[mepstein]

I ran a bike shop for 6 years and have raced for 30. If you want to see what a lighter, high performance set of wheels will feel like, ask your high performance LBS (local bike shop) to fit a set to your bike to try out. Just like a car, tires make the most difference but wheels are rotating weight and also can make an aero difference at higher speeds. Just dropping weight on a bike makes very little difference since it ends up being such a small percentage when you add in the riders weight. Unless you are a big, strong rider, stiffness has very little to do with performance. The difference between flexible wheels and frames and stiff ones is measured (at most) in millimeters and is mostly hype by the bike industry to help sell new bikes.