Steel is fast.

Mike DeSalvo showed off his designs at the North American Handmade Bike Show in Indy this past week.  Here's a whole gallery of his show-stoppers.

PS: This has got to be the coolest bike show of all the bike shows.

I just read this article on wheel-building on Pez Cycling News. Interesting. Pretty cool Campy Sigma rims too, though I'm not drooling all over myself about the Tune hubs. I wonder how they'll hold up, compared to a Campy or Shimano or DT hub.

I hear my teammates and co-workers talk about carbon wheels, and insofar as this blog is a conversation between teammates (though I hope it will be much more than that) here is my case for handbuilt traditional wheels over carbon wheels built by someone in some factory in some unknown locale.

The thing with hand-building wheels is that you have the control over the hub (its durability, its weight, etc.), the spokes (spoke pattern, number of spokes, gauge of spokes), the nipples, and the rims. Your local professional wheel-builder will have an opinion all these matters, and will have the skill to build something durable. And perhaps you have the skill or the patience (which is ultimately all you need) to build a nice set of wheels.

Aerodynamics

Deep-dish carbon wheels are more aerodynamic than 32-hole box-section rims, sure. No question. I'm not recommending these for a time trial. Though if I were, research supports the idea that you should replace your helmet with a TT helmet first, your gloves with seamless TT gloves second, your road-style handlebars with TT bars third, and think about your wheels only after considering frame and water bottle placement and choice of clothing. In road racing, your position on the bike has much more to do with aerodynamics than wheel selection. We'll sit a bit more upright, sacrificing wind drag, because it is more comfortable. Why not sacrifice some imperceptible aero advantage in your wheels for something more comfortable and durable? Also, consider that Bernard Hinault would have been tickled pink to ride a wheelset like the one pictured above: Ambrosio F20 Crono rims with 28 spokes laced to DT 240 hubs. 28-hole box section rims were considered TT wheels in his day.

Weight

If you're spending $4,000 or more, you can have light and aero carbon wheels. If you'd like to spend significantly less than that, you can have light or aero or durable -- pick one. Unless you opt for handbuilt wheels, in which case you can have light and durable. The F20 Crono wheelset above weighs 1350 grams. You can get lighter, but what's the point? The Giro has been won on heavier wheels within the past five years.

Race-Worthiness

Tubular aluminum box-section rims are perfect for racing, whether it be road racing, hillclimbs, or cyclocross. All the best racing tires are tubulars, and by opting for a hand-built traditional wheel for racing you will marry your tubular tire to the optimum in braking performance, durability, and truability. That is, you'll be able to true your race wheels without having to remove the tire, ad then re-glue it. The wheels shown above (Record hubs, laced 32-hole to Ambrosio Nemesis rims) weigh in at 1550 grams -- lighter than a Bontrager Aeolus 5.0 wheelset.

Training

Tired of pinch flats? Train on tubulars. A beater set like those pictured below will hold up much better than anything in a similar price-point.

Style

Price Point has carbon wheels. Excel Sports has carbon wheels. Lance has carbon wheels. If you'd like to ride something a little different, consider hand-built wheels. For their durability. For their weight. For their performance. For their style.