Whether or not you have heard of NEXT Cycling, if you follow US cross you may have heard of the man behind them, Jerry Chabot the head of ENGVT the Vermont-based engineering firm that stepped up three years ago to title sponsor multi-time US CX champ Jonathan Page. After having been so happy with his investment into pro cycling, Chabot mined his industry connections and started Next last year to design and build high quality race wheels for cyclocross, mountain, and road biking. We also saw back in October that they offered a solution alternative for Specialized’s SCS cross axle spacing.
With a lineup of a couple cyclocross tubulars and some gravel clinchers, Next recently added a couple of tubeless mountain bike wheel set options with 28 & 33mm external widths, and just released an update to their 38G gravel wheels with 25mm wide external rims. Take a closer look, gets more specs, pricing, and a bit more on Next below the fold…
With an eye on supporting the future of the sport, Next is also tied into their own cycling club and development team, putting the bulk of their wheel proceeds back into riders. As Chabot puts it, “Next exists to support cycling, via our club and other collaborations. We are essentially a non profit (though not legally). But this is something I do to be able to support cycling in a sustainable way, which is cool.”
All of their wheels are laced in Vermont with standard DT Swiss hubs for reliability and the ease of swapping axle types, and typically Sapim spokes. All wheels are also “tubeless specific” not just compatible with tubeless setups, so they include well-defined “bead pockets” and hookless beads for low pressure road and cross or a hooked bead for high pressure road tubeless.
The new 2016 carbon gravel rim gets updated slightly wider, and with a new look. The 38G (G for gravel) rims are 38mm deep, 25mm wide outside, with a 19.5mm internal width. Their hooked tubeless bead means they can be run up to 130psi. The Centerlock disc brake wheels sell for $1300 with DT350 hubs with 28 spokes front and rear. Total weight is about 1650g.
The carbon mountain wheels were developed for two distinct types of riding. The more narrow 28M (get it M for mountain) was a wheel designed for Next’s cross riders who also road XC or just wanted a tubeless CX wheel for off season trailing. It uses a 28mm deep, 28mm wide external, 23.5mm internal rim that can do double duty with cyclocross or light trail tires. The lower profile wheels get built with road 11 speed compatible DT 350s for $1350 and a claimed 1450g. The 28M wheels are only available as 29ers. As with all of their mountain wheels, Next uses an asymmetric rim profile front and rear for more even spoke tension.
For a more trail capabilities, while still being able to be raced in cross country due to their low weight, Next added a new 33M carbon trail wheel. It gets a 30mm deep, 33mm wide external, 26mm internal rim that is available in either 27.5″ or 29″. Either option will set you back the same $1350 as the narrower wheel, with the 29er adding 110g and the 27.5 coming in at just 1475g on DT350s. The mountain hookless beads have a pressure limit of 65psi, and are available with lighter DT240 hubs if you want to trim a bit of weight.
We’ve also heard that road and TT wheels are in the works, so we might expect to see more in the coming weeks…
Just to add a small bit more of an advocacy lean, the day after we published this, British cross star Helen Wyman announced a partnership with Next Cycling to support NEXT Wyman, a program to locate and support developing riders. Check out more, like how to support the initiative over at TotalWomensCycling.com.
