know, lightening the unsprung mass has a tremendous effect on a car's handling performance.

Therefore, lightening the entire bike, which corresponds to the unsprung mass, has a significant impact.

This theory makes sense, but to use the car example again, it is said that even in cars, lightening the entire body is the best way to improve performance.

In other words, without getting too complicated, it's fair to simply assume that lightening leads to higher performance, isn't it?

What is the UCI Rule?

The International Cycling Union (UCI) sets regulations for road racing. Among them, the most famous is the regulation concerning bike weight. Currently, there is a weight limit of 6.8kg.

While some argue that this weight is appropriate for safety, it may also be influencing the weight reduction of commercially available road bikes.

We need to keep a close eye on future UCI rule changes.

【Reference Article】　What You Should Know About UCI

Lightening and Durability

 Frankly speaking, lightening and durability are inversely proportional.

That's right, the more expensive something is, the more fragile it tends to be, and its durability is inferior.

Therefore, you need to decide whether to prioritize race-oriented performance or long-term durability. Of course, finding a middle ground and aiming for the best of both worlds is also an option.

In short, lightening can be quite an intellectual pursuit.

Parts effective for lightening a road bike

I will discuss them in order from most effective to least effective.

① Tires/Wheels

This is the part that rotates and transmits power to the ground, and it is said to have twice the lightening effect compared to other parts.

Entry-level wheels often weigh nearly 2kg for the pair, and simply replacing them with 1.6kg wheels can reduce the weight by 400g, which is equivalent to two smartphones.

This is a significant difference. You will clearly feel it the moment you ride.

There are also lightweight tires/tubes geared towards racing, but these should be considered for one-off races and are not highly recommended for everyday touring. They have lower puncture resistance and lose air very quickly.

Don't forget about tubeless tires.

Their tubeless construction contributes to weight reduction. They are worth considering.

【Reference Article】　

・　7 Questions About Road Bike Carbon Wheels

・　The Current State of Road Bike Tubeless Tires

・　Understanding Road Bike Clincher Tires

② Parts at the bike's center of gravity

This includes quick releases, pedals, chains, and sprockets.

Interestingly, bottle cages and their mounting bolts (replaced with aluminum or titanium) can also be mentioned.

③ Parts away from the bike's center of gravity

This includes the saddle, seatpost, seat clamp, stem, stem top cap and bolts, steerer tube spacers, handlebars, and onboard tools.

Helmets and shoes could also be included in this category.

④ Frame and Components

These are main parts, which are the bike itself, so replacing them for the purpose of lightening might be a bit unreasonable. In particular, replacing components solely for weight reduction is often not very realistic in terms of cost-effectiveness.

⑤ The rider themselves, and what they wear

As is often said, "rider weight control" is the ultimate and most inexpensive (?) method. At the same time, it's worth checking carried items. For carried items, it's more effective to wear them than to attach them to the bike. If you must attach them to the bike, you should aim for the area near the bike's center of gravity.

Modifications Effective for Lightening

There are ways to lighten without spending a lot of money.

・　Cut off unnecessary parts of the handlebar steerer tube.

・　Cut off unnecessary parts of the seatpost.

・　Cut the ends of the cables.

・　Check the length of the tire valves.

・　Switch to a single front chainring and review the gear ratio with the sprocket.

　　(This is a rather drastic and costly modification.)

Lightening and Cost

There's a huge range of costs involved.

Therefore, I'll refrain from giving specific examples here, but we at ICAN are confident that we have the optimal answer for the most effective area of wheel lightening. Please see the following website:

Wheel Lightening　

Lastly,

It's a wonderful feeling to experience enhanced bike performance through lightening.

However, human senses are strange, and you quickly get used to it.

Nevertheless, the desire to make your bike even slightly lighter is probably the sad fate of a cyclist. To avoid ending up having invested enough money to buy a new high-performance bike, we recommend balanced lightening.

Maintain your rationality and enjoy your cycling life. ICAN supports you.