I’m very new to triathlons, and did my first olympic distance race this past weekend. I got hooked and bought a Cervelo P3 with Zipp 404s. I also opted to keep the stock Shimano rims as well because I wasn’t planning on training on the 404s the whole time. The 404s, from what I’ve read, are an all-around wheel that can be used during training as well, but I’ve also heard that they shouldn’t be used to train on. I just wanted to get an opinion from everyone on this forum. If you own a pair of 404s do you train on them, or do you have a set of cheaper wheels to train on?
They are plenty durable to train on. I have a pair that I train on all the time. Of course, I didn’t pay for mine, but the reason that I train on them is so that when someone asks this very question, Zipp has the field data to back up all the internal testing they do. The only downside to training on them is that if something happens that would break a wheel - any wheel - like hitting a massive pothole, for example, it’s more expensive to replace a 404 hoop than a cheapo Shimano aluminum hoop. The other concern is that if you live somewhere where it rains a lot (or there is a lot of sand and grit on your roads), the brake track does have a finite lifespan. So if you are on the brakes a lot in an area with dirty roads, you will wear down the braking surface (this is over a matter of years), which is also something to consider. Zipp’s crash (and wear) replacement policy is very good, but the basic cost of the hoop is just a whole lot more than something like a Mavic open pro. Hope that helps.
Are they 404 tubulars or clinchers? If they’re tubulars, keep them for races.
I ride my 404 clinchers for a large chunk of my training rides and I haven’t had any issues. There are 2 sides to this debate, you paid good money for the wheels, so why use them only when racing? On the other hand, why risk breaking your expensive wheelset when you have perfectly good training wheels as well. I opted for the former and not the latter unless I know where I’m riding is going to be unusually bad roads in terms of potholes, or if I’m unfamiliar with the area.
I have a pair of stock wheels that came with my Cervelo that must weigh about 5 lbs each. It’s like biking with the brakes on all the time. I train with those wheels instead of my Zipps just because when I put the Zipps on the bike on race day, I suddenly feel so fast! It’s just psychological, but it makes my race day a little more fun.