Monday, November 9, 2009

Weight Watcher

While I am a Canadian citizen, and both of my parents were born and raised in England, I pretty much consider myself an American at this point in my life. I was educated here, I got married to an American here and my kids were born here. Thus, I have to admit that I am a bit of a "weight weenie" when it comes to my bikes (a throughly American trait). I didn't realize it until recently, though.

Tonight, I weighed 2 of my bikes with all of the stuff they would normally have on them.



S.A.M., my early 80's Raleigh mixte (with the addition of a rear rack and Basil panniers)-

41 pounds!




My 2007 Batavus Socorro, pictured here with my friend Lilia, and including my front rack, Topeak basket and Bobike Junior seat...

62 pounds!!!!!!

Holy cow! Add on a 45 pound kid and various other things like my purse and minor daily grocery purchases...

The moral? If you want to you can ride anything, anywhere. It may take time to get used to it, you may need to be patient while you get strong enough to make it easier but you can do it. But, if you chose something a little less dense, I will understand : )
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11 comments:

  1. AnonymousNovember 9, 2009 at 9:50 AM

    My favorite post about bike weight: http://tinyurl.com/yo6lzl I think I'm in love. Val

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  2. Adrienne JohnsonNovember 9, 2009 at 10:20 AM

    Thanks for the link! I don't carry bricks, but if we are going to add stuff to the mix

    62 pound bike with attachments
    43 pound child
    10 bag of purse, snacks...
    5 pounds of whatever else gets picked up along the way
    =
    120 pounds. Yow! No wonder I get tired : )

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  3. SoxNovember 9, 2009 at 10:37 AM

    Funny, I was just thinking of that today.
    For some reason, I was thinking of the formula 'force = mass x acceleration' (please, don't mistake me for a physics geek). I was wondering how much impact I would have on an object if I hit it while on my bike. I figured if the bike, fully loaded with me and all my 'stuff' weighed about 225 pounds and was travelling at even 10 kilometers/hour, I would make quite an impression. Probably not a positive one.
    I didn't get to the point of actually figuring it out, mainly because I couldn't remember if it was measured in meters/second or meters/second/second or maybe something else all together.
    Perhaps someone with a math brain can help me out with that.

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  4. saraNovember 9, 2009 at 2:57 PM

    My seven-year-old twins (with whom I cycle with in a cargo box bike daily) just had their annual check-up. 105.5 lbs of just kid weight. Haven't figured out the weight of the bike (it's a monster) or our general school gear. And yes, I definitely agree with the moral-- we still get around well!!! And we won't even go into MY weight. I am strong but no one would accuse me of being slim and fit :)

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  5. jimNovember 9, 2009 at 5:08 PM

    I feel your pain! 62lbs of fully equipped Surly Big Dummy, 200lbs of me and 40-50 lbs of groceries &/or produce and I'm ready for a nap when I get home. Still, I wouldn't give it up for anything.

    Love your blog. Keep 'em coming!

    Best Regards, Jim

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  6. AnonymousNovember 9, 2009 at 6:24 PM

    holy crap....and I worry bout my twenty-some pound road bike!!!

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  7. MELI.November 10, 2009 at 12:49 AM

    the frenchie only weighs in coffee pounds, and the number varies from time to time... ;)

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  8. ibikelondonNovember 10, 2009 at 1:14 AM

    What are these 'lb' things anyway? ;-)

    Much love from the metric continent,

    Mark x

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  9. Adrienne JohnsonNovember 10, 2009 at 12:10 PM

    These "lb things" are the unit by which Americans make themselves crazy : )

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  10. Andy in GermanyNovember 10, 2009 at 12:32 PM

    I don't know the exact weight of a Bakfiets, but I've a feeling it's up there. I've noticed it's a heck of a lot harder work than the Xtracycle.

    But on the flat and downhill with a couple of children on board she just sings...

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  11. DwayneNovember 11, 2009 at 4:49 PM

    Sox, isn't force measured in Newtons? It's kg x m / sec x sec. So, you were close. Even if we were to figure it out, we'd probably still ask ourselves, "is that a lot?" LOL! Needless to say, it takes a lot longer to stop a 225 pound object, than one that weighs 150 pounds, so be careful.

    ReplyDelete

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