I can borrow a pair of Zipp 808s for Imoo. They’re tubulars. The catch is that I’ve never tried and them and I don’t know how to change a flat. I’m comfortable that I can get used to them on an hour spin tomorrow, but I’m nervous about learning to change a flat. How easy is it? The shop would teach me, of course, and I have Friday and Saturday to learn on my own. Do you think it’s worth it?
P.S. Otherwise I’m racing in Mavick Elites (I’ve been training and racing on them all summer – but the allure of the Zipps has really gotten to me – I’ve put in a lot of time and I want to have a good race – this is my second Imoo and probably my last for a while – I’d like to see what I can do).
Take the Zipps. The guys at the store should have a pre-stretched tire you can borrow. Take that with you as a spare.
Changing a tubular is very easy. Go there today have them mount everything for you ride tomorrow and Saturday for a little bit, you’ll love them.
I rode a disk in Florida a couple of years ago, we knew each other only 2 hrs, it was great.
In theory, changing a flat on a tubular is pretty easy. Rip the flatted one off, put the new one on (make sure it has a valve extender on it), pull out your CO2 and away you go.
In practice, in can be much more difficult to get a well glued tubular off the wheel.
At any rate, get some Vittoria Pitstop and use that in case of a flat first. If that doesn’t work resort to changing it.
Obviously these are the fastest wheels you can probably ride on this course. The real question is if you really need the extra 5-10 minutes they are going to give you. If you’re not going for a Kona slot then why bother? Peace of mind is a great thing on IM race day.
Changing a tubular is easy? Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on how the tires were glued on- how much glue was used, what type, how long they have been glued ect. Also, during a race like this you can expect your anxiety to go up a lot. Get a flat and see how irrational/desperate you become. Maybe it takes a few minutes to change a flat in your garage, but on the side of the road with bikers passing you by you will probably spaz out and do a shady job that will make you nervous the rest of the race. OTOH, if you think you can remain calm and do what needs to be done then race with he 808’s. They are great wheels.
There are a lot of factors at play, it depends on the tires and how fast you’re going. But it’s not a trivial amount of time. What if it’s 5 minutes? That’s like being out of T2 before you Mavic Ksyrium Elite self gets there. In a parallel universe you’re kicking your own ass!
I don’t understand poeple who say that 5 or 10 minutes doesn’t matter…It matters to everyone. That’s an 11:59 instead of a 12:xx…And the 808’s are more comfortable than the Elites anyway.
Heck. Go out and buy an aero helmet today.
808’s and a aero helmet will get you 1mph faster. At least.
Look, I’ll be out there watching and cheering. You can pummel me if something goes wrong–but most likely you won’t get a flat anyway.
For the same energy output, about how much time would the 808s save over the Mavick Elites?
I would guess about 4-6 minutes…depending on how fast you ride. YMMV.
If you do flat, the pre-stretched tire will be much, much , much easier to install. I agree on the Vitorria Pitstop, use that as a first option if you flat.
Thanks for all the responses. They’re very helpful.
If I’m only going to save approximately 5 minutes, I’m leaning towards going with the Mavicks. I’m very comfortable with them and it would eliminate the stress of dealing with the Zipps. I know that eliminating stress is important before an Ironman. I’m not qualifying for Kona either. I did the bike leg in 6:30 at last year’s Imoo. I finished a little over 12:30. I just want to do better this year because I’m taking a break after this one. But if it’s lots of stress and learning a new tire system to save 5 minutes, I’d rather stick with what I’ve got. For some reason I thought Zipps saved you 20-30 minutes on the bike with the same energy output.
I’d love to get those 5 minutes, but I’m nervous about dealing with tubulars — something which which I have no experience. So, if eliminating worry and the “what if you flat” voice in my head costs me 5 minutes, I think I’m okay with that. I don’t want to be nervous on my bike for 6 hours. I’m open for suggestions though. I just don’t know enough tubulars and whether changing a tubular is easy to learn. At last year’s Imoo, the vast majority of people changing flats has Zipp wheels. It made me skeptical.
It also seems that the vast majority of people racing IM’s are on Zipps (slight exageration). You should also note that all those people were in front of you before they flatted and many more didn’t flat.
In fact many people believe that tubulars have better puncture resistance.
Good points. One point of clarification though: Imoo is a two-loop bike course, so when you’re on your second loop you don’t know who’s “in front of you” (though I’m not very fast on the bike and I assume most are in front).
Tubulars are more puncture-resistant? Hmmm. I’m on the fence. Thanks for the feedback.
Not knowing to change tubular means you don’t need to carry a spare. Less weight = Faster bike
DNFing on the bike means you’ll be enjoying a cold beer while others suffer on the run course!
808s are great, if you haven’t tried a Disk, I’d go definetely with a disk! Side winds create a great sail effect and take you to the finish line in no time.
PS: I’d also suggest buying a pair of newtons at the expo and running the race in them if you haven’t tried those before.
