Zone 3 Aeroflow tri suit

The aeroflo race suit by up and coming UK performance sports clothing company Zone 3 brings a host of new ideas to the Triathlon and Duathlon arena.

I have raced in this suit four times now, twice in duathlons and twice in triathlons, and to be honest I have nothing but praise for the aeroflo suit. I have always seen a traditional ‘tri suit’ as an unfortunate requirement of racing, the benefits of wearing a specific piece of clothing that allows me to swim, ride and run effectively without the need to get changed between disciplines outweighed by the negatives such as lack of movement, poor fit and, for those starting out, the image of wearing a lycra one piece but Zone3 have changed my mind with this offering.

Zone3 say the aeroflo is aimed at the full spectrum of athletes from beginners to elite athletes. This is a long shot in my opinion, great for beginners and those who are relatively competitive such as myself but elite athletes would undoubtedly lean toward the higher end ‘aeroforce’ suit so I would suggest this suit, priced at £84.99, should appeal to anyone at a sub-national level.

Initially, when putting the suit on, it feels a little tighter than my alternative race kit but when it had been on for 30 seconds or so the range of movement and lightweight fabric really became obvious.

The aeroflo race suit is made from Zone3’s own aeroflo fabric, designed to maximise performance capabilities in all three triathlon disciplines. Now, other suit manufacturers such as Orca, 2XU and Foor all claim the same thing but having raced in Orca and 2XU kit over the last four years I can categorically say that, albeit for just four races up to this point, the Zone3 suit delivers where the other brands have not.

The aeroflo fabric itself benefits from a range of exciting features over other offerings. It is extremely light, approximately 50% lighter than comparable suits at just 145grams per metre squared, and this is noticeable when wearing the suit. The suit also benefits from a coating of DuPont Teflon which gives the suit a unique feel and when splashed with water it beads and falls off in the same way that a high end cycling jacket would work, the benefits of this are obvious when in a triathlon or duathlon context, the fabric dries extremely quickly which is great in our lovely British summers and the Teflon fabric has delivered me to swim personal bests in both triathlons that I’ve worn it.

Fit is extremely comfortable, shoulder flexibility was maximised and throughout the ride I didn’t have to adjust my position at all. Thanks to the race specific, Italian pad insert and an innovative double layer of aeroflo fabric on the front and back of the crotch area which adds extra support and comfort, something that I have found to be lacking in other suits.

The Zone3 aeroflo suit has all the features of high end cycling clothing such as specific, thin silicon leg grippers to prevent suit movement when riding and running, a protective soft layer of fabric runs inside the suit to prevent discomfort caused by the zipper. Flat Lock stitching and smooth seams adorn this suit to reduce irritation and maximise hydrodynamics through the water. Time Trial regulations usually require shoulders to be covered but this suit could certainly be used for training purposes, lightweight, flexible and a good fit combined with extremely comfortable cycling additions could allow this suit to be used in more than just Duathlons and Triathlons.

I was asked by several competitors "who makes this suit", reason being that it is a much understated design. The Zone3 logos are fairly small and are front and rear, the largely black with red flashes don’t make the suit stand out in the crowd but then maybe that is a good thing? At £84.99 it isn’t a cheap entry level suit but you don’t get cheap entry level quality.

The Zone 3 is a very good piece of kit, it feels fast, it works well and it has given me top 3 age group positions in the races I have worn it in. If you have £85-£100 to spend on a suit that you don’t want to replace after one year then this has got to be a good option, it has the quality to take you from beginner to age grouper (amateur world championships level) at which point, based on this suit, stick with zone3 and try their aeroforce top end suit.

Verdict

A very good value suit, if you dont mind not following the masses to the 2XU and ORCA kit then this Zone3 suit will do everything you need. The quality of manufacture seems to be top notch and the fit is better than anything Ive tried from the other brands, if you are going to base a decision on wether or not this suit will make you faster, well it did for me. Somthing drastic will have to happen to make me switch back to my 2XU kit.