Fulcrum

Racing 1-2-Way Fit Wheels - Clincher - 2011

It's no secret that Fulcrum is a brand extension of the vaunted Campagnolo. Fulcrum wheels get every bit of Campy's engineering experience and technology as evidenced by the Racing 1 wheelset. It tips the scales at 90 grams lighter than the Racing 3. It's not just a matter of how much weight, but where the weight is -- in the rims and spokes. Fulcrum builds the Racing 1 with bladed aluminum spokes instead of the stainless steel spokes you'll find on the Racing 3. Further, the rims on the Racing 1 use more aggressive machining between spokes to shave away grams. Weight savings has its maximum benefit when it's at the outside of the wheel, which is exactly what you get here. And even though the Racing 1 has lighter rims, it has the same 2-Way Fit tubeless technology of the Racing 3, making it compatible with Hutchinson Road Tubeless tires and standard clinchers. Road tubeless tire technology offers greater comfort, more traction, and lower rolling resistance. The benefits are similar to the upgrade to tubulars -- and there won't be any sticky glue to contend with.

The Racing 1 uses all-aluminum hub shells (in contrast to the carbon/aluminum version on the Racing Zero), but they're lightweight nonetheless thanks to their use of aluminum axles. Smooth-running stainless steel hub bearings keep friction minimized, which nicely complements the Racing 1's aerodynamic advantages. Since the rims here are tubeless, Fulcrum uses a magnet to pull special spoke nipples from the valve hole around the hollow interior of the rim to get them into their respective positions. The outer wall of the rim is pierced only for the valve stem and doesn't require any rim strips whether or not you choose to ride tubes or tubeless. Fulcrum machines excess aluminum from the rims between each spoke to reduce any unnecessary weight. However, they intentionally left the area near the valve stem hole unmachined to counteract the mass of the opposing rim joint. They call this Dynamic Balancing and the result is a wheelset that rolls smoothly at any speed.

The front wheel has a 24mm deep rim and 16 radially laced spokes. The rear wheel has a 28mm deep rim and 21 spokes using Fulcrum's Two-to-One pattern. The non-drive side has 7 radial spokes and the drive side uses 14 tangentially laced spokes anchored to the oversized right side flange on the rear hub. The Two-to-One pattern ensures a greater transfer of your power input and a better balance of tension in the wheel for greater durability.

The Fulcrum Racing 1 2-Way Fit wheels are prime for racing with their semi-aero profiled rims and bladed spokes, but their also durable and strong enough for everyday riding and training. The Racing 1 features a new quick release design that offers greater clamping force and more security. The freehub body is available in an alloy Campy version and a steel version for Shimano/SRAM cassettes. Wheelset weight without included skewers is 1505grams (645g front, 860g rear).