I got some shiny new WHEELS!

After the bad news on Tuesday that my Mavic Cosmic wheelset was trashed I was rather inconsolable, but due to the goodness of others I was able to get a screaming deal on a new wheelset:

Shimano Ultegra hubs laced to Mavic Open Pro 32h rims with Weinmann 14/15ga double-butted spokes. I've ridden around a little on them and so far I'm loving the hell out of the ride. They're definitely stiffer than the Cosmics, which I attribute to the higher spoke count and 3-cross lacing (vs 18/24 spoke radial/2-cross on rear DS). I also look forward to doing maintenance on these wheels, as the straight-pull high-tension spokes of the previous set were hell to work on.

Finally, the silver box-section rims and shiny hubs look downright classy on my Litespeed. I'm sure that'll give me at least a little bit of a psychological advantage. Bottom line: I'm happy with the wheels. I have yet to take them off of a curb or crash them, so we'll see how they hold up to the usual Jason biking abuse over the long run.