Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Heavier would seem like a benefit to me, wouldn't inertia improve its score over longer distances?


No, the only things that matter are the losses and those are due to air resistance (same), rolling resistance (increases linear with weight) and losses due to braking/acceleration (grows quadratic with weight). Heavier is always worse. Note that electric bikes usually don’t even have recuperative braking due to the complexities involved.

If heavier were better, we’d see all Tour de France riders use cast iron wheels and frames ;)


You might be thinking of heavier race cars with bigger engines generally having higher top speeds. They aren't more efficient, just more powerful, and weight doesn't affect top speed (only acceleration).




Consider applying for YC's Fall 2026 batch! Applications are open till July 27.

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: