I ask because I have a 920 I have ridden around on for the past two seasons. I have an opportunity to go touring this summer. My plan is to get an appropriate wheelset (I don't trust the 28 spoke Bontrager "elite"), change the crankset to alivio 3x9 (for a 10 speed drive train), new stem and handlebars.
I have no issue with aluminum frame bikes. I would trust a Cannondale touring bike. Trek? I don't know. Integrated headset? I don't know. The aluminum racks that came stock? I don't know. Going off for hundreds of miles in eastern Maine with a bunch of I-don't-knows makes me a little anxious.
Anyone toured with the 920? I would love to hear how the bike performed and held up.
Side note: My buddy is leaning hard on me to buy a 2022 Kona Sutra SE that's available. As far as touring bikes go, it's kind of apples and oranges. His point is that Sutra with Tubus racks is a proven, Trek 920 is not. Ya pay your money, ya take yer chances.
if you get a new wheelset, make sure that you ride on those wheels for a while, and then get a good wheel building mechanic to go over the spoke tensions and get them as perfect as they can be, uniform tensions--before you go on this trip.
Don't get this done
right before the trip also, so you can put a good amount of miles of loaded riding on the wheels to make sure there are no issues.
this is always a good idea before a trip, especially if you are going to be in more remote areas.
Also if in remote areas, I would also recommend getting a spare rear derailleur hanger, in case you ding your bike and bend the replaceable aluminum hanger.-- this does happen.
Last summer I was on a short bikepacking trip in Scotland and met a guy in a campground who had done just that. He had been riding on the sameish route I was on, which had a fair amount of single track and stuff to smack your rear derailleur on if not careful. He was lucky to be able to ride to a bike store where they actually had a spare hanger for his bike, he was very very lucky.
re your headset--if the headset is well greased and properly adjusted, especially with wider tires at appropriate pressures, don't see why you would have an issue. I have bikes that when adjusted properly, go years and years with no headset issues, and really I haven't had a headset issue for about 30 years on various bikes.
final thought, look into doing a bike mechanic course if available, it is so useful to be more familiar with your bike and knowing for sure how things are, especially if going off the beaten track.