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Quick Poll – Should I ride deep section wheels for the first time in a hurricane?

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  • August 7, 2014 at 7:10 pm #22096
    Mr Jono

    Riding the RideLondon sportive on sunday, just as Hurricane Burtha is due to strike. I’ve booked a hire set of FFWD 60mm carbon wheels, only put down a deposit of £10 so far, £30 balance due on collection tomorrow morning.

    I’ve never ridden either carbon wheels or deep section wheels. Given the horrendous forecast for sunday’s ride, would like to hear some opinions on whether it’s wise riding them in strong winds and heavy rain?

    Is it even worth it? Assuming given strong southerly winds forecast I’ll be riding half of the ride into a strong headwind so not likely to be consistently hitting the 20mph ‘pick up’ point that deep section wheels apparently have.

    If the general consensus is no, I’ll cancel the booking and lose the tenner. If everyone thinks I’m being a big southern softie then I’ll man up and hire them. The guy in the shop insists they’ll be fine, he said he used the same wheels all year round on his only bike. But he would say that.

    I’ll have the chance to give them a spin on saturday if I do hire them. So if it’s just a case of getting used to how an unfamiliar wheelset behaves then I’ll have a chance to do that. If it’s just going to be dangerous then obviously I won’t bother as I don’t want to the uncertainty looming over me on a day that is already going to be challenging.

    Thoughts please?

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  • August 8, 2014 at 10:38 am #808285
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    Mr Jono

    I did pick them up this
    I did pick them up this morning. Alu brake track (which I didn’t realise). Plans is to ride them unless high winds are forecast. Further plan is to never do another sportive. Organised fun at 5am in a storm is something I can easily give up…

    August 8, 2014 at 10:19 am #808283
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    step-hent

    glynr36 wrote:hotspanners

    glynr36 wrote:
    hotspanners wrote:
    Do they have an alloy breaking surface? If not, braking in the wet will be interesting.

    Not as bad as people make out, did 10 or so miles on my mates bike with his new wheels (Saturae) in the wet this weekend gone, and apart from the first few times I felt minimal difference in braking on these to my Mavic CC SLE’s with Exaltih in the wet.

    All depends on the specific wheels and pads. My first set of carbon rims had very good braking in the dry and ok braking in the wet. My current ones are decent in the dry and poor in the wet.

    To the OP, depends on how much the extra £30 bothers you. If you don’t mind a gamble, I’d rent them anyway and take a view on the day. If the winds aren’t too strong, ride them. If its howling and peeing it down, I wouldn’t ride them – I wouldn’t want to find out how those wheels handle in poor conditions the middle of a 20,000 rider century. Too much to lose and not enough to gain.

    August 8, 2014 at 10:13 am #808281
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    glynr36

    hotspanners wrote:Do they

    hotspanners wrote:
    Do they have an alloy breaking surface? If not, braking in the wet will be interesting.

    Not as bad as people make out, did 10 or so miles on my mates bike with his new wheels (Saturae) in the wet this weekend gone, and apart from the first few times I felt minimal difference in braking on these to my Mavic CC SLE’s with Exaltih in the wet.

    August 8, 2014 at 10:05 am #808279
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    arrieredupeleton

    Sack them off. Erect a
    Sack them off. Erect a makeshift sail to the rear of your bike for the northerly sections.

    August 8, 2014 at 9:35 am #808277
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    hotspanners

    Do they have an alloy
    Do they have an alloy breaking surface? If not, braking in the wet will be interesting.

    August 8, 2014 at 8:37 am #808275
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    Jimmy Ray Will

    60mm rims in big winds is an
    60mm rims in big winds is an exhilarating and frankly terrifying experience.

    I did the Exmoor beast a few years back in up to 50mph gusts on deep sections… wow. In between the hours of pure fear, there were a few cross-tail wind bits and the bike felt like it had been shot from a gun, it was seriously quick, but generally, its a shit experience to be avoided.

    August 8, 2014 at 7:41 am #808273
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    notfastenough

    I can’t disagree with the
    I can’t disagree with the comments above re experience. That said, the ‘pick-up point’, as you call it, refers to airspeed, not ground speed. The reason people say that you need to be fast to gain from deep sections is the yaw angle – lower speeds result in less frontal airflow, so the greater yaw angle (wind angle expressed as a deviation from full frontal) is effectively a crosswind. So in a strong headwind, (a low yaw angle, and for airflow purposes similar to simply riding faster) and a high airspeed (headwind speed + bike ground speed) you would in theory experience the aero benefit more.*

    That said, if this high wind did hit you as a crosswind you might find it tricky.

    *EDIT: This is as I understand it. I am not qualified in any way and may be full sh*t.

    August 8, 2014 at 5:54 am #808271
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    Mr Jono

    Thanks for the opinions, if
    Thanks for the opinions, if the hurricane hits I will not be using them.

    Looking at the forecast this morning, the met office is saying winds on sunday morning should be 5-9mph southerly. But the BBC has got a weather warning of heavy rain AND strong winds. Maybe they’re covering themselves after the famous Fish incident of ’87?

    August 7, 2014 at 11:01 pm #808269
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    Leviathan

    “Earlier on today,
    “Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she heard there was a hurricane on the way… well, if you’re watching, don’t worry, there isn’t!”

    Michael Fish, 1987

    August 7, 2014 at 8:09 pm #808267
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    Gkam84

    If you have never ridden
    If you have never ridden carbon deep rims before, don’t go making 100 miles your first ride, in wind….

    August 7, 2014 at 7:24 pm #808265
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    pablo

    Never ridden carbon but did
    Never ridden carbon but did do a sportive in February on my training fulcrums with a 25mph wind, at times it was a little scary especially as you got tired. Personally after that experience i wouldn’t.

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