Originally Posted by
jonathanf2
My favorite type of climbs are hitting those final uphill segment sprints while everyone is spinning their low gears. I'm probably not going full weight weenie, but I was thinking I could probably cut a few more grams going to a dedicated lightweight road frame as opposed to using my bulkier gravel frame as a road bike. I doubt I'll have the funds to go down to 13 lbs., but I was thinking going down to the 16 lbs. range might be doable. I also live in a hilly area which requires me to climb in every direction I ride. Even when I'm in the gym, I warm up on the cycle machine just to practice my out of saddle riding. All I think about are hills!
So you are talking about a saving of 1-2 lbs max over your current rig. That's going to be more of a psychological gain than an objective one. It amounts to a saving of around 20-40 secs per hour of sustained climbing on a decent pitch. If you were racing competitively then it might well make a tangible difference, but otherwise pffff.....
For big mountainous rides I try to look at the bigger picture for weight reduction. Think about clothing weight, helmet, shoes, saddle packs, tools etc. Those can vary by as much or more than frame weights. Of course they are not mutually exclusive savings, but I wouldn't focus on any one particular component - especially a very expensive one! For a major mountainous event I focus mostly on reducing my own bodyweight. I can typically lose 10 lbs over a couple of months if I really want to perform better on the climbs. My bike is in the 16-17 lb range and I don't worry about it. At major expense I could lose maybe 1lb at best, or maybe 3 lbs with a dedicated climbing bike and even more expense. Just not worth it unless competing at a high level.