diff --git a/message.go b/message.go
index 5ae7f3e8..d9c24d95 100644
--- a/message.go
+++ b/message.go
@@ -100,6 +100,11 @@ func (m *Message) Release() {
 func (m *Message) Reset(arena Arena) (first *Segment, err error) {
 	m.capTable.Reset()
 	for k := range m.segs {
+		// Optimization: keep the first segment so that the re-used
+		// Message does not have to allocate a new one.
+		if k == 0 && m.segs[k] == &m.firstSeg {
+			continue
+		}
 		delete(m.segs, k)
 	}
 
@@ -113,6 +118,7 @@ func (m *Message) Reset(arena Arena) (first *Segment, err error) {
 		DepthLimit:    m.DepthLimit,
 		capTable:      m.capTable,
 		segs:          m.segs,
+		firstSeg:      Segment{msg: m},
 	}
 
 	if arena != nil {
@@ -264,10 +270,10 @@ func (m *Message) Segment(id SegmentID) (*Segment, error) {
 // segment returns the segment with the given ID, with no bounds
 // checking.  The caller must be holding m.mu.
 func (m *Message) segment(id SegmentID) (*Segment, error) {
-	if m.segs == nil && id == 0 && m.firstSeg.msg != nil {
+	if m.segs == nil && id == 0 && m.firstSeg.msg != nil && m.firstSeg.data != nil {
 		return &m.firstSeg, nil
 	}
-	if s := m.segs[id]; s != nil {
+	if s := m.segs[id]; s != nil && s.data != nil {
 		return s, nil
 	}
 	if len(m.segs) == maxInt {
@@ -442,7 +448,7 @@ func alloc(s *Segment, sz Size) (*Segment, address, error) {
 		var err error
 		s, err = s.msg.allocSegment(sz)
 		if err != nil {
-			return nil, 0, err
+			return nil, 0, errors.New("allocSegment failed: " + err.Error())
 		}
 	}
 
diff --git a/message_test.go b/message_test.go
index b146bd06..b705e2e1 100644
--- a/message_test.go
+++ b/message_test.go
@@ -643,3 +643,21 @@ func (readOnlyArena) Allocate(sz Size, segs map[SegmentID]*Segment) (SegmentID,
 }
 
 var errReadOnlyArena = errors.New("Allocate called on read-only arena")
+
+func BenchmarkMessageGetFirstSegment(b *testing.B) {
+	var msg Message
+	var arena Arena = SingleSegment(nil)
+
+	b.ResetTimer()
+	b.ReportAllocs()
+	for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
+		_, err := msg.Reset(arena)
+		if err != nil {
+			b.Fatal(err)
+		}
+		_, err = msg.Segment(0)
+		if err != nil {
+			b.Fatal(err)
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/segment.go b/segment.go
index 14b4bd4e..119e50cf 100644
--- a/segment.go
+++ b/segment.go
@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@ type SegmentID uint32
 // It is part of a Message, which can contain other segments that
 // reference each other.
 type Segment struct {
+	// msg associated with this segment. A Message instance m maintains the
+	// invariant that that all m.segs[].msg == m.
 	msg  *Message
 	id   SegmentID
 	data []byte