Hey STers,
I race primarily in OD events, and average roughly 34 kph (21mph) on the bike. Are aero wheels (404s, Jet 6's etc) a worthwhile investment? or would a more prudent measure be bringing up the overall speed average and then looking at wheels?
I have read from previous posts that aero wheels become important at 25mph+, but would i experience gains averaging at 21mph?
Opinions welcome!
nope, you get slower!
(kidding?)
Damn! lol. I think at the heart of it, i am just trying to suss out whether the $1500+ investment is worth it, or if the money is better spent elsewhere.
better spent in real life 
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Will you notice and increase in speed? Yes!
Is it worth it? That really depends by person to person and also your financial status. I’m far from rich, but racing is very important to me, so I sacrifice in some areas (I drive a P.O.S. car, dont have any other hobbies but bike racing and triathlon) so I can buy nice bike toys.
best “value” = HED3 + disc cover from wheelbuilder…and you’re out ~500 bones
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There are folks more qualified than I am to answer this, but my first question is do you have the bike you want? If your bike/fit is not your ideal - you might be better off applying the cash toward the machine itself. Also - do you have an Aero helmet? Another decent aero payback for the money.
Assuming yes to the questions above - you might see a small benefit from better wheels. If you race on hillier courses - the 404s or any lighter Aero wheel could assist with both aero and weight. I am an average(below avg compared to most ST posters) cyclist - I just averaged 21.5 at Steelhead HIM. When I bought my Disc and 404 on Ebay a couple of years back - I was looking for an instant 1mph(or something substantial). I have not done any tests, but my guess is that on a flat course I might pick up .2 MPH or so with the more aero wheels.
Yes Aero wheels are worth it. Another (cheaper) way to get speed is an Aero helmet, it you don’t already have one.
Wow! thanks for the opinions, and thanks, Marcus, for the previous post referral. i am currently riding a Cervelo P1, and i do have a Bell meteor II aero helmet.
Thanks btmoney, i will totally look into the wheel cover - i hadn’t really considered it!
cheers, all.
aerodynamics make a difference at any speed
they become important whenever you want to go faster
they are worth it depending on how much you want to go faster and how much money you have to spend.
also pedal harder, pedal more
Hey STers,
I have read from previous posts that aero wheels become important at 25mph+, but would i experience gains averaging at 21mph?
Opinions welcome!
Yes at any speed they are worth it in terms of going faster. I think some of the best deals going are Nuevation tubular front for $279 new with a $100 rear wheel cover. If you want all clincher then it will be $429 front and $100 rear. Either way you cut it, it is a pretty good deal.
I sold my HED wheels a while ago as I will not be racing for a bit but when I get back at it, I will be using a 50mm front carbon clincher matched up with a wheel cover on my American Classic Sprint 350 rear wheel so that the total weight is only about 100 - 150g more than a real disc but at $100 instead of $1000
wtf BMAN? sacrificing weight for money? that is NOT your style!
You can have the best of both worlds if you take the time to do some research. The funny part about your comment is that if you knew how little I have spent on each of my builds you would think that I stole the parts. My SLC was built for less money than a stock build would have been new yet is about 4-5 lbs less and is more aero. Stock builds are for suckers ;^)
Sometimes a good deal with a bit of added weight is well worth it. Token 50mm wheelset for $650 is one of those deals as well as the other deal that is trying to be had on this site.
Aero trumps weight but aero and light is right.
Not to highjack this post but I have a question that stems from this post. I have specialized trispokes that I really like. Is it faster to run my trispokes front and back or trispoke up front a wheelcover over my training wheel for the back?
Hey STers,
I race primarily in OD events, and average roughly 34 kph (21mph) on the bike. Are aero wheels (404s, Jet 6's etc) a worthwhile investment? or would a more prudent measure be bringing up the overall speed average and then looking at wheels?
I have read from previous posts that aero wheels become important at 25mph+, but would i experience gains averaging at 21mph?
Opinions welcome!
The slower you are, the more time an aero improvement will save you.
Depends how you define value for your money. Some people can justify a $2000 rear disc. I can’t when the same same performance is available from a $100. disc cover.
Thanks again, everyone! i value the opinions. i think i will use this week to order up a wheel cover and go from there…
kinds regards.
I guess you heard this already, but another data point for you.
From repeat testing on same course, back-to-back 40k tests, and another 40k this weekend, different, but very similiar course, my 404 front and 808 rear with PR2 & latex tubes seem to be worth ~60-80 sec over the 25 miles, so something like 2 to 3 seconds per mile. In other words, no, you won’t notice it while riding, but there is a slight cumulative effect over the miles. Is approx 60 seconds for 40k worth it? I guess that’s for you to decide.
I definitely like way the zipps ride and look. Worth the money? Very subjective.