Hunt Wheels is the wheel provider to the Team Coop-Hitec Products UCI Continental women’s team, which is based in Stavanger, Norway. The team has a wildcard invitation to the 2023 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, which starts in Clermont Ferrand next Sunday, the day the men’s Tour ends.
To celebrate the team’s inclusion in the women’s Tour, Hunt is producing a special edition of its Aerodynamicist Carbon Disc wheelset with custom graphics commemorating the team's selection. The graphics display the start and finish towns for each of the eight stages of the race as well as the stage length across the wheel's carbon fibre rim.
Alongside the team, you can own a new set of the wheels, which will be available for sale at the start of the Tour de France Femmes on 23 July.
Another ten pairs of wheelsets that will have been ridden during the race and hand signed by the team will also be available to purchase after the Tour ends in Pau on the 30th of July. Hunt says that all proceeds from the sale of these special Tour-ridden wheels will be given back to the team, to allow it to fund further rider development and racing.
Team Coop-Hitec Products has a successful record of developing women’s cycling talent, with Lidl-Trek’s Elisa Longo Borghini and retired riders Kirsten Wild and Lisa Brennauer all having ridden for the team in the past. The team also signed former Olympic MTB Champion, Jenny Rissveds recently.
The team had been without a wheel sponsor for a few seasons before Hunt stepped in at the start of 2022. Crediting Hunt’s partnership with reinvigorating its racing, thanks to the ultra-wide 29mm external, 20mm internal, and 44mm deep Aerodynamicist wheels.
Karl Lima, Team Manager of Team COOP-Hitec Products, added: “This year’s invitation to the Tour de France Femmes was a huge positive injection for the team. It confirms our progress in the last 2 seasons, and it’s a reward for us missing out marginally on an invitation in 2022. We are keen to show that the invitation/participation is not the goal, but a successful performance in the race is the main aim!"
"There is no doubt that the arrival of Hunt Wheels as a sponsor last year was our missing part in the puzzle, their dedication, service and quality have amazed us in our team. We have gone 2-3 seasons without a proper wheel sponsor and it was a bit like playing football in the premier league on slippers. The big change in results from 2021 to 2022 speaks volumes. We are extremely grateful to Hunt Wheels so far!” she said.
Despite the rim’s dimensions, the claimed wheelset weight is just 1446g, thanks to a patented construction technique which bonds a lower-density polymer to the inside of the structural carbon matrix. The Team Edition wheels include CeramicSpeed low-friction ceramic bearings and there’s a 7.5 degree engagement freehub.
The wheels use stainless steel Pillar XTRA triple-butted, aero spokes. Whilst the rims are made using Toray T700/T800 carbon fibre.
If you want to get your hands on the special edition Team Edition Hunt 44 Aerodynamicist Carbon Disc wheelset, it’s available to purchase on Hunt’s site, priced at £1249, $1549 or €1549.
