Never been…
Not sure of prevailing winds…
On a budget…
Which wheels should I choose for my Plasma LTD?
404’s
Can be found pretty economically used, good in cross winds, great in aerodynamics. Perhaps the most versitile wheel out there.
xentis tt’s.
I used Hed Alps front and H3 rear without any problems
Mike
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404 or 606.
I have ridden the course a few times and the thing is you just never know about the wind. It can come from anywhere and it changes on a dime.
Hello justfast and All,
Here are some sources to monitor the Kona wind and weather sent to me by a friend that lives and sails there … since I had the same question as you, which wheels to use?
I am going to Kona in late May/Jun and while there I will get a chance to ride the course - the winds this time of year may be different than in October though.
I am probably going to use 1080 clincher rear and either an 808 clincher front or a 404 clincher front but will change as required after some test runs.
Most advice I am getting from those who have done the race is to use a 404 front … as the wind is hard to predict and the time lost fighting the wind with an 808 might be better spent on the aero bars with the 404 …
Neal this will give you several sites, this one is at Puako and runs into May, it is mostly for whale research, has a live video going with wind history
http://www.jupiterfoundation.org/new_bw_liveaudio_hawaii.html
Neal, this one is up in Kawaihae and has a cam with real time reports, mostly used by surfers.
http://www.surfline.com/surf-report/kawaihae_4763/
This one is almost real time and gives good info for most of the area you are concerned with.
http://www.iwindsurf.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=131&geographicalAreaID=999
And this one gives the forecasts.
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Cheers,
Neal
Well, both the male and female fastest bike times were set on 50mm Hed’s.
Jet or Stinger?
Not sure which Hed model. I was trying to be a subtle about making a point. A lot of ST posters will tell you automatically to go to the deepest front rim. However, Brent Sutton (Chrissie Wellington’s Kona winning coach) has stated that he feels that many AG’ers are actually slowing themselves down by using deep wheels that they have trouble controlling in the wind (of course few would ever admit it) and he feels they would be faster on a less deep front. That’s probably why he put her on the Hed 50’s.
Very interesting…
zipp zedtech 606… I’m selling if you can get “off” your budget!
As much as I am a stickler for deep aero weenieness
at kona I would play it safe. When pros speak in fearful tones about the wind…that makes me think 404 front 808 rear
or hed jet 50 front jet 90 rear
something like that, even though I’m relatively big at 175 lbs
nobody wants to spend 112 miles steering constantly
IGNORE MY SIG!!
lol
Well, both the male and female fastest bike times were set on 50mm Hed’s.
Take a look at the yaw charts for both Hed and Zipp wheels. The truth is that most AG’ers (even the skewed sample that post on here) would be faster on any IM course on a 404 than an 808. We simply don’t ride fast enough to produce the yaw angles that hit the sweetspot of say an 808. For instance, according to Hed’s website a Jet 6 outperforms a Jet 9 for any yaw angle over 12 degrees. Most of us riding an IM at 20 mph are seeing those angles a lot.
I dunno, ive done plenty of events with hardly any wind
and, even if there is wind, some of the time the wind will be in your face or at your back.
if you are in a windy area though, definitely something to consider. or a windy time of year (right now in texas!)
Take a look at the yaw charts for both Hed and Zipp wheels. The truth is that most AG’ers (even the skewed sample that post on here) would be faster on any IM course on a 404 than an 808. We simply don’t ride fast enough to produce the yaw angles that hit the sweetspot of say an 808. For instance, according to Hed’s website a Jet 6 outperforms a Jet 9 for any yaw angle over 12 degrees. Most of us riding an IM at 20 mph are seeing those angles a lot.
Hmmmmm…I’m sitting in Fairfield County, CT right now. Not really considered an extremely windy area. I just checked the 10 day forecast on weather.com. The next 10 days have forecast of 16, 12, 12, 10, 6, 14, 13, 11, 9, and 9 mph (from various directions). You’d be surprised how seldom there is Zero wind. Even this small amount of wind will result in huge apparent wind angles for a rider that’s riding 20 mph or less. I’ve had the conversation with guys from both Zipp and Hed. The fact is most of the folks here are stalling their wheels. If we (not you specifically, but us collectively) chose our wheelset with our heads, rather than our egos, we’d be riding 58mm (or so) wheels for IM - which was the question of the OP. For my own speeds, I’m fastest on an 808 (or similar) for sprints and Olys. For IM’s (I’m hoping for about a 5:15 in Canada), the 404 is clearly a faster choice for me (on most days). 70.3’s for me are a toss-up.
Dual disc’s, and wrap your frame in duct tape so it’s more aero.
“Well, both the male and female fastest bike times were set on 50mm Hed’s.”
Sure, but who cares about bike splits. The over all time is what matters. Oh crap, I forgot this is ST :).
My $0.02 for the original poster – 60mm Hed or Zipp in the front–60/80/90 / Hed 3 in the rear. That’s what the winners rode last year :).