Reserve’s new 48|53 GR gravel race wheels: ‘Tour de France aerodynamics and World Cup XC capability’

Here's something you won't see on the roads of France in the next three weeks... but they're aiming for the top in gravel racing globally with a competitive design and specification

Photos: Reserve Words: Simon Smythe

Reserve has gone deeper into aero gravel with its fastest wheels yet. According to the US brand, the 48|53 GR combines "Tour de France aerodynamics and World Cup XC capability in a single, unbelievably fast package". Additionally, they are "the fastest off-road wheels we've ever made."

Reserve is of course the exclusive wheel supplier to Visma-Lease a Bike and knows a thing or two about the Tour de France, having won both men’s and women’s editions with Jonas Vingegaard and Pauline Ferrand-Prévot.

Reserve also already knows a thing or two about gravel, having won Unbound with Keegan Swenson in 2023, and this new wheelset looks to bring it firmly into the late 2020s, reflecting the trend for gravel equipment to go ever more aerodynamic as race speeds keep increasing. Gravel racers are demanding wider rims, voluminous tyres, deeper rim profiles and a greater emphasis on outright speed – and the only thing slowing them down is the peanut butter-like mud of this year’s Unbound.

Reserve 48|53 GR on Wout van Aert's bike

Reserve says the 48|53 GR is optimised for tyres between 40mm and 57mm wide, pairing a 30mm internal rim width with a 44mm external profile. The wider internal dimension allows tyres to sit wider on the rim, creating "a wider contact patch for more grip" while preventing tyres from lightbulbing, where the sidewalls taper inward, reducing the contact patch and losing stability.

As the name suggests, the rims are 48mm deep at the front and 53mm at the rear, depths that are more commonly associated with the road. The deepest gravel wheels from rival wheel brand Roval are the Terra Aero CLX, launched earlier this year, which has rim depths of 50mm on the front and a shallower 45 at the rear, though the “chopped aero” kammtail shape claims to yield a virtual depth of 70mm.

Reserve has gone down the traditional route of a shallower front and deeper rear, whereas Roval’s thinking that “a deep-profile rim slices air where it matters most” is also implemented in its Rapide road wheels.

ENVE goes even deeper with its ENVE G SES 6.7 Pro, which has 60mm front and 67mm rear rim depths, making Reserve’s new wheels look decidedly versatile – not a bad thing.

According to Reserve, the super-wide 44mm external rim profile allows air to transition smoothly across the tyre and around the rim, reducing drag and increasing speed, with a "buffer of smooth-flowing air" being the key to increasing aerodynamic performance.

Reserve continues with a hooked rather than hookless construction, but there’s an innovative-looking new Hollow Hook construction that the brand says "shaves weight from the outermost section of the rim without sacrificing any of the strength and reliability that we're known for." Reserve also says this allows it to achieve "a super-wide internal and external rim profile without drastically increasing rim weight," while maintaining exceptional pinch-flat protection, strength, and aerodynamics.

The 48|53 GRs are laced with Sapim CX-Ray bladed steel spokes, and wheelsets weigh a claimed 1,528g with DT Swiss 350 hubs or 1,433g with DT Swiss 180 hubs. The weight is competitive, lighter than Zipp's 303 XPLR SW and the ENVE G SES 6.7 Pros, both of which also use steel spokes. Roval has gone with Arris composite spokes for its Terra Aero CLX and Terra CLX III and these are both consequently lighter at a claimed 1,340g and 1,079g respectively.

The Reserve 48|53 GR with DT Swiss 350 hubs for $1,599/€1,799) or DT Swiss 180 hubs for $2,499/€2,799. Rim-only pricing is $699.