Originally Posted by
neneboricua
Wow, very cool article.
hey - I'm local to you, and I recently bought some wheels so I've been thinking along the lines you probably are.
Weight - it is important, but unless you are doing repeats on Cougar Mtn or driving to Wenatchee, we don't have any climbing around here worth the name... it's life.
Braking - I race from March through September, so the need for all-weather braking is paramount in my mind for 'nice' wheels. Carbon rims can brake well, but Alloy is a better bet. While there are carbon rims that do brake about as well as alloy, they are all pretty pricey still (the updated Reynolds brake track, the new HED brake track.... all in the spendy category)... Go with Alloy, you'll be thankful you did on the steep down-hills around here.
Aero - I don't know what your riding/racing routes and groups are, but aero trumps weigh except on long climbs, and since there are no long climbs around here... go deep. The other issue in many people's minds is cross-wind, and while that can be an issue in some places, the wind here doesn't tend to be bad enough to really make an issue of it. Be careful while riding across I90 & Deception Pass, other than that, I haven't found any spots that worry me yet.
Even though I'm a light guy, and plan to climb at a bunch of races this coming year, I choose a HED Jet 60 C2, deep enough to make a difference at high speed, corners well, the front wheel is plenty light for the climb at Walla-Walla & really anything short of Mt Hood & Cascade Classic.
PM me if you want to ride about a bit and talk wheels - I'll be riding up your way at least once this weekend!