Of all the parts that make up the humble bicycle, one component that arguably has a more important role than any other in defining the ride is the choice of wheelset. Wheels transfer all of your energy into forward motion and connect you to the surfaces over which you’re riding.
Yep, your wheels have a tough life, which is why we spend so much time thinking about them. We, like you, want wheels that are tough, ready for anything and are capable of letting us decide where we ride. Our new Terra wheels, designed by our component partners Roval, are supremely accomplished hoops, ready to ride wherever and whenever you want.
The Roval factory in California is full of obsessive master craftsmen who start with a blank piece of paper and don’t rest until they’ve designed a wheelset that ticks every single performance target that they’ve set themselves. The result is a range of handbuilt wheels that represent this obsession – designed, refined, tested, and tested again until they’re happy to put their name to them. In fact, each Roval wheel contains a card that is signed by the person who built it.
Terra – ready for anything
We’re riding differently nowadays. A day out on the bike can begin with a blast along the tarmac, followed by a dive through the woods along twisty singletrack and ending with an epic gravel race ending at the café. Terra wheels are the ones to take you anywhere you want to go, stupendous carbon rides that combine tarmac-capable weight with steady composure once the stuff gets rough. Offering the choice of 650b or 700c sizes, tubeless ready and with up to a massive 30mm internal width, the Terra redefines what you can do on a ride.
There are two styles in the all-new Terra range, targeted at gravel and road riders who like to ride along the blurry line between the two. The Terra CLX Evo are light and nimble on the road, tough as heck off-road and smooth as butter all day long, bringing maximum performance to the diverse needs of aggressive gravel riders.
They’re available in 650b and 700c sizes with a 30mm internal width. This means you can slap on some serious rubber, with the 700c wheel taking between 38mm and 47mm tyres. If you need more, the 650b caters for 42mm up to airbed-like 55mm tyres – that’s 2.1” in old money, or ‘absolutely massive’ in even older.
The wheels come tubeless-ready, though look a little deeper and you’ll see another example of that Roval obsession. They opted to forgo hookless rims for hooked, which although making the manufacturing process more complicated provides a super-secure hold on the tyre’s bead. That’s important – if you’re running wide tyres it’s good to know that they’re going to sit tight no matter what pressure you run.
Just a quick aside on the benefits of tubeless tyres here. If you’re a mountain biker you’ll already be familiar with the joy of running tyres at lower pressures, improving grip and reducing the risk of pinch flats at the same time. Our gravel-riding brethren have joined in the tubeless party, and the Terra wheels are the toys they’re bringing with them.
Did we mention the weight? Oh yeah, these beauties are light. At a smidge over 1,300 grams in 650b and 1,357 grams in the 700c version (including rim tape and valves), the Roval Terra CLX Evo wheels stand up against even the most feather light climbing wheels out there.
While we’re talking weight, the Terra CLX is the lightest 25mm internal-width gravel wheelset out there. Weighing in at a barely-there 1,296 grams you’re going to need to tie these ones down. That 25mm internal width caters for tyres between 28mm and 42mm, so if your gravel is a step down the Gnarliness Scale (this is a real thing….honest) these are the wheels for you. They deliver an exceptionally smooth ride, spinning up to speed with a pedal stroke and as tough as you need them to be wherever you’re riding.
Terra wheels are built with DT Swiss hubs and spokes, chosen by the guys at Roval to deliver stability and strength while remaining surprisingly lightweight.
Lifetime warranty and crash replacement
You might be a little worried about spending some of your hard-earned on a wheelset you know you’re going to bash around a bit. First of all, while designed for gravel use, the Terra passes Roval’s own mountain bike wheel standards. They’re as tough as you need them to be.
If that’s not enough for you, there’s also a lifetime warranty and Roval’s “Sh*t Happens” no-fault crash replacement policy. Up until now this was only valid on Roval wheels purchased in the US, so we’re delighted it’s now extended to the UK, just in time for the Terra wheels.
We’ve the Terra range in store today. Grab yourself a set and discover what Roval’s obsession can do for you.
