Test Zipp 30 Course: Alu, wide and flat ... and good?

Test Zipp 30 Course: With the Zipp 30 Course, the Americans are presenting a wheel set adapted to off-road racers, which of course also proves its worth on the road bike - especially if you can't use wide tires.

Disc brakes, 1×11 gears, new geometries - Gravel Racer & Co. have provided a real technological boost in the road bike segment. If you want to be sporty on the road, you no longer have to rely on smooth asphalt, and if you want to drive fast through terrain, you can now look forward to interesting alternatives to the classic cyclocrosser.

Now, you tend to travel slower on rough gravel than on the road, and this means that certain things become more important while others become less important. Puncture protection becomes more relevant as the risk of punctures and punctures increases, while aerodynamics are less critical due to slower speeds off tarmac. And that – as you can already guess – has an influence on what a wheel that is ideal for this purpose should look like.

Are the Zipp 30 Course suitable for gravel racers, cyclocrossers or racing bikes?

Curtain up for the new Zipp 30 Course. The wheelset is not to be confused with the well-known Zipp 30, relatively inconspicuous 30mm wheels that are primarily there to provide a comparatively cheap entry into the Zipp world. The Zipp 30 Course, on the other hand, is unique, and that is primarily due to its unusual rims. These are comparatively flat at 26 mm, but incredibly wide at 25 mm on the braking surface. The advantage of such a construction is obvious: Wide tires in particular, as are common in the Gravel segment, sit much better on a wide rim, especially if they are ridden with rather low pressure. In addition, the risk of punctures decreases if the rim flanks are further apart - but that's no problem with the Zipp 30 Course anyway, because if you want, you can drive the wheelset tubeless. Provided you have solid tires and sealant, you are then very puncture-proof - on gravel as well as on asphalt.
Which brings us to the question of whether the average racing cyclist also benefits from the wide Zipp rims. In the absence of a gravel bike, we tested the wheel set on a racing bike, namely on an older model whose fork is so unfavorably designed that it only allows 23 mm narrow tires. Lo and behold: Our Conti TT is extremely widened by the Zipp rim; instead of its 23 mm on a narrow standard rim, it now measures a whopping 27 mm. The tire's height growth isn't quite as pronounced, although it's still just under 2mm (which allows the tire to fit into the fork with just enough clearance). This improves rolling resistance and comfort; when leaning, the tire feels much safer and lies more firmly on the road.

The Zipp 30 Course also performs well at high speeds

In general, the Zipp 30 Course make you feel good on the go. The new Zipp 77/177 hubs with 17 mm axles run silky smooth, the freehub whirrs audibly. 24 double-crossed hammerhead spokes on the rear wheel ensure torsion-free acceleration. At the front, 18 radial spokes reduce drag. In general, the wheel set should do quite well in terms of aerodynamics, especially since the offset between the rounded rim and the slightly wider tire is minimal. At high speeds on the flat and when rolling downhill, the Zipp wheels never prove to be a brake.

On the uphill, on the other hand, the wheels don't act as ballast: with a set weight of 1.640 grams (front 740/rear 900g, spanner 50 g each), the Zipp 30 Course are acceptably light; the difference to parallel 1.200 gram aluminum wheels is not really noticeable. In addition, you can look forward to very good braking behavior and clean concentricity with the Zipps.

Understatement: The Zipp 1.000 Course doesn't look like 30 euros!

All in all, the innovative wheels are convincing - at least in the test on the road. On the gravel racer, the tubeless-compatible wide rims should also be able to show off their various advantages; then probably in the disc variant; If you want to ride the wheels on a cross-country bike, you can get them with tubular tire rims for both brake variants. As usual with Zipp, the price is steep: 1.045 euros for an aluminum wheel set may seem a bit high to some - but with the Zipp 30 Course you also get quite a bit on offer.

Conclusion Zipp 30 Course

The ultra-wide aluminum rim makes narrow tires fit for the future and should be the best off-road. This makes the Zipp 30 Course stable all-rounders that stand their ground even in the wind.