Racing with a Open Pro Rim - disadvantage?

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Milese
Posts: 224
Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 12:04 am

by Milese

Hi,

I've got G3 powertap hub built into a 32h open pro rim with middle of the range DB spokes.

I've been training on it all winter, and now am wondering whether I should race with it or use my race wheels which are Easton EA90s.

The question I'm asking is whether I'll be at a disadvantage with the powertap wheel during the race, or how much of a disadvantage.

The Easton wheel is probably 200g lighter, and a bit more lively, but would it really make a difference in a 40 or 50 mile race or a hour long crit?

I dont want to be handicapped by wheel choice (and need all the help I can get), but would quite like the data!

I'm a UK 3rd cat, looking to get to 2nd cat with limited time, so its not a great standard, but its still competitive.

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Stefano
Posts: 295
Joined: Sun Dec 19, 2010 4:24 am
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan

by Stefano

Despite this forum's obvious obsession, weight doesn't mean that much if it's only a couple hundred grams and you're not climbing the whole race. The rear wheel has a bunch of dirty air flowing over it too, so the aero difference probably isn't that bad. I actually like having heavier wheels for crits because they're stiffer and more confidence-inspiring. If you like racing with power, go for it!

If you do decide to use it in a race though, I would recommend against having it somewhere viewable- put some tape over it or something (except for the watch feature). This is based off of personal experience- in crits especially you will be pushing a lot more watts than you think you can for the time you're doing, so when you look down it can be a bit mentally discouraging. Trick is to just listen to your body and use the power data as a post-race analysis tool.

Good luck at the races!

Stefano

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Miller
Posts: 2764
Joined: Thu Sep 21, 2006 8:54 pm
Location: Reading, UK

by Miller

If you want the data you'll have to use the PT/Open Pro. It won't hold you back except mentally although that might be a niggle for you. Perhaps you have some races that are more targetted than others? Then use your fast wheels for the races you think you'll do best in.

What can you do with power data from a road race? A lot of UK time-triallists use power but the idea there is that you can use the data to modify your approach so as to have a more even distribution of effort over the course. But in a RR you're just going to have to match the moves if you want to win, I would have thought.

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MajorMantra
Posts: 286
Joined: Mon Nov 02, 2009 8:38 pm

by MajorMantra

Unless you're losing bunch sprints by centimetres, don't sweat it.

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