Aero or Light?

depends on the type of terrain, but there are wheels that have both a high profile and are light

Too many variables to pick one. Racing (crit, road, tt), rec riding, training, touring, heavy rider, light rider, etc. First explain something of your riding style/needs.

okay well im a heavy rider i guess, im about 210 at the moment, and want to bring it down to 150 by next summer (im very determined). We do a lot of climbing and a lot of flats. I have a trek madone soo i was looking at the bontrager [censored] lites. The thing is i cant afford 2 good wheels, and instead of buying a [censored] aero and a [censored] light wheel, i've decided to just go with a good one of just one type. I was looking at the flashpoint aero wheels, they look pretty nice. The thing is because of my weight and that i decided not to go with a compact crank, i thought maybe i should go with light. I ride a lot of 8% grades. I plan to start racing junior (im only 16) next year. Thanks for your time guys =D

Big guys and low spoke count wheels lead to problems; broken spokes, loose spokes, etc. Light stuff is great but it's not designed for the extra poundage. Your best option to lighten the load would be to start with your size. If you are 210 and want to get down to 150 (assuming that is a healthly weight for your height), even a small percentage of that 60 pounds will be huge, far more than any new wheelset. I worked with a teammate getting him own from 230 to 190 and the difference was amazing. Even riding an older steel frame, this guy was so much faster as the weight began to come off.

sunnysang said:

okay well im a heavy rider i guess, im about 210 at the moment, and want to bring it down to 150 by next summer (im very determined). We do a lot of climbing and a lot of flats. I have a trek madone soo i was looking at the bontrager [censored] lites. The thing is i cant afford 2 good wheels, and instead of buying a [censored] aero and a [censored] light wheel, i've decided to just go with a good one of just one type. I was looking at the flashpoint aero wheels, they look pretty nice. The thing is because of my weight and that i decided not to go with a compact crank, i thought maybe i should go with light. I ride a lot of 8% grades. I plan to start racing junior (im only 16) next year. Thanks for your time guys =D

Set yourself a goal, and tie the wheels into that goal. Most high-end wheels aren't really recommended for riders with weights of 190 and above.

Tell yourself that as a reward, you will buy the wheelset of your dreams as a present to yourself when you reach 185. With a goal like that, you will push yourself more on the hills and the flats... and... when you do get those nice wheels, you won't have to worry about them not holding up to the extra weight.

Cheers!

thats a wonderful idea strummer, i think ill go ahead and do that, make that. currently im about 6'1, 206.5lbs!!! (i checked this morning) at age 16. I think ill set the goal of 180 for the wheels of my dreams. Thanks for the support and responce

Sunny: good luck, but be flexible about that long term 150 pound goal. Unless you have a very unusual bone structure, its not going to be healthy or look good on someone over 6 feet.

Committ yourself to health, which is a journey, not a destination; a lifestyle, not a number. You'll be rewarded in every aspect of your life.

Oruboris said:

Sunny: good luck, but be flexible about that long term 150 pound goal. Unless you have a very unusual bone structure, its not going to be healthy or look good on someone over 6 feet.

Committ yourself to health, which is a journey, not a destination; a lifestyle, not a number. You'll be rewarded in every aspect of your life.

I agree. I am 6'0" and last year I weighed a meager 145 pounds during the peak of my season. This year I hired a coach and am now 160 pounds. Although, I should mention I am much faster this year than last because of the muscle mass gain.

Oruboris said:

Sunny: good luck, but be flexible about that long term 150 pound goal. Unless you have a very unusual bone structure, its not going to be healthy or look good on someone over 6 feet.

Committ yourself to health, which is a journey, not a destination; a lifestyle, not a number. You'll be rewarded in every aspect of your life.

Well, i wanted to start racing next year, i thought 150 would be a good goal for 6 months? Also, the thing is that when i started biking, 3 months ago, my body fat % deal was 33% fat. And if you look at some riders with only 4% fat, i would think weight would have a factor? Right now my overall goal is to go pro!!!!! 🙂

If you do a setup of combo, don't forget to grab an aero wheel to the front instead to the rear. Putting an aero wheel at the front gets more aerodynamic advantage than the rear one does.

personally, I don't see the point of spending big money on wheels that aren't truely aero. The speed 'claims' provided by light wheels is dubious, but aero wheels have been proven to increase speed in certain (most?) situations.

If I wanted light(ish) wheels just to go up hills, I'd probably get some light, affordable rims, DT Revolutions, and the lightest hubs I could afford. This way you get a light set of wheels without spending over $2000