Weight can be a make or break when it comes to a hill climb! But by how much?
Hank and Manon see just how much of a difference 2kg can make when climbing the epic Alpe d’Huez!
00:00 Does extra weight matter on the bike?
00:25 The test on Alpe d’Huez
01:03 The ride on Alpe d’Huez with 2kg
03:45 The ride on Alpe d’Huez without 2kg
04:20 The results
05:28 The real effect of the extra 2kg
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How does extra weight affect you on a hill climb?⛰️🚵
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38 Comments
How does extra weight affect you on a hill climb?⛰🚵
GCN seems to alwags focus on bike equipment. This is good for business of course.
Thry rarelt talk about the body, body fat percentage, bmi, muscle, etc… can help or hurt you in your journey with cycling and fitness.
They should do more tests on the different body compositions to show how with just a change of your diet and caloric intake, you can get some free gains.
Most of the tests i have seen about thus unfortunately arent realistic because they just strap weight onto a skinny person…
Those tests are never comparable to real world on how someone would be if they lost weight.
That's because the body carries fat and muscle as energy. It can and will use them both to burn up. And muscle gives you power.
This is why if you take two people, one being 200lbs, other being 250lbs, and you put a 50lb backpack on the 200lb person and tell them to take a walk or bike up a hill, it won't be the same experience as the 250lb person. Because that 50lb gap on that person comes with fat AND muscle energy.
The only thing people should be concerned with at the end of the day is their BMI and body fat percentage if they are looking to be more efficient. Which is more important than taking 2kg off your bike in my opinion when considering science.
holding 200 watts shouldn't feel massively different on any weight, but i reckon an extra 2KG with an all out effort will feel massively different.
where is the 4k video option
Ok.cool. I like lite bikes because I carry them upstairs etc. But what about testing a down hill run aswell. How much faster or farther does a heavier bike take you .
I will climb a hill just to go down. Love free travel,coasting,whatever.
I wish I was light enough to be able to ride up 10% at 200 watts
It’s okay Mannon. Big Mig also was rocking blood twice as thick as yours.
Very surprised no mention of how the lighter bike felt. A 8kg and a 6kg bike are chalk and cheese. The latter always gives you a cheesy grin climbing, regardless off the time.
Was Alp d' Huez on Manon Bucket List?? We will miss you Manon, Good Luck on your next cycling adventure!!
My son always tells me that it is cheaper for me to lose 3kg then to buy a lighter bike!
How much faster are round wheels vs square ones? Maybe GCN can explore that mystery next!
I'm working on losing 39 pounds of fluff so I can climb those hills like a beast!
My hill climbs are measured in hundreds of metres, rather than in kilometres, so probably not that big of a deal for me. 😀
Do you have a number for the variance in time when repeating the same test for a few times?
My two large water bottles full of water = 2.5kg.
2 kg on bike (in general) is not everything – need to check with 1,6 kg + lighter wheels this will make significant different🧐You will save another 20 second …
My prediction 500m Elevation gain with 2kg more at 200w will take about 50s longer than the Baseline.
Not the best test, Weight matters but it also matters where that weight is distributed on the bicycle.
Writing this before watching vid – I don't think 2kg will make a huge difference. When you add together bike, rider, gear, water and anything else you're carrying, 2kg is such a small percentage of weight difference. I certainly don't understand why non professionals would spend so much money to drop that amount of weight on their bike. Be better off dropping 2kg fat 😂 that being said, for competitive professional athletes the cost is probably worth it for the marginal gain.
Coming from mtb to look for 1st gravel / road bike. Seems saving 2kg in weight = £2k in cost = 47 seconds on a 30 min 8 % hill climb for same effort. I am 95kg so am thinking there is a potential 5kg weight saving by putting in some miles or cheaper bike + decent turbo + years subscription to Zwift + week riding holiday in Majorca. Also you didn’t time the descent. 2kg = increased momentum = faster speed. I’m still trying to understand roadies mindset.
I get the same times up steep hills on my steel bike vs my carbon bike. Difference is my legs feel more tired at the end of the ride
the weight is most important on rotating parts like the wheels
Going to miss Manon all the best in a new adventure whatever that may be🎉🎉 please keep us in the loop.
Miss you already Manon ❤
I am a wide body riding a Surly touring bike that weighs 45 lbs. Best way for me to lighten the load? Lose 50 lbs!
Please put nuts and bolts into that bag next time. Or 1kg dumbbell plates. Would be nice to see how much difference 10kgs make.
Surely the weight will be the riders weight if , fitness and fat content are not in optimal state
Farewell manon.
It's very sad to learn in a comment field that manon is leaving GCN after almost 5 years. I have many fond memories of Manon but to be told that in a comment box and not in a video where she says goodbye is still a low water mark.
Thanks manon
I just want to know the chainrings/cassette combo Manon was using
Isn't this a bit pointless as you're not compare downhill & flat ?
So if the rider loses 2kg in body weight, will it be the same result??
A more interesting experiment would be, does climbing with a heavy bike do more for your fitness level than training with a light bike because of the added resistance? Could your heavy bike be the way to go for increasing your power?
Nice having a light bike but on the flip side a heavier bike requires more effort so from a fitness perspective you benefit more. (Thats how i reasure myslef:)
With the views dropping gcn had to cut some cost to survive
Why Manon ? She's not in good form. No practice and too heavy
No more manon, what a shame