Aero Wheels for racing in the Alps (2022)

[FlatlandClimber]

1. Sarenne is Part of my first even
2. 28c is not a need, it is just nice to have
3. a few of the climbs have descents or flat sections in them (Croix de Fer has several smaller descents, Sarenne is timed over the Col and until Alpe d'Huez)
4. I am not planning on attacking on the climb. Much rather, I am anticipating not being in a large group necessarily. The GC favorites are definitely too fast for me, and in these hour long climbs, it's not super uncommon to be 1 minute behind the next rider and 1 minute in front of you closest pursuit.
5. these are most definitely marginal gains we are taking about here. It's an aero climbing bike vs a climbing bike on a mountain stage. The gain of 39 to 50 isn't huge, but there is some. Especially since my 39c are 28mm wide and set up with 28c tires. So a 50mm, that is Luke 30-32mm wide, with 28c tires might yield aero gains in more ways than one.
I used the Rapide CLX and the Bontrager RSL37 (no sold) last year in the alps, and definitely liked the Rapide better for most riding.

[C36]

The fat bike comparisons are pretty wild. Several pro tour riders and World class triathletes have been using 28s for the past couple of years.
The added comfort of a wider tire is not to be scoffed at in a >5h race.

Thinking wider = (necessarily) more comfy is a misconception. They allow you to drop pressure to comfort levels narrower tires will risk pinch flats. In the process you will also increase the contact area and degrade the rolling resistance and out of the saddle accelerations.

28mm has its place but if I hear race, good roads (way above std), climbing then that’s not the primary place I would use them. Now if you say you want to prioritise grip over everything else and limit aero degradation, that’s a different paradigm.

[FlatlandClimber]

Yeah, of course you'll have to drop the pressure. That what the whole "wide tires wide rims" thing is about, right?
I don't see it as a way to improve out and out performance, but rather as a way of improving comfort, traction and cornering grip, without sacrificing performance (maybe absolutely minimally).

[TobinHatesYou]

Racing is going to be more about tactics, power and luck more than waffling over a bunch of nearly identical wheelsets.

[FlatlandClimber]

Oh yes, absolutely. I never wanted to claim otherwise.
Especially in the mountains, the one with the biggest motor, good pacing, and proper descending skills beats the one with the best bike no problem.
Since I am in the market for a new set of wheels anyway, I am however interested in buying what potential might be the best. I know I don't have the biggest engine, and I am probably among the worst descenders in these races. I work on both, but that's a completely different topic.

[Stueys]

Rapide II is still probably your best bet. Yes you can go slightly lighter but not really with the width that you want to be fully optimised for a 28. New Enve would fit what you want if you're happy on hookless, personally I'm happier trading a bit of weight for hooks.

[tiz92]

Almost all the climbs in the Alps have good pavement (Sarenne is one exception that comes to mind) and I've done a few HR Alps on 25mm tubeless - never felt a need for anything wider. Unless you have some totally flat days, I also don't really see much need to go from a 39 to a 50 deep wheelset as the aero/weight cost-benefit doesn't seem worth it. As for descending, I can't see any significant advantage on a more aero wheelset - unless you plan on soloing off the front.

I live in the alps, train there every day and race there every weekend and completely agree with this. 25mm tires+ 35-45 wheelset is the best you can do. 40 mm is probably the sweetspot. I personally use a set of Farsports Feder 40 mm 26 mm (Far230 hub, 1210gr the set, incredible downhill performance and very fast also) wide with 24 mm Turbo cotton which are exactly 25 mm on this rim for max aero. You wont need more comfort or grip or anything.

I use either vittoria latex or reveloop race ultra tubes. You can hardly get anyting faster (also according to tests). So buy what you like and what feels best for you But those are my reccomondations and as I live here I have a bit more of experience I guess

[polpy]

i would get a pair of enve 4.5 with tactic hubs from my favorite wheelbuilder for that use case and throw some 28s 5000 s tr on them.

[ccie6872]

i would get a pair of enve 4.5 with tactic hubs from my favorite wheelbuilder for that use case and throw some 28s 5000 s tr on them.

Curious, who is the wheelbuilder you are referencing.. I do like the idea of 4.5 + Tactic and looking for a (great) wheel builder in the US (or could ship to the US)

[Matte86]

Another thing to consider which hasn’t been mentioned is that Specialized developed the SL7 together with the Rapide and its tyres, so its not just a matter of thinking the wheelset as a stand-alone product, but rather as a package.
We don’t know how a different wheel could interact with the frame modifying aero results. If there aren’t big weight savings with another wheel, it’d be hard to beat a rapide.
Besides that, as I agree with you, and a change is in the way, I’d rather wait for the new enve rim with tactic hub because that’s what intrigue me at the moment.

[FlatlandClimber]

i would get a pair of enve 4.5 with tactic hubs from my favorite wheelbuilder for that use case and throw some 28s 5000 s tr on them.

Curious, who is the wheelbuilder you are referencing.. I do like the idea of 4.5 + Tactic and looking for a (great) wheel builder in the US (or could ship to the US)

ENVE + tactic sounds suspiciously like mister Rhino

[CustomMetal]

i would get a pair of enve 4.5 with tactic hubs from my favorite wheelbuilder for that use case and throw some 28s 5000 s tr on them.

Curious, who is the wheelbuilder you are referencing.. I do like the idea of 4.5 + Tactic and looking for a (great) wheel builder in the US (or could ship to the US)

ENVE + tactic sounds suspiciously like mister Rhino

I have a friend who has ordered a set through him and if I was in the market Ryan/Rhino would be getting my money

[mvnsnd]

The Scribe 50 disc seems to be in stock at the moment. I have the 42's and can say thay are pretty nice. Although confirm the weights as I'm pretty sure the advertised weight is without rim tape or valve stem, so may end up heavier than you want. I'll just caution to not trust their estimated dates for non stock items.

https://scribecycling.com/collections/c ... 1266839705

[alanyu]

The mentioned tactic hub interested me and I googled it. They are 215 g/pair. A WOW until I opened their PDF for spoke length. Only 16.9 WR, that's a no-go for me on a disc hub.

[FlatlandClimber]

You can read up what I decided for here:
viewtopic.php?f=113&t=169837&start=105