Ardennes SL is our best selling wheel and for good reason. It is the original Ardennes but for 2013 it features a carbon front hub and a 2 cross/2cross rear wheel lacing pattern to enhance power transmission and lateral stiffness. The SL utilizes the same high performance scandium C2 rim as its big brother the Ardennes Flamme Rouge.

We might have named our top aluminium clincher wheel after the Ardennes, the region where traditionally the Amstel Gold, Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege Classics take place every year, but don't be fooled. The HED Ardennes SL is far from traditional.

Read the Cycling News review

After two decades at the top of the carbon aero wheel tree, we realised we could use our knowledge and experience to improve massively on the common aluminium wheel. Making a lighter and stiffer rim wasn't a problem, but we went further, creating the C2 clincher rim.

With the help of CAD modelling, we developed a revolutionary 23mm wide rim - the HED C2 rim is much wider than our earlier 19mm clincher rims, and much wider than current racing clinchers from other manufacturers. The wider rim has a multitude of benefits:

• A wider rim will obviously be laterally stiffer, and the HED Ardennes gets a scandium rim making it lighter, stronger and stiffer.
• The shape of the tyre changes with a wider rim. With the C2 rim, the tyre width matches rim width - C2s are designed for 23mm clinchers. The sidewalls are an integral part of the aerodynamic shape of the wheel, and they don't bulge above the braking surface creating a gap for the airflow to become unattached.
• Set wider the tyre also handles more predictably. With the contact patch improved, rolling resistance is lower, cornering is better, and the volume of the tyre is effectively increased so it needs less pressure for the same load, giving better vibration absorption and ultimately more speed.

All HED wheels are hand built with perfect spoke tension. Our builders have years of experience. The HED Ardennes is where cycling tradition and 21st century technology meet - be there.