New Zealand elite triathlete Kyle Smith has a new partnership with HUUB as he takes on his first full distance event, IRONMAN New Zealand, in Taupo on March 27th.
The athlete, who has already been wearing and racing HUUB wetsuits and trisuits for the last two years thanks to support from HUUB’s New Zealand distributor, Teamline, has won his first five 70.3 races in a row, all in course record times. He believes there’s more speed to be found and is determined to continually improve, and reached out to HUUB to assist in his quest to go even faster.
HUUB CEO Dean Jackson connected Kyle with Dan Bigham, the leading aerodynamicist and product design engineer and founder of Wattshop, to help find an extra level of speed.
From their first consultation, with only weeks to IRONMAN New Zealand, initial changes made have been small but significant. Dan advised Kyle on several changes he could make pre-race including tyre selection, which on its own could result in a potential saving of up to 4 minutes over the full distance event.
Further changes included drivetrain efficiency improvements and even switching to Wattshop Anemoi aero extensions on his bars, an upgrade that pro-tour cycling teams have recently made, and the use of HUUB’s Aero Calf Sleeve.
Following this weekend’s event, Kyle and his coach Tim Brazier will be investigating other savings and will test wheel options, saddle, stack height, arm rest width, extension angle and more – with Kyle looking to test in greater detail on a track or in the wind tunnel.
Dan Bigham, founder of Wattshop and a HUUB Fellowship of Speed team member, said “With his first full distance race so close, we have kept changes to the minimum but looking for the best quick wins Kyle can make including using the Wattshop Anemoi aero extensions.
“After the race, I can’t wait to help Kyle make further improvements in the coming months, as he pushes for even more speed.”
Dean Jackson, HUUB owner and CEO, said “We’ve been following Kyle’s development the last couple of years, and he is a phenomenal athlete and great HUUB ambassador.
“He is incredibly driven and passionate about pushing himself faster and I am glad that HUUB and the Fellowship of Speed have been able to make some meaningful performance improvements already. We can’t wait to see just how fast and successful he can be over the coming years.”
After this weekend’s IRONMAN New Zealand, Kyle will be aiming for success at the IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship, Challenge Family events, PTO Championships, XTERRA World Championships and, subject to qualification, the IRONMAN World Championship.
Kyle Smith said “Working with Dean and the HUUB team and the support from Dan at Wattshop means so much and I can’t wait to put the learnings into practice. I’m excited to see how fast I can go in the coming months.
“I am really grateful to Lindsay at Teamline, HUUB’s New Zealand Distributor for his support and introducing me. Hopefully, I can make everyone proud tomorrow.”
Kyle is supported in 2021 by HUUB, Teamline, Pro Create, Floe Bottle and Winger Group automotive.
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