Why Campagnolo Bora Ultra?

from Tri Gear Review

Gear: Campagnolo Bora Ultra: Remarkably Smooth Ride

The first thing you notice about Campagnolo's Bora Ultras is their beauty. Due to their looks or perhaps because they are relatively rare and so expensive, few wheelsets draw as many remarks. The carbon weave of the rim and hub is far more exciting than the black plastic look of most competitors’ carbon wheels. Moreover, they look and feel remarkably well made and the individual parts are well integrated. The hub, axle and bearing assembly is especially nice and easy to work with. I also like the way the spokes just seem to disappear into carbon; there's no nipple or flange that you can see, they just poke through the hub and then slide back into the rim. This may be one reason why they perform so well in the wind tunnel.

I installed Tufo Elite Jet tires on the Boras with Tufo Extreme tape. Tires mount to the Boras just like they do to any other carbon tubular wheel. I use Tufo Elite Jet tires on every wheelset so I can evaluate the ride of the wheels without having a variable factor (different tires) effect the ride. I can directly swap several wheelsets on the same bike and ride on the same route with the only difference being the wheels. That way I can more accurately describe the ride of the wheels. I also use a standard wheelset (2005 Mavic Ksyrium SLs with Tufo Elite Jet tires) to compare with every wheel I've ridden to help me relate the ride of new wheels to those I no longer have.

The ride of the Campy Bora Ultra is unique among all wheels I've ridden. They are extraordinarily smooth and solid. In fact, Campy's standard steel ball bearings in the carbon hubs are smoother than ceramic cartridge bearings. When I swapped those bearings out for genuine Campy ceramic bearings, the ride only improved. Interestingly, the improvement was not near as noticeable as that between steel and ceramic cartridge bearings. The Boras also “feel” very aerodynamic - if such a thing can actually be perceived while riding. They slide through the air so smoothly and easily that the bottom half of your bike just seems to disappear. Even though they are light wheels at just over 1300g for the set, I don't think they accelerate near as well as the hyper-light Topolino VX 4.0s. In fact they ride far more like Mavic Carbone SLs even though they weigh over 400g less. While not perfectly balanced, there is no perceivable hop in the wheels at 25+ mph like you can get with other light-weight carbon tubular wheels.

With respect to comfort, I put them dead even with Mavic Ksyrium SLs. You can ride them back-to-back on the same route and impacts from expansion joints, broken pavement and the like are practically identical. The Boras are noticeably stiffer (in the saddle) than the last set of wheels I reviewed, the Topolino VX 4.0s, and they are also stiffer than riding Zipp 999s. If you're familiar with the ride of Mavic's Ksyriums, then you know that sharper impacts are the price you pay for what feels like bombproof strength underneath you. I know this is a feeling that many cyclists enjoy. The Boras feel as strong as Ksyriums even though they are made from carbon. Perhaps it's just a perception issue or because I've cracked several carbon tubular rims in the past, but there's a level of comfort provided by riding a wheel like the Ksyrium SL that most other wheels cannot duplicate. The Boras feel just as solid and as strong, but the fact that they are very expensive carbon wheels still makes you somewhat nervous riding them. Perhaps Campy should provide an insurance program similar to Reynolds and Mavic.
I'll give you a for instance. We have a regular group ride that takes us over a bridge with a particularly sharp expansion joint that must be an inch higher than the asphalt. When riding Mavic Ksyriums, even with 20mm wide ultra-light tires, I think nothing of it. But when riding carbon tubulars, I always bunny hop the expansion joint. When riding the Boras over the same bridge the other day, I didn't feel like I had to bunny hop the joint, but I did nonetheless because they cost $3,200.00.

I’ve ridden a number of carbon tubular wheelsets and the Bora Ultras are the most unique ride yet. I think they are very well suited for triathlons and time trials because they are strong, smooth and aerodynamic (in aerodynamic data I’ve seen on wheels, they are among the best). While they will perform well as road racing/training wheels, I don’t think they are the best wheels for every day use. Importantly, you can buy Bora Ultras to use with Shimano and Sram drive trains or you can simply replace the Campy freewheel with a Shimano/Sram compatible version and vice versa. You can also buy Campy ceramic bearings for a few hundred dollars extra and have your LBS install them (which is quite easy). Finally, the wheels come with a nice set of skewers, wheel bags and Campy carbon brake pads. I've used Campy pads in the past and they're fine, but my brakes all have SwissStop Yellow pads in them and they are superior. In fact, the Boras with SwissStop pads are the best braking carbon wheelset I've ridden. If you like having gear that most other cyclists/triathletes don’t have and you want a wheelset that is strong, smooth, truable, repairable, beautiful and fun to ride, then you are the perfect candidate for Bora Ultras.

Campy describes them as follows: Bora™ Ultra™ wheels are the wheels designed for speed par excellence. Perfect aerodynamics and maximum power transmission combined with extraordinary lightness make them the benchmark wheels for leading racing professionals. The 50-mm rims are made from structural carbon which imparts great lightness and stiffness. The hubs are made from structural carbon of variable thickness, have spherical surfaces, feature Record™-class components with aluminum axle and a single body for freewheel and pawl carrier. The rear hub features an oversize aluminum flange on the right side which enhances the features of the G3™ spoking. Radial spoking and G3™ spoking are used on the front and rear wheels respectively. Nominal weight is just 1,305g. Bora™ Ultra™ wheels are fitted with new quick releases with levers in cold-forged aluminum with two pivots for more balanced clamping.