Parcours Chrono wheelset

The Parcours Chrono wheelset has 68mm and 75mm-deep rims front and rear respectively, so you’d expect them to misbehave in crosswinds; however, they’re remarkably stable, meaning you can have the aero benefits of a deeper wheelset in even more conditions! If you like engineering white papers, clever aero stuff, or just want to stay out of hedges while going fast on a bike then these wheels from this lesser-known British brand are well worth a look.

Also check out our guide to the best road bike wheels, for more options at various prices.

> Buy now: Parcours Chrono wheelset for £1,199 from Parcours

When I started cycling competitively a decade or so ago, I can’t say I was a massive fan of deep-section wheels. They were responsible for plenty of hair-raising moments and even the pros could be seen clutching at their bars every time it got breezy. Fast forward 10 years and things have moved on. Thanks to disc brakes becoming commonplace, wider wheels are now bang on trend, and the extra stability that brings – up to a point – has normalised training and racing in all weather conditions on carbon deeps.

Wheels such as the Prime Primavera 44s and, almost to the same extent, Roval’s Rapide CLXs mean I now feel comfortable using carbon deeps in even the windiest of conditions. However, beyond that 50mm or so mark, even the latest wheels can still become a bit of a handful – just take the 65mm-deep Cadex wheelset, for example, that Matt tested in June, with those super-bladed carbon spokes.

You might be asking yourself why stability matters. Well, the simple truth is that just about every established wheel brand knows how to make a fast wheel – yes, some are marginally better and some are slightly floppier, but the difference in aerodynamics between two identically modern deep wheels is marginal at best.

The Parcours Chrono wheels are undoubtedly fast, just as you’d expect from a wheelset that measures up 68mm deep at the front and 75mm deep at the rear. They sound good too – out of the saddle, you get that proper swooshing noise! Their real selling point, though, is stability – it is nothing short of remarkable.

My testing began in the middle of the winter criterium series, when any weather bar sun is to be expected and riders could be seen jerking around corners on exposed airfields as the chilling wind caught them. The Chronos, though, were surefooted, behaving like a rim nearer 45mm than its true depth.

This stability impressed me so much that I decided to take the risk and pack them as my sole wheelset for a fortnight-long training camp in Lanzarote – a place well known for its surf-friendly winds.

Once again, the wheels impressed, behaving predictably, and while you do get a steady side pressure in crosswinds, Parcours has done a superb job of reducing that snatching sensation. (If you’re well into your science of air, like me, then you’ll enjoy reading through the Chrono’s Engineering White Paper, which details how this stall has been reduced.)

The speed and stability is addictive and leaves very little reason to go back down to a shallow wheelset. Obviously, deep wheels are heavier – the Chronos have a claimed weight of 1,620g, which is 200g or so heavier than most class-leading, wide 50mm all-rounder wheelsets. On the road.cc Scales of Truth, we measured the Chronos with tubeless valves and 11-speed freehub but without tape at 1,670g so this figure seems accurate.

Compared with other wheelsets of a similar depth, they stack up well: the Cadex 65 wheels are a little lighter (1,550g) but also shallower, and the Halo Carbaura 80mm wheelset is deeper but heavier (1,770g).

We’re often told that additional weight makes a minimal difference on rolling routes and I would tend to agree – I find that stiffness, of wheelset and frame, makes a far more tangible change to climbing sensation than a few saved grams. The Chrono wheels are certainly stiff enough, with 24 spokes both front and rear, and as with most carbon wheels of this depth, they feel tight both radially and laterally.

The spokes in question are Sapim CX-Ray and the hubs are Parcours’ own Center Lock disc design – both were hard to fault. The hubs ran smoothly out of the box on EZO stainless steel bearings (the same brand as you’ll find in many Hunt wheels), and for anyone looking for further (marginal) gains there is also a Kogel Ceramic option.

My only very minor comment regarding the hubs is that they use external lockrings to secure the brake rotors; this is because of the larger bearings, which are said to improve rolling resistance and durability. It’s a very valid reason but I still can’t pretend that I prefer them to the internal spline design.

The rear hub houses a steel freehub body with a 44-tooth ratchet engagement system and three pairs of pawls for optimal longevity and performance. The pickup is indeed good and the relatively small engagement angle (8.18 degrees) makes the wheelset suitable for the sharp accelerations of criterium racing as well as steady state efforts.

Parcours claims that the wheels are fastest when paired with 28mm tyres. During testing, I primarily used 27mm Challenge Criterium RS rubber which provided a good transition to the 22.5mm internal width rims. Supposedly, wheels and tyres are fastest when the rim is ever so slightly wider than the tyre at its widest point, and so the 32mm (front) and 30.5mm (rear) external widths provide a good base to make this possible with modern width tyres.

The only real negative I’ve found with these wheels is that they come untaped. You do get tubeless tape in the box, but be prepared to spend a bit of time practising your taping technique to ensure a proper seal ready for tubeless.

Value & conclusion

At £1,199 the Chrono wheels are a seriously attractive option for anyone looking to increase their average speed on a road bike.

The Halo Carbauras are similar at £1,099.95, but I’d opt for the Parcours thanks to their excellent stability.

The other deep wheelsets mentioned throughout the review all cost significantly more – the Cadex 65s, for example, will set you back £2,499.98 and the Princeton CarbonWorks Wake 6560s are £3,700 – up from £3,199.99 when Stu tested them in 2021.

The Parcours Chrono wheels aren’t just good for their price, though, they’re excellent wheels, end of. Whether you’re a time trialler, crit racer, triathlete or a roadie looking for watt savings, the Chronos will serve you well through more weather conditions than you might initially think. There aren’t many wheelsets that can make the Zipp 454 NSWs that currently adorn my bike look average, but this is one of them.

Verdict

Deep wheels just got a lot more stable!

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