I have done 16 IMs and used to be all into the gear, latest training, etc. etc. Now I’m old, fat-ish, and not nearly the fitness I once had. Oh well, such is life…
However, I will be doing an IM in a few months (my 1st IM in 6 years) and am looking for race wheels. I am, to put it mildly, waaaay out of the game when it comes to the latest and greatest equipment knowledge. I have not really researched anything equipment related for probably 10 years. I have no idea what the current thinking is on front rim depth, tire width, rear disc or no disc, tire pressures, etc etc etc.
If someone could please (please!!!) help me with a 1 minute tutorial on what setup I should be looking to achieve, I’d greatly appreciate it!
And if there are recommendations on front/rear setups you feel are great (brands, models, etc), I’d love to hear them. For cost, I don’t want to spend more than $2,500 for the set, but wouod preferably like to be in the $1,500ish or lower range.
FLO has really nice wheels which would should be within your lower budget for the pair. Jon, the owner, visits these forums regularly and can certainly give you his thoughts on which setup will work best for you. I’m using their 64 in the front and 77 in the rear, with a disc on order. I’ve been very happy with how they ride, very stable in a cross wind which is important to me since I’m not the biggest or heaviest guy around.
Have you still got your old gear? If so then spend the $1500 on preventative fortnightly sessions, fortnightly massage (the other weeks) and upgraded race week hotel room. Add a FR965/Fenix and new race kit, that’s going to lead to a way happier race (noting you aren’t going to PB from what you said) but will still probably end up faster than replacing decent 2013 wheels with 2023 versions…
I have done 16 IMs and used to be all into the gear, latest training, etc. etc. Now I’m old, fat-ish, and not nearly the fitness I once had. Oh well, such is life…
However, I will be doing an IM in a few months (my 1st IM in 6 years) and am looking for race wheels. I am, to put it mildly, waaaay out of the game when it comes to the latest and greatest equipment knowledge. I have not really researched anything equipment related for probably 10 years. I have no idea what the current thinking is on front rim depth, tire width, rear disc or no disc, tire pressures, etc etc etc.
If someone could please (please!!!) help me with a 1 minute tutorial on what setup I should be looking to achieve, I’d greatly appreciate it!
And if there are recommendations on front/rear setups you feel are great (brands, models, etc), I’d love to hear them. For cost, I don’t want to spend more than $2,500 for the set, but wouod preferably like to be in the $1,500ish or lower range.
Thanks so much for your help!
I’m guessing rim brake?
I’d go as deep as you can handle, rear disc and 90mm. I’ve bought a few wheelsets from FFWD and they’ve been great to deal with. They often have 2nd hand wheels they sell pretty cheap. The disc I just bought was 2nd hand, but looked brand new and half price. If you’re after rim brake, you should be able to get a decent wheelset for $1500. Others might disagree, but based on my experience and others experience I’d avoid the Chinese brands. Just my $0.02. You get what you pay for.
A few thoughts. Our king and queen of triathlon has always been our front FLO 64 AS and rear FLO 77 AS. While the front FLO 77 AS is faster it’s only 15 seconds faster over an Ironman if you stay in the bars for the same amount of time you can stay in the bars on the front FLO 64 AS. If you come out of the bars for handling issues you will lose more than 15 seconds since your body makes up roughly 80% of the drag. This is why 90% of our athletes choose the shallower front wheel. If however you can handle a deeper front wheel than by all means get the front FLO 77 AS. It’s a great front wheel and much more stable than our older FLO 90 model.
With regard to a rear disc wheel I say a rear disc makes a great second rear wheel. As a primary wheel I don’t recommend a disc wheel and I believe you’re better off training and racing on the same wheels. The wheels are built for this and can handle every day use and you are as familiar with your gear on race day as possible. While the wheel covers are a great option for rim brake wheels if you want a quick disc they do not work for disc brake wheels.I’m happy to answer and specific questions you may have.
Your p2 recommended tire size is 23mm front and 25mm back. You might bodge it to 25mm front in rare cases. With this narrow tires you are down to something with 17-19mm inner width. Best race wheels for this are in my opinion DT Swiss Arc 1100 80mm, the rim break version with 17mm inner width and ceramic bearings.
However, I wouldn’t waste money to get any new wheel set, and wouldn’t even consider tubeless for these tire sizes. My recommendation is to get something 2nd hand.
Then put 23mm and 25mm Continental GP 5000 clincher tires (standard, neither tubeless nor TT) plus latex tubes.
Yes, rim break. I’ll check out the FFWD wheelsets, thanks!!! Any recommendations on tire width?
The “sweet spot” is currently 25mm or 28mm tires.
With rim brakes and what sounds like older equipment, you might be limited by your bike. But also the wheels you end up with…they might be wider than what you had before.
When you get your new wheels you might put the tires you have on there and see how much space you have.
Honestly, these days it depends on the Chinese brand. There are still ones out there that are just making open molds with no QC and I would not go for those. On the other hand there are also brands that are working with research universities in China to figure out the shape of their wheels as well as going through the process in order to get their wheels approved by the UCI and those are worth taking a look at these days. It just depends on what brand you are talking about for the Chinese carbon wheels.
i bought these a year ago on ST, and have been riding on them the past month or so (i rather use in training than my stock)
SOLD - Zipp Firecrest 606 (404 Front/808 rear) w 11-32 11spd casette - $950 OBO
i am racing IM MD in a couple of months and wonder if its worth renting wheels for that race or if these are more than fine, or if anyone knows of any sales i can upgrade.
Reading through I see you have a Cervelo. Use the stock wheels that came with my Cervelo with a cover on the rear. They were the fastest wheels I ever had on the bike including a pair of Hed3’s I bought later. The fastest combo was an old Hed3 on the back and the stock wheel on the front. Went to Kona with that. Buy new tires (lots of options there), with latex or TPU inner tubes, replace the bearings and true the wheels (go hog wild and put ceramics in, won’t make a difference but they sure spin nice), spend a little on the cockpit and fluid system. Last but not least get a better saddle, upgrade your race suit and helmet.