Originally Posted by
tanhalt
That's interesting...mostly because it's well known that Miguel Indurain rode clincher wheels in the Alps during the Tour. Why? Because he didn't want to risk rolling a tubular when the glue heated up and softened from braking...
My understanding is he rode a front clincher, rear tubular. But I may be wrong. Weight more important in the back, security up front. He must not have trusted his mechanic or something.
For me the benefits are:
a) lighter
b) easier to control/ride on when flat
c) less tempting to use my race wheels for training
Definitely A, much much lighter. If I could get a super durable clincher tire where the very durable aero 60 mm wheels weighed under 1300 grams, the tires were 250g with tube, and the whole rig cost under $1000/
pr wheels and $160/
pr tires/tubes, I'd do it.
B. No longer true on the super wide rims (HED Stinger 6 for example). This was a disappointment since I didn't realize it until I glued them up. But I love this clip so I'll post it again:
You can't do that on a clincher. No way, no how.
cdr