The Sub-9's highlights so far include a pair of Ironman 70.3 World Championships, a Tour yellow jersey, some of the fastest Iron-distance bike splits ever recorded. We expected nothing less from the ultimate aerodynamic breakthrough.

In the center of the aero "sweet spot" – a wind angle of 12 to 18 degrees – the Zipp Sub-9 was the first wheel ever to produce forward lift, when paired with our 21mm Tangente tire. To achieve this feat, we added a toroidal bulge similar to our spoked rims around the edge of the disc to control airflow at the wheel’s leading and trailing edges. In addition to improving aero performance, the bulge’s vertical compliance keeps the Sub-9 glued to the road when cornering and yields a comfortable ride, hour after hour. This makes it the ideal choice for long-course triathletes to bounce out of T2 with fresh legs after a blistering bike split.

For decades, an obsession with aerodynamics has influenced everything from wheels to water bottles. But with the Sub-9 disc, we moved from minimizing drag to maximizing propulsion.

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