Originally Posted by
TrekCommuter
Hello, everyone,
I have gotten back into intermediate distance rides this year of 30-75 miles in a day. Next year, I'd like to do some light/credit card touring with my wife of about the same distance per day for a few days on end. We both have 2015 Bianchi Volpes which have been rock solid bikes and they fit us well. My question is this. Would it be worth spending the roughly $300 for a Fulcrum Racing 5 wheelset? I am not looking to race, but perhaps to slightly increase efficiency to cover more miles per day. I've also considered looking into randonneuring at some point.
The stock wheels have Alexrims with Shimano Tiagra hubs. I've also thought about different bikes (maybe a Gunnar Sport Disc), but the price of bikes that would be demonstrably better than our Bianchis gives me sticker shock.
Any and all thoughts are welcome. Thanks!
My first bikepacking trip was road based on a set of DT Swiss R23s (20 front/24 rear spokes), which are a similar spec to the Racing 5s. For lightweight touring, they should be okay. IMHO, a nice set of wheels with a decent set of tyres is a great upgrade, and you will notice that they are nicer rolling.