Just getting started racing. Noticed my hubs are Centaur (for some reason, I believed them to be Chorus). So I have 32 spoke front and rear Velocity Razor rims, Centaur hubs. I know this isn't a 'light' combo. At a cat 5/4 level of racing (outside of TTing), is a lighter wheelset going to make that much of a difference?

I don't have an extra $1000 to spend on 'race wheels' right now. My plan is to race this season on what I got, mostly for the learning curve, and then buy a nice race wheelset in about a year.

Does anyone think that the wheelset I have would be a big contributor in being off the back, and, if so, would scrounging $500-700 for race-day wheels make or break my day?

No you will be fine.
Some expensive wheelset marketed as light arn't really that light anyway. I fact when you do get a second wheelset for racing I would suggest you get another set of standard 28 or 32 3cross wheels build with good hubs and a sturdy rim. They will be easier to maintain and fix it you hit something or crash. Additionally the whole light weight thing is a overblown for the most part not many amature races have really long climbs where having every part super light will make a difference. Take areo over light weight and quilty and sturdy over both.

Just getting started racing. Noticed my hubs are Centaur (for some reason, I believed them to be Chorus). So I have 32 spoke front and rear Velocity Razor rims, Centaur hubs. I know this isn't a 'light' combo. At a cat 5/4 level of racing (outside of TTing), is a lighter wheelset going to make that much of a difference?

I don't have an extra $1000 to spend on 'race wheels' right now. My plan is to race this season on what I got, mostly for the learning curve, and then buy a nice race wheelset in about a year.

Does anyone think that the wheelset I have would be a big contributor in being off the back, and, if so, would scrounging $500-700 for race-day wheels make or break my day?

Not that much difference between Centaur and Chorus hubs- both will last for years.

That wheelset is more then capable for 4/5 racing (well maybe not so great for TT's ;) ).

Save your money for decent tires, race fees and maybe some coaching or a proper bike fit.

They feel great and they look cool and make you feel cool but they definitely have little effect on climbing.

The guys who crush you on climbs would still do so even if you are on a $1500 wheelset and they get on their mountain bikes.

And it is really sad how little difference there is between the really expensive fancy wheels & standard wheels.

Isn't a little sadness worth the money? :)

I'm just bitter cause my Open Pros w/105 hubs feel almost as fast as my Velomax Tempest IIs and the standard wheels are far stiffer laterally.

Having a wheelbuilder look over my Velomaxes though, hopefully it fixes the handling.

Just getting started racing. Noticed my hubs are Centaur (for some reason, I believed them to be Chorus). So I have 32 spoke front and rear Velocity Razor rims, Centaur hubs. I know this isn't a 'light' combo. At a cat 5/4 level of racing (outside of TTing), is a lighter wheelset going to make that much of a difference?

I don't have an extra $1000 to spend on 'race wheels' right now. My plan is to race this season on what I got, mostly for the learning curve, and then buy a nice race wheelset in about a year.

Does anyone think that the wheelset I have would be a big contributor in being off the back, and, if so, would scrounging $500-700 for race-day wheels make or break my day?

Wait and see how many other people have regular no-zoot wheels... I'd feel out of place at a 4/5 level with anything too fancy.

On the other hand, an EXTRA set of wheels is very nice to have. I have race-only wheels by virtue of the fact that they have fresh grippy race tires on them. It beats swapping tires before each race. Added bonus- you can actually use the wheel pit...

BTW- I've seen plenty of people still using boat anchor Shamals with great success.

thanks, coolhand -- one thing I'm very happy with is that my bike fits very well -- that's one of the reasons I love the thing, and I'm VERY happy I had my LBS build up the thing from nothing, deciding on frame geometry, bars, stem, saddle, adjustments, et cetera, based on my measurements and not an average.

The fact that you paid attention to details and got your bike fit really well is far more valuable and performance enhancing than the faster wheels... you should be fine racing.

Centaur w/ velocity rims will be more than fine. Argentius, you're the guy asking about racing collegiate road, right? If so, don't bother with high zoot wheels. A nice 3x wheel will stand up much better to being run over or run into than some fancy pants spendy wheel.

Last weekend, in the ECCC opener, my team managed to thrash 1 1/2 wheelsets in one crash. It was all fancy paired spoke crap. If we were running standard spoked wheels, chances are very good that with some new spokes and some tweaking our wheels could have been saved.

Again, I've got to agree with the previous posters. If you have the spare wheel itch, spend $250-300 on another set of vanilla 32 spoke wheels. You won't be the coolest kid on the block, but you'll have functional wheels that if built right will last a loooong time.

Vegan - you're right, I am just getting started in collegiate road. I don't --WANT-- to bother / spend the money on high, 'zoot' wheels. I've seen how much people pay for the ubiquitous K's, not to mention the price of replacing the SPOKES on them. I think one K spoke costs more than an entire wheel worth of mine...

I just wanted to make sure this wouldn't be a massive disadvantage. Thanks for the input.

I'll probably get a chorus / OP set for race wheels, sometime... but this will work for now.

Vegan - you're right, I am just getting started in collegiate road. I don't --WANT-- to bother / spend the money on high, 'zoot' wheels. I've seen how much people pay for the ubiquitous K's, not to mention the price of replacing the SPOKES on them. I think one K spoke costs more than an entire wheel worth of mine...

I just wanted to make sure this wouldn't be a massive disadvantage. Thanks for the input.

I'll probably get a chorus / OP set for race wheels, sometime... but this will work for now.
If you look at the bike.com website, they just reviewed some wheels. Each wheelset was ridden by four different people and each wrote their own review. The Neuvation wheelset got excellent reviews. I saw a special that included tires for less than $400. I know you mentioned campy hubs, but I have two wheelsets with shimaNo hubs and use AMclassic 10 speed cassettes with no problems. Wheels Manufacturing also makes a campy spaced 10 speed for shimano hubs.

Just getting started racing. Noticed my hubs are Centaur (for some reason, I believed them to be Chorus). So I have 32 spoke front and rear Velocity Razor rims, Centaur hubs. I know this isn't a 'light' combo. At a cat 5/4 level of racing (outside of TTing), is a lighter wheelset going to make that much of a difference?

I don't have an extra $1000 to spend on 'race wheels' right now. My plan is to race this season on what I got, mostly for the learning curve, and then buy a nice race wheelset in about a year.

Does anyone think that the wheelset I have would be a big contributor in being off the back, and, if so, would scrounging $500-700 for race-day wheels make or break my day?
IMO you are right in starting to race with what you have now. I have made many upgrades on my bikes over the years and I mostly race an older beater bike in races that I think are crash machines. That said, if your frame fits good, wheels are the best bang for your buck. So race a year, watch what wheels others are riding and ask questions. Many times a racer trading up will sell off his old race wheels at a good price. Just make sure they are in good shape. I have found many trick parts from riders that are trading up, a frame, wheels, seats, and a trainer. As you get into the Cat 3 wheels will become more an issue (but still not a must) so good luck and keep to the front of the pack.

more aero is faster than less weight...

Great info guys, thank you. I'm sure I'll be better off pinching pennies for race entry fees, giving friends gas money to take me to races, tons of powerbars, gels, et cetera.

It's tough being a gear geek in any hobby I get into! That's one big reason I went from cars to cycling -- no matter what you do, it's the rider in the end. It's still way too easy to shell out a lot of cash on bike stuff. I'm impressed that people pay as much for bicycle wheels as they do for auto ones.

more aero is faster than less weight...
Yes and no. Long solo rides and time trials over flat or rolling hills you are right. Crits, pack riding and mountains I'll stick with light weight. Now I could buy a pair of $5000 LightWeights and have both areo and light but they are not compatable with my marrage!

Yes and no. Long solo rides and time trials over flat or rolling hills you are right. Crits, pack riding and mountains I'll stick with light weight. Now I could buy a pair of $5000 LightWeights and have both areo and light but they are not compatable with my marrage!

Not unless you have enough for an expensive gift for her too. . .

;)

A set of Campy Bora G3's would be nice too.

Yes and no. Long solo rides and time trials over flat or rolling hills you are right. Crits, pack riding and mountains I'll stick with light weight. Now I could buy a pair of $5000 LightWeights and have both areo and light but they are not compatable with my marrage!

for crits: aero is faster than lightweight

http://www.analyticcycling.com/WheelsCritCorner_Page.html

for an 8% 5k climb: aero is faster than lightweight

http://www.analyticcycling.com/WheelsClimb_Page.html

Lightweight wheels aren't very aero.

Lightweight wheels aren't very aero.
If we are talking the same wheels they are. Dierl and Obermayer "lightweights" are use by pros in time trials all the time. the have low spoke count deep areo rims and weigh 1100grams for the pair (depending on model) I can't say that other wheels are more areo but they are very good.

As to areo vs light in crits, IMO i spend more time attacking (or trying to catch up) then riding at a steady pace. Further I spend a fair amount of that time in the draft of others. Perhaps if you are alway out front but for most of us the light wheel is perfered (if you can't afford light and areo)

No they're not. They're only a little bit more aero than a Zipp 303.