On Apr 12, 2:09 pm, stevep33 <[email protected]> wrote: > I guess the point I wanted to make is that most people, myself > included, don't have a team follow car or a full time mechanic, so it > wouldn't make a lot of sense for someone like me to use some of the > delicate race-specific gear used by trained supported professional > racers.
rider weight, riding style and tires/tire pressure all factor into the durability equation too. my cyclocross bike sports a low spoke wheelset (24rear/20front) with fatter tires (28-32). i beat the crap out of this wheelset - cx racing, *lots* of dirt/mixed terrain and even stupid stuff that i shouldn't do on this bike but i do anyway because it's fun. i'm half trying to kill this wheelset so i can get a new tubular wheelset for cx. but it's been bomber. i think a lot of that has to do with the fact that i weigh 155-160, ride "light," and probably never have tires mounted that take more than 70psi. it's just way easier on the equipment. i'm going to ride this particular bike/wheelset hard this year (it's 3rd year of heavy use) with 23s at 80-100 psi for some fast road riding. it will be interesting to see how they hold up with a hard, skinny (but unruly fast!) tire. my gut feeling is that i'll need to break out the spoke wrench, but we'll see. in any event, I don't think "most" people need a 32/36 spoke wheelset. lighter riders would do fine on a well built 28/32, or even lower spoke wheelset, especially when riding big 'ole tires. that said; i absolutely see the value in a having a higher spoke wheelset for touring, heavy duty commuting, etc. i certainly appreciate the higher spoke count on my commuter wheels - especially on those dark winter commutes, when the unseen cracked pavement/ potholes/etc. are chomping at the wheels. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
