Originally Posted by
tyrion
The only 3 problems I can see with a rack very close to the rear tire:
- mud might stick to the tire and scrape on the rack (causing drag and a scratched rack)
- no room for fenders
- can't get bigger tires
I'd prefer at least half an inch of clearance, more if I might get fenders.
"disc brake versions" of racks were designed to accommodate disc brakes that were located above the seat stay - those racks had the struts pushed outward a bit. I don't think you need that kind of rack on a Trek Verve.
Now that I've gotten a two versions of this Topeak explorer rack, I can see you are definitely correct. The calipers for the Verve 2's disc brakes are located just above the chain stay, not the seat stay, and so the calipers do not interfere with the rack's vertical tube at all. What's weird, is that I did not see any info on exactly what the disc versions of the are intended to accomplish - no details on product descriptions saying that the disc versions of the racks are intended to avoid calipers on the seat stays. :/