BEST RACING TYRE SELECTION FOR MY 404/808 ZIPP WHEELS?
I have absolutely NO IDEA how to determine which are the ideal tyres for Florida 70.3 (basically flat course).
Running on ZIPP 494/808.
Kind of an open ended question in search for advice from the haus.
Tks
Running on ZIPP 494/808.
Kind of an open ended question in search for advice from the haus.
Tks
0
Comments
In general, when we talk about fast tires there is always a lot of talk about Crr (rolling resistance), which needs to be balanced out with puncture resistance. Recently, there has been a *whole* lot more talk about tire aerodynamics. ST has been ablaze recently with a few wind tunnel reports that to give you the short version, have resulted in a pretty resounding set of endorsements for the 23mm Continental GP 4000s on wide wheels such as the FLO's and the Zipp 303 tests. This is contrary to the previous hypothesis based trend that we saw where people were going back to skinny 19mm tires on the front wheel, like Bonty aerowings.
If you have Firecrest Zipps clinchers, which are a similar width to the Flo's and the new 303, personally I'd go with the 23mm GP 4000s right now as the ideal blend of aero, Crr and decent enough puncture resistance. Latex tubes for race day. On-bike spare tube should be butyl.
Now, if you have tubulars, toss that recommendation out the window since Conti still is making their tubulars with butyl tubes.
I race with a HED3 front and training rear but have been racing with the Open Corsa + latex tube. Very fast setup and the tires handle great.
I used both (4000s + TT) and the TT is a real racing bitch ... did a 2:22:xx on my last 70.3 and a 0:52:05 on a too short (38km) OD
I've raced on Vittoria Corsa EVO's for 3 years prior to switching to conti earlier this year. The vittoria's have always done well in terms of Crr testing, but I'm just extremely fed up with their durability. I had actually already decided to switch over before the latest round of aero testing, but that cemented the deal for me.
I haven't had the Conti's long enough to make a final judgement on them versus the Vittoria's, but with my own anecdotal experiences I just have a really hard time recommending the EVO's at this time.
Hi!
LOTs of choices and advice to get your head "spinning" - ha! Good luck!
I just found out (please don't laugh!!!!) that my new Zipp wheels (which I thought I had ordered clinchers) are in fact tubular Firecrest!!!!
That said:
1) I do not have a clue if that is the biggest possible mistake or I should be happy???
2) which is then the recommended rainy tyre????
3) should I use these wheels just for racing or ok to train with them????
I run a Hed H3 front so the 23mm 4000s isn't the right tire so I went with a 20mm 4000. The black version of the 4000 is identical to the 4000s. The colored versions of the 4000 are different as they do not use the black chili compound.
Juan, I agree with John. Exchange the tubulars if possible. Tubulars are going the way of the dinosaur. Carbon clinchers really are the death knell to tubulars.
Like John, I raced on tubulars for a few years too. Removing and gluing new tires was a huge pain, but to their credit, I only had one flat in 3 years of riding on them. To qualify that statement though, I only raced on them, or used them for the week or two before a race to make sure my brake widths were correct and get used to the handling on them.
In terms of riding them in training vs racing, sure you can ride them in training, but you can't easily swap tires on tubulars for different conditions. Once you glue a tire in, that's pretty much it, unless you are very experienced with removing, stripping and re-gluing it's just not worth the hassle. So with fancy wheels like that, you're going to want to glue in a fast racing tubular with latex tubes, like the Vittoria Corsa Evo CX tubular. The problem with using that tire all of the time in training is again just reduced durability and faster wear than a heartier tire.
Ultimately, the anxiety of getting a flat during a race on tubulars and constantly having to lug around spare tires or cans of pitstop (that I don't think work for crap anyway) drove me to switch back to clincher racing wheels. If you keep them, it's not the end of the world, you'll have plenty of company at the FOP who still race on tubulars, but the carbon clincher version is a lot easier wheel to deal with from a maintenance perspective.
@John
In terms of the Vittoria's, if I was riding Corsa's with no issues right now, I wouldn't immediately remove them, but the difference is between enough reason to literally remove my current tires and swap them and what I would recommend to someone who was looking for a whole new set. If I was at square 1 for clinchers, I see no compelling reason from the combination of aero data, Crr data and reputation why I would recommend the Corsa over the GP 4000s.