Keep the 808 and disc for racing


Train on anything else.

Hed Jet 6 great training and racing wheels for you if you only want one set of wheels

That's what I'd suggest too.

My original reasoning was to avoid the hassle of the tubular tire as my races aren't coming down to seconds. I don't currently have any experience with them so it's a bit stressful to envision changing them in a race.

From your perspective do you think it is just a suck it up and learn how to deal with tubulars kinda situation?

Tubulars are not a big deal to work with but if you have money burning holes in your pocket I'd get a FLO Disc and a 60 front. Looking at $1550? plus tires.

If you already have good tires on your Zipps I'd keep them.

I have experience with both types of tires so I could go either way, personally I like clinchers cuz I have a lot of them.

Tubular tires are a lot faster to change if you get a flat.

And a rear disc wheel is faster and more stable than a spoked wheel.

How much difference it is between Flo vs Zipp? Are you using the full carbon Flo or carbon with aluminium braking track?

I’m a couple of inches shorter than you but same weight. I’ve been using Zipp disc and 808 combo for 3 years without a single flat. I use continental competition tires and put 1/3 bottle of sealant already in. I don’t have training wheels so I ride like that all the time and love it. Of course, I would love to have 858 nsw and Super 9 disc if I had money.

The FLOs are probably faster than the Zipps. Zipps really are not that special and have been passed by a number of other brands.

I don't use FLO or Zipp, but if I had to buy a new bike and get new wheels I'd be getting FLO's with the Aluminum braking track or I'd go to Carbon Speed Cycle.

At my level I seriously doubt I'd see any difference at all.

The HED Jet 6/9 combo is pretty hard to beat for the money. That is what I bought and used at Kona this past year. I usually ride a HED 9 front and disc rear, but wanted something a bit easier to handle in winds (and discs aren't allowed in Kona).

If you don't already have some training wheels, you could just buy a cheap set, then use the tubular wheels on race day. My personal preference is the heavier and more bomb proof the training wheels/tires are, the better. That makes putting race wheels/tires on feel that much faster!

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I'm 5'3" slightly lighter than you, I ride HED Jet 4 Plus as my only wheel (I train and race on a road bike now... DL sprint). Love them, they are super solid and don't have any noticeable impact on steering even when it's windy. I have Zipp 404s on my tri bike (DA1), and the bike/wheel combo - while super fun - always felt squirrelly in a crosswind especially at high downhill speeds.

I am almost of the same weight, but at a much shorter body frame (5"3). I once talked to a triathlon coach and he mentioned if only I am able to generate 300W, it is pointless to get a disc wheel, and recommended that I use a 80mm+ wheel instead. Not sure if this is a valid remark

You should get a different coach.

I second this.

I don't know about FLO wheels but based on my research, HED 6/9 combo is definitely faster than Zipps.
I love the look of 858 NSW though. It looks gorgeous and fast.

That is my research too... I had FLO carbon clinchers that I loved. I am now riding HED JET Back wheels, that I love.

Most of the Flo wheels in the used market is carbon with aluminium braking. Seriously thinking to get a pair, but just a bit of a hassle to swap out my carbon brake pad.

Yep. My gut guess is that the source of those FLO Aluminum wheels are mostly early-in owners that switch to FLO Carbon Clinchers. There is no reason to sell a FLO CC unless you want to change depth or brake track.

When I had my 60/90 FLO CC wheels, they were my everyday wheels. So, I never swapped the pads. That worked fine-- they are very durable.

I changed wheels because I wanted both different depth and aluminum brake tracks (specifically HED's Black brake track). I am now riding 90/disc as my everyday wheels.

Within reason, bike handling is more important than weight. I am just a tad heavier than you @61 kg, probably race about the same speeds (4:33 pb on 70.3). Personally, unless its like >40 mph crosswinds, I never really feel the disk. As for the front, 90 mm is usually ok most of the time but I "feel it" on heavy crosswinds. A 60 mm feels really comfortable in all conditions. If there are a lot of downhills on crosswinds then I may opt for 60 mm to make sure the crosswinds don't punish my skinny ass too much, but I have raced in conditions like that with the 90 mm without too many issues. As for training, I use some cheap/heavy 40 mm wheels at least to constantly practice having a deep wheel on the front.

As for tubies vs clincher, the current trend is that clinchers is the way to go but if you pre-setup your tubies properly (taped, have some selant inside, 6" gap,never glued, pre-stretch lightweight tubie as spare) you can change it faster than a clincher.

Tubie:
-Remove wheel
-Rip it off
-Place the new one
-Pump, and don't push too hard on corners ;-)

Clincher:
-Remove wheel
-Get lever to remove.
-Lift clincher
-Remove tube
-Install tube
-Re-sit clincher.
-Pump

One advantage to clinchers is you can have multiple punctures whereas with tubies, it is harder to carry more than one tubie.

I have both type of racing wheels by the way. Hopefully I didn't start an endless argument about this..;-)

Taped?

6 inch gap?

Tubular tape instead of glue, 6" was a typo, it is more like 2" section that it is not taped to have a "weak spot" to remove the tire easily.

I've added another step which is '-Inspect for debris got stuck inside of the tire.'
I didn't do this two times, so I ended up running out of spare tube.
It's a very critical step.

Tubular glue tape is much slower than a proper glue job.

Leaving an unglued gap also makes the tire slower. You should glue all the way around. If you get a flat, cut the tire off with a razor blade.