Specialized's offshoot components brand Roval has announced the release of its new Alpinist CLX III wheelset, which is claimed to weigh only 1,131g.
Roval says the Alpinist CLX III is 134g lighter than the outgoing Alpinist CLX II, and claims it would have saved Demi Vollering five seconds in her ascent of the Col du Tourmalet during the 2023 Tour de France Femmes.
The new wheels benefit from shared technology with the aero Rapide CLX III wheelset, including specially developed composite spokes and modified Roval LF hub shells, while the rims retain a bead hook.
However, unlike the latest Rapide wheelsets, which subverted the norm by debuting a deeper and wider front rim compared to the rear in the name of aerodynamics, the rim profiles are uniform at 33mm deep and a relatively modest 21mm wide internally.
The launch of the wheelset, which costs £1,149 (front) and £1,599 (rear), is accompanied by a new Alpinist II one-piece cockpit, which is said to weigh 270g in a size 400x100mm. The Aplinist II cockpit costs £575.
Sights set on the mountains
The Roval Alpinist CLX III wheelset is designed chiefly for use in the mountains, thanks to its low claimed 1,131g weight.
According to Roval product manager Chris Whelan, this weight includes factory-fitted rim tape and tubeless valves, and was arrived at by drawing an average from an initial cohort of production wheels then cutting the lightest 10% from the calculation.
In short, he says customers should receive wheelsets that are “at least as light as the claimed weight” – a refreshing change from the general norm should it prove to be true.
The main weight saving has been achieved through adopting thermoplastic composite spokes, initially seen on the Rapide CLX III wheels. Developed in conjunction with Arris Composites, a California-based specialist in carbon development and manufacture, they are claimed to save 1.9g per spoke compared to the DT Swiss Aerolite spokes used for the Alpinist CLX II (103.5g across the entire wheelset).
These spokes sport titanium end pieces, which fit to internally housed alloy nipples and new hub shells – but unlike carbon spokes typically seen in the industry, these aren’t designed to maximise stiffness.
Instead, Roval claims their construction enables a small extra degree of flexion, which is said to boost strength by 20%, fatigue life (given they handle deforming forces more easily), and handling and ride quality.
Overall, Roval says its simulations show the new Alpinist wheelset would have saved Vollering five seconds in her stage-winning ascent of the Col du Tourmalet two years ago.
Given that ascent took Vollering 53mins 8secs according to her Strava file of the ride, this equates to a 0.16% improvement – not nothing, but not a lot.
Narrower than expected?
Given the trend towards wider tyres, you might have expected Roval to widen its Alpinist rims accordingly.
However, the general design remains very similar to the previous-generation wheelset – a hooked rim, and still 33mm deep front-to-rear, 21mm wide internally and 27mm wide externally.
These dimensions are optimised around a 28mm tyre, and Roval confirms that the wheels now “fully meet” ETRTO (European Tyre & Rim Technical Organisation) standards.
According to Whelan, the old Alpinist II rim design sat “slightly” outside of these standards as the brand sought to prioritise tyre retention in the event of a sudden deflation, but the side effect was a tougher installation process.
Whelan says Roval tested 19, 21 and 23mm-wide rim designs, using a mix of 26, 28 and 30mm-wide tyres, but found the best performance was seen with a rim optimised for 28mm tyres.
The bead hooks are 4.5mm wide in order to help reduce the risk of pinch flats, which the brand claims it tests for using its own proprietary tubeless impact testing protocol.
It’s worth noting that these rim shape updates have also been rolled over to the Alpinist CL II wheelset, but the hubs (DT Swiss 350) and spokes have remained the same.
DT Swiss internals
As with the previous Alpinist CLX wheelset, Roval has stuck with its tried-and-tested method of using DT Swiss 180 EXP internals for its hubset.
That said, the Roval-designed hub shells have been modified to sport the titanium end pieces, and the flanges widened slightly to complement the properties of the composite spokes.
The hubs use SINC ceramic bearings and a 36-tooth ratchet ring.
Alpinist II cockpit
Alongside the Alpinist CLX III wheelset, Roval has also introduced the new Alpinist II cockpit.
This features refined ergonomics compared to the previous Alpinist SL, including D-shape tops for improved grasping comfort. The drop flare has also increased, from zero to four degrees.
Roval claims the changes have been informed by more than 100,000 scans of Retül rider fit data, to comply with a range of natural hand and wrist angles riders hold.
Feedback from Specialized’s customer base has also been informative. BikeRadar understands this saw demand for a handlebar with internal cable routing. Hoses exit out of a port in the underside of the stem, and back into a port in the top of the headset.
Despite the extra material in the design, Roval says it has kept weight down to 270g – 15g more than the Alpinist SL (and 10g less than the old two-piece arrangement fitted to the Specialized Aethos).
Compared to the Rapide cockpit seen on the Specialized Tarmac SL8, the new Alpinist front end is said to offer 28.3% more damping. Roval says you could swap the two cockpits easily, plus upgrade those on the Aethos and Roubaix bikes, if desired, given it sports a 1-1/8in steerer clamp.
It’s available in 15 sizes, ranging from 80-130mm stem lengths and 380-440mm bar widths (measured centre-to-centre).
Pricing
- Roval Alpinist CLX III wheelset: £1,149 (front), £1,599 (rear)
- Roval Alpinist II cockpit: £575
