I know this has been covered ad nauseum here, but I wanted to get the ST weigh in on a discussion we had at the Virginia State Time Trial Championships yesterday.
As people were waiting for the results, we were discussing the benefits and speed enhancements of a disk wheel. People theorized that it ranged from 5 - 10 seconds to 4 - 5 minutes faster using a disk over a Zipp 404. So all things being the same, if I was to ride a 23 mile TT over a relatively flat course (60’ rise overall) what kind of a time savings say you? Or in this case loss since I rode the disk instead of the 404.
Course:
Lolly pop with the stick being 6 miles
Conditions:
92 degrees
5-7 mph head wind on the way out and switched to a cross wind on the way back (of the stick of the lolly pop)
26 mph avg over the course (assume even)
Wheels in question:
Zipp 404 non-dimpled
Renn disk