Originally Posted by
trekmogul
My wife races with them. Racing for the US National Triathlon Team she took 4th place at the World Championships in Chicago last year in her age group, >65 (Her domestique was pretty proud.). She was first in on the bike leg. The bike had 21mm f and 23mm r.
I’ve read accounts by riders more knowledgable than myself that claim there are clinchers that have lower rolling resistance but rolling resistance is not always the determining factor in triathlons. They feel and ride like tubulars. They are perhaps safer in a racing situation. No chance of a tire rolling off the rim and they can be ridden while flat. They can be inflated to ridiculously high pressures - the 21 is rated at 200+ psi and they hold their pressure it seems like for weeks. That can be a big deal at tri events where bike sometimes have to be checked in at remote transition sites 24 hours before the race. If you get a flat you squeeze some special latex like liquid in through the valve and hit the tire some CO2 and you're off and riding. Don’t have to remove the wheel.
On the other hand they are expensive and much of the racing world seems to drifting to tubeless clinchers. Tubular/clinchers are definitely not for commuting but they would work for gran fondo type charity rides.