# Chapter 5: Equipment & Technology

Triathlon · Chapter 5: Equipment & Technology · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/triathlon/interesting-facts/chapter-5-equipment-technology/)

The kit and the companies behind it: the Timex Ironman, the first racesuits and GPS watches, HOKA and On, Cervélo and Zipp, the timing chip, wetsuits and smart goggles, energy drinks, bars and gels, and indoor trainers.

## 5.51 The Ironman Watch

How a Timex sports watch took the Ironman name.

### Test 1: A watch and a name

- It sold so well that the Ironman organisers got in touch. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- A Timex vice president said Timex Triathlon was so successful that Ironman reached out. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- The deal gave Timex the right to use the word Ironman on its product. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- It showed there was a market among runners and triathletes. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- Runner Mary Decker Slaney is also named in some accounts. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- His team worked with runners on what athletes needed. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- The idea dates from the mid-1980s. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- 1984, then the deal, then 1986. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- The trip proved the idea before the Ironman deal. (Source: Triathlete, 'The (inexplicably tri-intertwined) history of the Timex Ironman watch')
- The model is still sold as the Ironman 8-Lap. (Source: Timex Japan, 'Ironman 8-Lap OG' (timexjapan.com); Triathlete)

## 5.52 Suits and GPS

The first racesuits sewn in Kona and an early GPS watch for all three sports.

### Test 1: What triathletes wear

- She noticed that the Ironman transition area was used more like a changing room. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))
- Run singlets were also attached to bike shorts before one- and two-piece suits followed. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))
- Ali'i Drive is the famous seafront street of Kailua-Kona. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))
- The company had moved from Hawaii to California in 1996. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))
- It was also Garmin's first waterproof multisport GPS watch. (Source: DC Rainmaker, 'Garmin Forerunner 310XT in-depth review' (2009); Garmin blog, 'Garmin gives fitness a facelift with Forerunner 310XT')
- Reviewers noted the ANT+ signal was too weak to pass through water. (Source: DC Rainmaker, 'Garmin Forerunner 310XT in-depth review' (2009); Garmin blog, 'Garmin gives fitness a facelift with Forerunner 310XT')
- It also added a barometric altimeter. (Source: DC Rainmaker, 'Garmin Forerunner 310XT in-depth review' (2009); Garmin blog, 'Garmin gives fitness a facelift with Forerunner 310XT')
- 1983, 1985, 1996 and 2008. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))
- The 310XT replaced the 305 in 2009; the 910XT followed in 2011. (Source: DC Rainmaker, 'Garmin Forerunner 310XT in-depth review' (2009); Garmin blog, 'Garmin gives fitness a facelift with Forerunner 310XT')
- The company that grew from them, Zoot, opened its first shop there two years later. (Source: Zoot Sports, 'Zoot story' and 'About Zoot Sports' (zootsports.com))

## 5.53 HOKA

A French mountain brand with a Māori name and a thick midsole.

### Test 1: HOKA's story

- Its founders, Nico Mermoud, Jean-Luc Diard and Christophe Aubonnet, started near Chamonix. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- They first thought of a downhill-only overshoe. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- The founders admired New Zealand's adventure-racing heritage. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- The first shoes reached the US market in 2010. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- He was also a physical therapist and co-owned the Boulder store. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- The brand is now based in California and keeps an office in Annecy. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- Diard had begun work on a plated racer in 2014. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- 2009, 2010, 2013, 2018 and 2021. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- 2009-10, 2015, 2018 and 2019. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))
- Outside also names mountain-bike wheels and tennis rackets. (Source: Outside, 'Ten Things You Didn't Know About Hoka' (outsideonline.com))

## 5.54 On

A Swiss shoe that began with a garden hose and an Ironman champion's Achilles.

### Test 1: On's story

- The first On shoes were in shops the same year. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- The idea grew into the brand's cushioning system. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- His friend from ETH Zurich came up with the fix. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- It pairs a cushioned landing with an explosive take-off. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- Its shoes are now sold in more than 50 countries. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- On has since moved into lifestyle shoes and clothing as well. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- WIPO calls them a trio of friends, among them an Ironman champion. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- Before 2010, 2010, 2017, 2019 and 2021. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- 3, 12, more than 50 and about three million. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))
- The Refugee Team wore On at the 2017 World Athletics Championships. (Source: World Intellectual Property Organization, 'Designing for High Performance and Style - On Running Shoes' (wipo.int))

## 5.55 Cervélo

Two engineers, an aero time-trial bike and a Tour de France win.

### Test 1: Cervélo's story

- Traditional bike makers had turned down its founders' time-trial design. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- They were post-graduate engineers there. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- The Italian professional loved it. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- They returned to road bikes later with that aero expertise. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- The aluminium tubes were extruded to NACA-derived profiles, not flattened from round tube. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- The team was led by Bjarne Riis. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- A year later Cervélo launched its own team. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- 1986, 1995, 2003, 2008 and 2009. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- 1995, 2002, 2005 and 2022. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))
- Carbon was the brand's preferred material from the start. (Source: BikeRadar, 'Icons of Cycling: how the Cervélo Soloist defined aero bikes' (bikeradar.com))

## 5.56 The Timing Chip

From volunteers with stopwatches to chips, bib tags and live tracking.

### Test 1: Chip timing

- MYLAPS calls the town the chip's birthplace. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- They wanted fast, accurate results with individual start and split times. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- Receivers at the start and finish read it electromagnetically. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- Later chips were black, then encrypted white ones owned by the timers. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- It was the only system then able to register and send out split times automatically. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- AMB was a Dutch timing company. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- The disposable tag replaced the shoe chip at mass events. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- 1993, 1996, 2008, 2010 and 2015. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- Mass-event timing went from hand-held watches to live data in about two decades. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))
- MYLAPS pictures the system in use at the Frankfurt Marathon in 1994. (Source: MYLAPS, 'The History of Running Timing' (2023) and 'ChampionChip celebrates 25th anniversary' (2019) (mylaps.com))

## 5.57 Zipp

A race-car engineer's disc wheels, from Kona in 1990 to whale-fin rims.

### Test 1: Zipp's story

- He registered the Zipp name after looking at bicycle disc wheels. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- It was dropped once Zipp found faster designs. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- Zipp's tri-spoke and 440 deep-section wheel followed as early aero favourites. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- The 2001 and 3001 framesets were later discontinued but stayed sought after. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- Andy Ording had owned Zipp Speed Weaponry since 1999. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- SRAM calls it the first major cycling product designed using biomimicry. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- It moved into a factory on Main Street there in 1999. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- 1988, 1990, 2007, 2010 and 2016. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))
- Sargent wanted to build what Zipp called 'Speed Weapons'. (Source: SRAM, 'Zipp History' timeline (sram.com))

## 5.58 Swim Tech

A Kiwi wetsuit maker and goggles with a display inside the lens.

### Test 1: Wetsuits and smart goggles

- He had been a New Zealand age-group champion. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- He started making suits of his own. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- It was run from his parents' house in Auckland. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- He sold them at swim meets and triathlons. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- FORM calls them the world's first augmented reality swim goggles. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- He had swum competitively for 14 years. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- He incorporated FORM in 2016. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- The early 1990s, 2004, 2015 and 2019. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- Earlier swim goggle plans were dropped because the parts were too big. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')
- FORM Athletica is based in British Columbia. (Source: Orca company history as told by its retailers and sponsors; FORM, 'Our Story' (formswim.com); ASME, 'AR Goggles for Swimmers')

## 5.59 Fuel in a Packet

Where the drink, the bar and the gel in every race bag came from.

### Test 1: Energy drinks, bars and gels

- The name refers to the university's teams, the Gators. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- An assistant coach asked Dr Robert Cade about the players' dehydration. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- Stokely-Van Camp later produced it for sale. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- They worked out the recipe in their Berkeley kitchen and launched in 1986. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- The company had grown to about $150 million in yearly sales. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- Her stomach struggled with bars in longer and longer trail races. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- He decided he could not face another bar; the Clif Bar is named after his father, Clifford. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- 1965, 1986, about 1992 and 1993. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- The University of Florida had turned down Cade's offer of the patent rights. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')
- PowerBar had started in Berkeley too. (Source: Lemelson-MIT, 'Robert Cade'; Reference for Business, 'PowerBar Inc.'; GU Energy Labs, 'About'; Clif Bar & Company, 'The Clif Bar Story')

## 5.60 Indoor Riding

From the CompuTrainer to smart trainers and virtual worlds.

### Test 1: Indoor trainers

- It could demand a set power from the rider whatever the cadence. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- The company had earlier made a wind trainer and later the Velotron ergometer. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- Bicycle Retailer reported stiff price competition from trainers made in China. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- Its founder was Chip Hawkins. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- Wahoo's first product was a key that shared training data from fitness sensors. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- Zwift was co-founded in California in 2014 by four people. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- The beta opened on 30 September 2014. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- 1986, 2009, 2013, 2014 and 2017. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- 3 (London, New York and San Francisco), 4, 1,000 and about 13,000. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))
- Wahoo's chief executive said it turned a gadget company into a cycling company. (Source: Bicycle Retailer (2017, 2018); Wahoo Fitness, 'About us' (wahoofitness.com); Zwift, 'CEO Eric Min shares his story' (zwift.com))

Sources: Primary/official sources only, no Wikipedia citations: company histories (SRAM, MYLAPS, FORM, Wahoo, Zwift, Clif Bar, GU), WIPO, Lemelson-MIT, Outside, BikeRadar, Bicycle Retailer, Timex, Zoot, Garmin.

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