Heavy winter bike, train hard fight easy?

white91

I've recently bought a Carerra TDF 12.5kg (4kg wheels?) 16 speed (52/42 12-26) and its an ideal winter hack, although streets behind my Giant TCR 7kg 20 speed 50/34 11-28 46mm reynolds carbon wheels (1.5kg)

I definately feel slower on the TDF, and average speeds are lower. I am toying with the idea of a compact chainset and fitting my suprisingly light Planet X model B wheels (1.65kg).

Am I wasting my time? Will I see more benefit riding a heavy bike? I never thought professionals trained with heavy bikes?

slowbike

Depends if you look at speed for motivation - if you're consistently not hitting the desired target speed then perhaps you won't bother trying so hard - so you need something a bit faster to keep the motivation.

Of course, it's winter so you'll be slower anyway - a compact chainset will help you keep your cadence up so that's a good thing and the wheels will change the feel of the ride - so that can be good too as you'll be more inclined to put the effort in ...

I'm on studded tyres today - they're heavy and slow ... but it means I ride - I just need some sheet ice to justify putting them on this morning

kajjal

It's difficult as most buy a winter bike to preserve their more expensive main bike. The problem is unless you buy a similar spec winter bike it will never measure up. The trap is you can get caught spending extra to make a cheaper bike work for you, when you would have been better buying a more expensive bike in the first place as a winter bike.

I just use the same road bike all year round but am more careful with the maintenance over the winter. Riding in winter is harder and slower even on the same bike.

white91

I dont really want my expensive carbon wheels and sram red groupset exposed to the winter salt etc, plus the tcr isnt ideal for mudguards or indeed a rack if I chose to add one!

My question is really about how to train most effectively, I understand a heavy winter bike will never be as good as a nice summer bike. However will low cadence build power or learn me bad habits?

Ideally I would have a planet x london road as a winter bike, and the carbon saved for sunday best

cougie

I'd really not bother swapping chainsets - surely you can get similar cadence by using the gears ?

If the extra weight of the wheels doesnt bother you - and once you have the bike rolling - unless you're climbing - then a few kg won't be that much of an issue - I'd ride them as they are.

I've swapped to wider heavier tyres for the winter - mainly for comfort and to be bombproof v p*nct*res. Definitely a lot heavier than my summer wheels - but you get used to them. Just as you get used to the light wheels in the summer.

white91

Thats the point really 42/26 is nothing like 34/28 without extra weight to consider

imposter2.0

white91 wrote:

Thats the point really 42/12 is nothing like 34/28 without extra weight to consider

42/12 is nothing like 34/28 whichever way you look at it...?

white91

I of course meant 42/26

jgsi

1.65 kg? with cassette/inner tubes and tyres?

white91

JGSI wrote:

1.65 kg? with cassette/inner tubes and tyres?

Lets not get too bogged down with quoted figures, I think they are accurate enough for the purpose of answering my question

DeVlaeminck

I don't think the weight of your bike really matters riding solo, a heavier bike with poorer rolling tyres and mudguards will just mean you don't travel as far but you can still spend the same amount of time at the same effort. If you are doing group rides it all depends if you want to make them harder or easier - which probably depends who you are riding with.

ai_1

The weight of the bike is largely irrelevant for solo riding. I'd agree with DeVlaeminck and oxoman's comments.
What will make a difference is the gearing range and gaps. If you ride the same terrain in winter as you do in summer then it was a strange choice to go for a completely different gearing setup. However if, like me you tend to spend less time in the hills during winter, then bigger chainrings and narrower range cassette may not be an issue. I would not ride a bike that didn't have the gears I needed to cover the terrain I want to ride.
42/26 = 1.62, while 34/28 = 1.21. That means your smallest gear on the winter bike is 33% bigger than that on the summer bike. You'd need 34 or 35 teeth on the back to get a similar smallest gear using the 42t chainring. That's not catered for by most or any road groupset rear derailleurs.
If you'll be riding on hills where the 42/26 is too big for you on a regular basis then I think a change of gearing is needed. However I don't know if that's going to be cost effective on that bike. Bear in mind that bike weight will make it tougher to get up the hills.
However, if you won't be riding any steep hills then the gearing will probably be fine and the weight will be pretty much irrelevant on flat rides. The same goes for the wheels. You may notice a change in feel due to a huge difference in wheel weight when climbing and it'll be less weight to lug up the hill but on the flat it's largely irrelevant.

iPete

It would be quite a sight to see on a Carrerra TDF but a power meter would help you determine how hard you are working, irrespective of bike. Put the money you'd spend on upgrading the bike into one that will work on the summer bike too.

twotyred

As above for solo riding if the time and intensity is the same I don't think it matters what bike you are riding.

However for motivation, especially to encourage me out on cold wet winter day I'd rather be riding a good bike that's decently light, fast and comfortable.

craker

I occasionally resort to commuting on an old mountain bike, 1 1/2" slicks and fairly upright. It's a sh$t ride compared to my winter road bikes and definitely no incentive for putting the power down. In the context of the OP's question, it's more about the riding position than the weight.

I've got model Bs on my single speed Raleigh, it (feels like it) goes like stink. Single speeds are good for getting you out of the saddle and breaking a sweat - why not take the gears off your Carrera?

white91

Cheers for your input guys, its not about new PBs on Strava, its about making me faster in the summer!

I could quite cheaply put a compact chainset on (£50?), I could also use my old wheels that are doing nothing but gathering dust, they are also wrapped in Gaterskins.

This might enable me to train with a similar cadence as to what I would ride in the summer.

Just wanted to get the thoughts on winter bikes.

cyco2

I ride a heavy bike most of the time because it, importantly, takes more effort to keep it rolling. The tyres/wheels are less prone punctures and damage. Take to using paving and paths. Keep closer to the edge of the road in traffic. But mainly to cut my speed down in cold conditions and work harder. Doing this works well for me because do quite well in CX and MTB racing despite my age. However, if I were to road race or time trial I would as the weather warmed convert to speed on a lighter bike. The gearing I use, in the main wide ratio, is suitable for Downland hills