What do you mean the savings are not passed on to the consumer?

The 2020 Zipp 303 Firecrest is US$1900 retail. The prior generation of the model of the same name was US$2200 retail.

Way back in 2015 the SES 4.5 was US$2900 retail with DT240s. Now they start at $2550 (granted with ENVE hubs instead of DTs). And the Foundation 45's are $1600.

Since when have Zipp and ENVE ever reduced prices?

I think some here have come up with the conspiracy theory that Zipp/ENVE are just lowering prices to compete with nearly-equivalent products that are much cheaper, and using "hookless" as a cover story. But I'm not so sure about that.

Correlation does not get causation. Market forces are more powerful than good will of passing any cost savings to the customer. If you can't compete in a price war you figure out how to make things cheaper or you lose. Its doubtful that any savings is passed to the customer because its cheaper to make the product. The reason prices go down is because the market balances all prices which is good for the customer but not because of any companies "good will."

Big one to flag that’s sure to be controversial: Pro One Addix TLE actually tested (marginally) faster than the GP5K TL

Dr. Disley, at risk of asking a dumb question, can you offer any insights into why the corsa speed would perform relatively better on the titan than the pro one TT, compared to both on the zephyr. My working theory was that the wider the rim/tire ratio, the more forgiving the complete system would be to poor aero properties of the tire (eg., an open tubular like the corsa speed or the turbo cotton). So in this case I would expect to see the titan stall at low yaw with the corsa speed and the pro one TT to behave as you’d expect from a very aero vulcanized tire (tripping the boundary layer to a turbulent state at the right position on the tyre, etc). This is the reason I assumed the new Roval Rapide performs so well with the turbo cotton vs the 2bliss Rapidair. Clearly, however, there is more at play - and is often the case things are likely highly nuanced. Many thanks!

I got the impression from the article that pro one tle was tested at Schwalbe’s facility and likewise for the GP5K TL at continental’s. Both under the supervision of RoadBike techs. Not sure about the other tyres. Had to rely on Google Translate haha. Welcome the assistance of any German speakers out there.

Crr of GP5Ks alps appears to degrade over time based on BRR results. Would be interesting if this holds to the same degree across tires or if it is dependant, in part, on construction. Have heard it argued that final finish on the GP5K wears off fast (can’t speak to the veracity of the claim).

Schwalbe Pro One TT is very aero. So much so in fact that in very windy conditions, on our Zephyr front wheel (78mm) a 25mm Pro One TT is as fast as a Corsa Speed (23mm or 25mm). As the Schwalbe TT is more puncture resistant than a Corsa Speed it is a great backup combination for windy days or terrible road surfaces. On our Titan (which is deeper at 100mm, and isn't as wide externally as the Zephyr) the Schwalbe TT isn't as good and the Corsa Speed beats it (in both 23mm and 25mm). It does depend a lot on what wheel you're putting it on.

These are our recommendations for tyre choice for racing/training based on aero and Crr data, in order of real world speed:

1. Veloflex Record - fastest thing you can ride, not for very broken surfaces. Similar aerodynamics to the Corsa Speed but the Crr is so much lower than everything no other tyre is faster even if that other tyre is more aero
2. Corsa Speed - great option as you can run it tubeless or clincher, again not for very broken surfaces. This was our top recommendation on the fastest option before the new Veloflex Record came out but is the fastest tubeless tyre
3. Schwalbe Pro One TT - tubeless or clincher, much better for puncture protection than the Corsa Speed, very nearly as fast. If you want to race on a fast tyre in any conditions this is a good option
4. Continental GP5000 - tubeless or clincher. This for everything else. You can race and train on GP5000s and if you want a set of wheels you use at all times on your bike this is what to go with

Of course there are others in there like the Michelin, Pirelli, Specialized, but that's our simplified recommendation list. As stock on our wheels we supply Veloflex, Vittoria, Continental and can supply Schwalbe if people want them but we thought it would be better to make it even easier to understand (Veloflex for best, Vittoria for best tubeless, GP5000 for everything else).

Hey Xavier- dredging up this older post, trying to decide wheel/tire combo for my first race this season. If I’m doing an event (70.3) with a lot of broken/cracked roads, would you think the Schwalbe on the Titan is a better choice? Or Titan is just CS or bust? If I rode an alternate wheel it’d have to be clincher, so thoughts on Schwalbe w/ tube vs CS without?

Hi Eric :) how about 23mm GP5000 or GPTT? Both of those would be fine on the Titan and also pretty puncture resistant too. I'd avoid the Schwalbe TT and would go with the GPTT instead