Originally Posted by my58vw
The problem here is you have to whole weight vs stiffness issue. For someone my size a say 1700 gram deep dish carbon wheelset that is very stiff and aero (60 mm dish) is going to be MUCH better than a light 1400 gram wheelset that is flexy. Crits have two components, sprinting and high speed straights. The more aero wheels are going to help on the straights while the lighter wheels are going to be better in the sprints around the corners.
Now what I am interested in is in a sprint situation once the rider gets over say 30 MPH is aero better or light weight. To tell you the truth the best sprinting wheel is going to win you the race, not the lightest or more aero.
I agree for crit racing, lightest is not the most important factor. I think stiffness and how quickly the wheels "spin up" would be more important than light or aero. I think the answer to your sprinting over 30 MPH question would be aero rather than weight, unless maybe your sprinting uphill, but I haven't seen any crits with a big uphill finish. Going back to my original suggestion of the American Classics, I'm thinking the 450's would be better suited to crit racing than the 350's.