Tour de France tech 2018: Wheels of the peloton

There’s a vast number of different wheels on display in this year’s Tour de France, riders making their choice based on the type of stage ahead of them, the terrain, the conditions and the bike they’re on. Here are some that have caught our eye…

For many stages Tour riders are using wheels that would have been considered pretty deep section not so long ago. Peter Sagan’s Venge, for example, is equipped with Roval CLX 64s (main image, above), the 64 referring to the rim depth in millimetres. 
The rim is 27.4mm wide and the hubs feature CeramicSpeed bearings.
The Bontrager Aeolus XXX 6 wheels on Bauke Mollema’s Trek Madone are nearly as deep at 60mm. Deeper wheels can often affect handling but Bontrager claims that its updated design, revealed earlier this year, provides extra stability in crosswinds.
Find out about Bontrager's new Aeolus XXX wheels offer "best-in-class aerodynamics" 
They feature DT-Swiss hub internals with 36-point star ratchets that provide fast engagement when you start pedalling (10°) and they’re laced with DT-Swiss Aerolite spokes. 
Before he was forced to retire from the Tour through injury, Vincenzo Nibali was using wheels with quite deep rims for the flatter stages too. These are Fulcrum Speed 55Ts (55mm-deep) with rims that are 24.2mm wide, optimised to work with 25mm tyres. These use CULT ceramic bearings from Campagnolo, which owns the Fulcrum brand.