First off, I'm new to this forum, so hello. I apologize that this is a bit wordy, but trying to focus my question and everyones responses. Ultimately, this is a what would you do thread.
Then an admission: I'm not a triathlete but a roadie that does a fair bit of time trialing, and think it's a discipline that I'm fairly decent at (~52.5 min 40k) and could be dare-I-say "good" (sub-50) at with a bit more work. I've been working at improving my power and positioning over the last two seasons and have gotten better, but am doubling down this year (doing a lot of off-season gym work and strength training) and putting on some muscle to up my power. Sub 50 may not be attainable this season, but I still have a few years left of progression.
I ride for a domestic elite team that is sponsored by Scott. I am picking up a 2016 Plasma 5 team issue in a month or so, which is in-and-of-itself a huge upgrade from the open mold frame I've been running for the last two seasons (Sram 10sp force/red mixed group with R2C shifters). I seriously considered just going with the frame set, but the price difference between the frame set and the team issue bike was marginal and too good to pass up on.
As has been discussed at length, the bike comes with mechanical SRAM Red 22. All things being equal, I'd love to hang the bike with 6870, which seems like a more appropriate build, but as we all know, everything is not equal. At the end of the day, I'm an amateur racer with a fixed (although pretty nice) budget for such things. A condition that I applies to many of us and ultimately decisions have to be made. This is also exacerbated by the fact that that pot of money is divided between 2 bikes, with my road machine being the bike I spend the most time on.
So the upshot of all that is on balance, it would cost me about $1,000 out of pocket to convert from the Red 22 to 6870. So the question is... is an upgrade that arguably makes no difference to my ability to go faster on the bike work $1K, or is that $$ best spent elsewhere? Now is the time to break-down all the go-faster bits/training aids before we venture down the traditional rabbit-holes we typically debate.
1) Power-meter: Check. Got 'em for both the bikes. Running a SRAM Elsa on the TT bike and an Elsa RS on the road bike.
2) Coach: Check. Been working with the same coach for going on 3 years.
3) Wheels: Check. Have a HED Stinger disc and am running my Enve 6 clincher (of my 6.7 pair) up front. I'm also got a set of 4.5 tubbies for road racing. Have a decent set of training wheels also.
4) Skinsuit: Team-issue Castelli LS speedsuit.
5) Helmet: Have experimented with several over that last few years (Rudy Project, Lazer, etc.) I have settled on the Poc Cerebel - It may not be THE fastest out there, but works in a variety of conditions, allows me to keep my head out of the wind and provides good visibility and good [enough] ventilation. I also have a specialized Evade which is pretty slippery when conditions are super hot, though I did run the Cerebel at amateur nats this year when temps were in the upper 90's and miserable.
6) Fit: My coach (a former pro and top 5 finisher at US Pro TT) did the initial set-up and provides input, I've done a LOT of trial and error to maximize my power output in my position, and I've had a certified fitter (one of my teammates last year) do saddle pressure mapping and make a couple of tweaks, but otherwise confirm that "I'm solid". I've also been fit on my road bike and am confident with that position as well.
7) Other pieces of kit: gloves, shoe covers (or not), shoes, socks, etc. are all team issue. I don't have to deal with hydration or nutrition as none of my events are long enough.
So since much of the low-hanging fruit has been picked... where else can this $1000 go that would better serve me than into Di2?
a) My pocket: No option is an option. I've already had a healthy outlay for gear going into 2016, and wouldn't mind putting it into savings, travel, etc.
b) A cockpit for my road machine. I'd really like to get the Enve SES aero road bar. The narrower hoods and wider drops is very appealing to me as I tend to spend a lot of time in break aways (~$350).
c) Aero testing: Not sure $1k will get me very far here, especially considering travel to the nearest tunnel, so really this is out of reach. I will likely put up an aero critique post later.
d) Q rings: I run a 55t SRAM round ring now, but have toyed around with this idea. I have downsized to 170 crank-arms, which was a great move, and think there's merit in giving elliptical rings a go (~$200).
e) Front wheel: I was thinking I'd try to pick up a Hed 3 or a deeper front - maybe a Stinger 9. This would obviously eat up most/all of that $$.
f) Saddle: I played around with a few and settled with a Fizik Tritone which I like enough for all my events and general rides up to about 3 hours. My interest though is piqued by the Dash saddles and would be interested to see if there's any benefit there. My events are short, but we all know the benefits of being more comfortable and putting out more power.
g) Bearings: bottom bracket, jockey wheels, "event-only chains", etc. Seems like there is a small, but tangible benefit to be had here.
h) Tires: already following the testing on the new Vittoria's very closely. If not, will likely go with the Spech turbo cottons.
i) A new trainer: I'm using old school rollers with a fan - has done the trick to date, but are super loud and obnoxious. Was thinking a direct drive might be nice for doing TT specific workouts this winter inside and help close the gap on my FTP on my road and TT bikes (currently, I'm about 7-8% down on my TT power compared to my road bike). Then again, I HATE the trainer, sweat like a hog after about 30 minutes, overheat at anything above endurance pace and live in California, where outdoor workouts are manageable most of the time (though I don't ride my TT bike in the rain).
So given the options what would you do? If I went Di2, most or all of the upgrades above would be off the table. Is some combination of the above worth giving up the luxury of e-shifting? Keep in mind I've already been running mech for two years with little tangible detriment.
Thanks in advance.
Then an admission: I'm not a triathlete but a roadie that does a fair bit of time trialing, and think it's a discipline that I'm fairly decent at (~52.5 min 40k) and could be dare-I-say "good" (sub-50) at with a bit more work. I've been working at improving my power and positioning over the last two seasons and have gotten better, but am doubling down this year (doing a lot of off-season gym work and strength training) and putting on some muscle to up my power. Sub 50 may not be attainable this season, but I still have a few years left of progression.
I ride for a domestic elite team that is sponsored by Scott. I am picking up a 2016 Plasma 5 team issue in a month or so, which is in-and-of-itself a huge upgrade from the open mold frame I've been running for the last two seasons (Sram 10sp force/red mixed group with R2C shifters). I seriously considered just going with the frame set, but the price difference between the frame set and the team issue bike was marginal and too good to pass up on.
As has been discussed at length, the bike comes with mechanical SRAM Red 22. All things being equal, I'd love to hang the bike with 6870, which seems like a more appropriate build, but as we all know, everything is not equal. At the end of the day, I'm an amateur racer with a fixed (although pretty nice) budget for such things. A condition that I applies to many of us and ultimately decisions have to be made. This is also exacerbated by the fact that that pot of money is divided between 2 bikes, with my road machine being the bike I spend the most time on.
So the upshot of all that is on balance, it would cost me about $1,000 out of pocket to convert from the Red 22 to 6870. So the question is... is an upgrade that arguably makes no difference to my ability to go faster on the bike work $1K, or is that $$ best spent elsewhere? Now is the time to break-down all the go-faster bits/training aids before we venture down the traditional rabbit-holes we typically debate.
1) Power-meter: Check. Got 'em for both the bikes. Running a SRAM Elsa on the TT bike and an Elsa RS on the road bike.
2) Coach: Check. Been working with the same coach for going on 3 years.
3) Wheels: Check. Have a HED Stinger disc and am running my Enve 6 clincher (of my 6.7 pair) up front. I'm also got a set of 4.5 tubbies for road racing. Have a decent set of training wheels also.
4) Skinsuit: Team-issue Castelli LS speedsuit.
5) Helmet: Have experimented with several over that last few years (Rudy Project, Lazer, etc.) I have settled on the Poc Cerebel - It may not be THE fastest out there, but works in a variety of conditions, allows me to keep my head out of the wind and provides good visibility and good [enough] ventilation. I also have a specialized Evade which is pretty slippery when conditions are super hot, though I did run the Cerebel at amateur nats this year when temps were in the upper 90's and miserable.
6) Fit: My coach (a former pro and top 5 finisher at US Pro TT) did the initial set-up and provides input, I've done a LOT of trial and error to maximize my power output in my position, and I've had a certified fitter (one of my teammates last year) do saddle pressure mapping and make a couple of tweaks, but otherwise confirm that "I'm solid". I've also been fit on my road bike and am confident with that position as well.
7) Other pieces of kit: gloves, shoe covers (or not), shoes, socks, etc. are all team issue. I don't have to deal with hydration or nutrition as none of my events are long enough.
So since much of the low-hanging fruit has been picked... where else can this $1000 go that would better serve me than into Di2?
a) My pocket: No option is an option. I've already had a healthy outlay for gear going into 2016, and wouldn't mind putting it into savings, travel, etc.
b) A cockpit for my road machine. I'd really like to get the Enve SES aero road bar. The narrower hoods and wider drops is very appealing to me as I tend to spend a lot of time in break aways (~$350).
c) Aero testing: Not sure $1k will get me very far here, especially considering travel to the nearest tunnel, so really this is out of reach. I will likely put up an aero critique post later.
d) Q rings: I run a 55t SRAM round ring now, but have toyed around with this idea. I have downsized to 170 crank-arms, which was a great move, and think there's merit in giving elliptical rings a go (~$200).
e) Front wheel: I was thinking I'd try to pick up a Hed 3 or a deeper front - maybe a Stinger 9. This would obviously eat up most/all of that $$.
f) Saddle: I played around with a few and settled with a Fizik Tritone which I like enough for all my events and general rides up to about 3 hours. My interest though is piqued by the Dash saddles and would be interested to see if there's any benefit there. My events are short, but we all know the benefits of being more comfortable and putting out more power.
g) Bearings: bottom bracket, jockey wheels, "event-only chains", etc. Seems like there is a small, but tangible benefit to be had here.
h) Tires: already following the testing on the new Vittoria's very closely. If not, will likely go with the Spech turbo cottons.
i) A new trainer: I'm using old school rollers with a fan - has done the trick to date, but are super loud and obnoxious. Was thinking a direct drive might be nice for doing TT specific workouts this winter inside and help close the gap on my FTP on my road and TT bikes (currently, I'm about 7-8% down on my TT power compared to my road bike). Then again, I HATE the trainer, sweat like a hog after about 30 minutes, overheat at anything above endurance pace and live in California, where outdoor workouts are manageable most of the time (though I don't ride my TT bike in the rain).
So given the options what would you do? If I went Di2, most or all of the upgrades above would be off the table. Is some combination of the above worth giving up the luxury of e-shifting? Keep in mind I've already been running mech for two years with little tangible detriment.
Thanks in advance.
