Tubular Wheels?

While on a recent group ride I was asked if the wheels I was riding were tubulars. I replied "yes they are". After a funny look and a pause I got "why". Although the simple response for me truly is "why not", there is more to it. I thought I would explain.

There is a lot of debate out there over tubular vs clincher, vs the new tubeless set-ups. Rolling resistance, weight, traction, safety...these are all hotly debated. There is all kinds of laboratory tests and data collection on each of these characteristics but what's the real scoop? Why ride tubulars? I don't really race often so what's the point?

Knowledge: The first reason is that we sell tubular wheels to our clients. It would be silly to sell something you have not experienced for yourself. How can someone say that one tubular tire or tubular wheelset is better than the next if they haven't made and effort to try them out. We want to be sure that we know what we're selling. Sounds like a simple, reasonable concept but in my experience, it's rare. So the first reason was that I hadn't spent much time on modern carbon tubulars so I figured we should know as much as possible about these wheels. That way our recommendations can be more trustworthy.

Time/Money: The second reason was that I have other wheels and I know how to glue tires properly. There isn't much of a time commitment for me. When you have a full service shop right here at your disposal, no mechanical task is all that difficult. If you don't know how to glue tires properly and don't have spare wheels or the time and money required for safe upkeep. That would be a reason not to ride tubulars. In my case, it's not an issue.

Performance: So here is the debate. Are they faster? I can honestly say that I can't put a number on it either way, whether I get to the top of Tam faster has more to do with how much sleep I got and what I had for dinner than the wheels I'm on. Here's what I do know; these things corner like nothing else I've ridden. They "feel" considerably faster. The wheelset with tires is about 400 grams lighter than my clincher wheels all set up. That's a big number and it's rotating weight. Ride feel is what it's all about for me, they are awesome, bottom line. I love riding them.

Why do racers and Pro's ride them? Tradition is part of it, Pro's tend to use what they are familiar with and what they know works predictably. I often think they also fear change. One obvious reason is that if you're in the middle of a huge peloton rolling at 35mph or better and you get a flat, you don't get to pull over right away. This is where safety comes in. On a tubular, you can ride it flat long enough to move out of the group safely. A clincher has more risk of coming off the rim when it's flat and that can cause nasty crashes. A properly glued tubular is going no where, it's glued on. I believe Farrar rolled a tubular this year (maybe it was someone else), that's unacceptable, I'm sure his mechanics got a serious earful for it too. Those mechanics aren't always as good as one would think. That and they're up all night working feverishly while taking abuse from primadona, whiny pro's that had a bad day and have roid rage.

It is still a bummer when you flat but it just takes more time to fix. I carry a pre-glued spare most of the time or sometimes just a can of sealant. There are methods of being prepared, you just have to do it. I generally only get a few flats a year so my odds are good. At some point I'm sure I'll be miles away and get a flat but it's not the end of the world, if you're stranded, call a friend, buy them lunch and you've got a good story.

At the end of the day, I ride them because, why not, life is short, ride everything. I want to be sure we know as much as possible about the products we sell and we want the advice we give to be as accurate as humanly possible. We're cyclists, we love this stuff. Ever want to ride tubulars, do it, it's awesome. If you're going to do it, buy the best tires and replace them when they should be replaced just like you should with clinchers.