Originally Posted by
grwoolf
+1
If it needs to be something on the bike, I'd say powermeter by a big margin. Great tool to improve the engine.
If I had to turn in my nice wheels, carbon frame, Red shifters, etc., I would miss them, but it wouldn't be a big deal. If I had to give up my powermeter, I'd be in major withdrawl (tremors, nightsweats, etc.).
As far as wheels, they do make a difference, but not huge from my perspective. From a comfort standpoint, I feel a bigger difference going from 23's to 25mm tires. On weight, I just can't feel a difference (At 180lbs, a couple hundred grams isn't enough for me to notice). My deep wheels probably save me about 15 watts or so at 25+ mph (nice, but not huge).
Seriously?
A 15 watt increase in FTP just from a wheel change? That's pretty significant. That's 3%~5% for most people.