Message posted by: Stephen M.

Just a point to ponder for beginner triathlete who are over zealously buying everything they “need” for their first tri.

I know at a certain level and speed they make more of a difference but for the beginner to intermediate triathletes it makes more sense, economical and logical, to review your position, bike set up and helmet before making any investment in more aero wheels.

http://www.bicycling.com/article/0,6610,s1-3-12-14995-1,00.html

Cote: Most people don’t realize that a non-aero helmet creates four times the drag of a nonaero wheelset. So you can spend two thousand dollars on a wheelset, or spend two hundred on a helmet and be faster. How you put your race number on matters more than having an aero wheel; today, we glued on our numbers to get them to fit flatter. Then there’s water bottle placement: On a round-tubed frame, having a bottle on your seat tube is more aerodynamic than not having one at all, and it’s much more aero than putting it on the down tube. And wearing gloves in a time trial will slow you down more than using a nonaero front wheel.

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