Bicycle weight and commuting time: randomised trial

How I love the 'n of 1' trial where I can be both subject and
investigator. Congratulations, Dr Groves, on your motivation to faithfully
conduct and write up this study. The rapid responses clearly indicate that
similar research questions have been asked and trials performed in the
setting of cycle commutes the world over, but the rest of us have lost the
race to publication.

I, too, recently purchased a 1000 pound (sterling) carbon frame
bicycle on a ride to work scheme after previously commuting on a steel
frame bike that is about 4kg heavier. My round trip commute is 24 miles. I
find that there's no appreciable difference in the time that it takes me
to commute BUT my knees feel less sore whilst I am riding the lighter bike
and I've noticed that my quadriceps seem less bulky (observed, not
measured) since I began riding it. I found the new bike far less
comfortable than the old at first but after my husband, a bike 'anorak',
made some adjustments that involved indulging in his favourite hobby -
buying bike parts on eBay - the ride became enjoyable again.

Said husband owns a bike that, like the human body, never consists of
the same components from one month to the next. He trades bike parts on
eBay convinced that finding the perfect mix of parts will lead to the
creation of the perfect bike. Husband does not commute on his creation, in
fact his bike leaves the house 6 or fewer times a year, most often to be
ridden to a local bike shop, but he is very proud of its lightness. James
Ward wonders about the effect of this study on marital harmony. I can say
that in a study of 1 married couple this wife felt great righteous
satisfaction on showing the study to her husband who labours under the
(false and untested) belief that the lighter a bike is the better it is.
However, as her husband's belief in his rightness was curiously unaffected
by the findings of the study, and positions remain entrenched, the overall
effect on marital stability was negligible.