Which one would you be more confident on handling-wise in the rain? That's the one I'd pick.

Good point. However, I'll be taking it slow with either bike. When it rains, I basically plan on long braking times, no matter which bike I'm on.

I ride in the rain all the time. Although I second the suggestion to take the bike that handles the best in the rain, all things being equal, I would take the racing bike. You can just clean it off afterward.

What do you do about water that gets inside the frame? The NP3 has this big hole facing upwards at the point where the front shifting cable leaves the frame and goes to the FD. It just screams "rain drops, come to mama." Can't tape over it, because that would interfere with the pull.

Edit: Actually, I forgot I ran the shifter cable through a piece of inner tubing where it exits (to keep it from cutting into the frame--a known problem with this design). I might be able to tape around it. Still, I think I'm leaning towards beater bike. It's much less difficult to disassemble in order to clean it up afterwards.

I have never had a problem with water getting trapped in the frame, and my bikes have internal cable routing. I did have one extremely muddy race (pouring rain and 8 miles of the bike were on gravel) that I did on my road bike. The seat rails and post got completely gritty causing a creak, so I had to take those apart and clean them, but that has been it. If you are concerned, you might be able to put something like Glad Flexseal (or whatever that kitchen stuff is) over it. That should be waterproof but still allow cable movement.

Edit: I think it is called Press'n'Seal.

I've done a bunch of racing - including my very first super sprint tri back in 2009, a memorable sprint in near-hurricane conditions in 2015, and my last tri (possibly ever) in 2016 - on my Cervelo P1 with internally routed cables. Never had an issue with water in the frame, rust, or anything else from the rain; I still own the same bike and it's still in excellent condition.



(other than the rear derailleur messing up as I mounted just before the photo above from 2016, leaving me stuck in the smallest cog for the whole bike leg - nothing to do with rain, though)

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ill advised racing inc.

Ha ha, I've got a race picture like that too! It was my first race (aquabike) after years of recovery from back injury. It was raining cats and dogs, and I was the only one with this big s#*t eating grin on.

I'm prepping both bikes. If rain comes as predicted, I'll be on the beater. She's happy to come out of retirement for a race!

Well, it ended up being the race bike. The headset was lose on my "beater" bike. I had ordered the replacement bearings a while ago but never done the wrenching. I was just too beat to take that on and went with the race bike. I was also hesitant to take her on her first road spin in many months in a race.

While the rain stopped just before the bike, transition was a mud pit, the roads were wet and there was mucho crap on the road. Literally took me hours to get the race bike cleaned up afterwards. Was glad I took her, though. My first place bike time for my AG got me a spot on the podium.

Congrats!

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ill advised racing inc.

Congrats, that's awesome! I was going to say definitely go for the race bike. :) Here's the worst weather I've raced in so far... it was also about 8 Celcius out.

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http://must-be-half-crazy.blogspot.ca/
Supported by: Britannia Chiropractic Clinic | Legacy Team Nuun 2021|

Congratulations! Podiums always makes the race worthwhile

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res, non verba

Your race has probably passed but you'll find that dropping your tire pressure for racing in the rain will help with overall handling (increased contact patch).