Originally Posted by
79pmooney
Rotors, + stronger spokes and rims that can handle the bigger spoke loads. I raced 290 gm rims laced with 15-17 (~1.8-1.6mm) spokes (and 250 or
less gm sewups). More than once I made breaks that took everything I had. Would I have made it with wheels a touch heavier? I'll never know. But being able to close that gap by being maybe 12" closer meant that I beat the guy behind me by 10 minutes.
My fasted, hardest race the group I stayed in broke the course record (set by an animal some of you have heard of). The deciding climb was absolutely the hardest thing I have ever done. That race - 220 gm silks and a 250 gm front rim. (Same spokes.)
I wonder why would the rims need to be stronger? They can be built without a brake track so that's weight savings and aero gains there. There's no additional strength requirement for the spoke bed or the spokes themselves.
The force of deceleration always eventually arrives at the spokes. The only real difference with disc vs rim wheels is that due to the braking force originating at the hub, the wheel cannot be fully radially built. One side needs to be at least 1 cross.