Pro Triathlete Braden Currie Joins Felt Bicycles For 2021 & Beyond

January 07, 2021

We’re thrilled to announce that professional triathlete Braden Currie will partner with Felt Bicycles for the next three racing seasons. Currie, who hails from New Zealand, has become a regular presence near the front of many a race in global triathlon. He’s won multiple titles at the Ironman Asia-Pacific Championships and has scored a 7th place finish at the most recent Ironman World Championship event in 2019.

“Beyond his recent successes in racing and his stellar potential for many more wins in the future, Braden embodies all of the qualities that we ourselves strive for,” says Jake Duehring, Felt’s director of sports marketing. “Braden comes from humble beginnings and has a commitment to hard work and self-betterment. He’s an inspirational figure who’s competed in multiple disciplines, is always seeking a new challenge, and is keen on demonstrating to others the value of tenacity.” 

"It’s been really humbling working with Felt Bicycles,” says Currie. “I have their one-hundred-percent commitment to my performance, and they want to see the best from me whether that’s development and progression or seeing me put on my best performance at Kona. They are incredibly proactive in doing as much as they can for me, and that’s a really exciting path to be on with a company in the peak period of your career. I’ve been getting really comfortable on the new bike and I’ve found it to be incredibly intuitive. It tolerates wind really well, and it gives me a lot more ability to stay aero.”

Braden Currie will kick off his new partnership with Felt Bicycles aboard the Felt IA, a bike that has won the Ironman World Championships on six occasions and also holds the bike course record in the pro women’s division at triathlon’s most prestigious event. Get to know Braden and learn about his ambitious goals and uniquely competitive mindset in the interview below.

FELT: How did 2020 go for you? How did you adjust your racing goals in light of the global pandemic?

Braden: The 2020 season definitely threw some curveballs my way, like it did for everyone. Racing was put on the back burner for the majority of the year, so my focus became achieving short-term goals and the smaller aspects of racing that I could control. I’m looking forward to being able to race a bit more this summer.

FELT: What are your goals in 2021?

Braden: The main goal is to be at Kona and finish on the podium, and be at the front of the race. My focus now is to do everything that I need to do in preparation for that, including achieving a few good race results in the lead-up to fire me up and get me ready to race.

FELT: Tell us about your impression of Felt and why did you decide to align yourself with us?

Braden: Felt has always been a brand that I’ve admired because of their positive involvement in the sport. They have always been a company that has been very passionate, and has performed well at the top of the sport. It’s always been amazing to watch people like Mirinda Carfrae and Daniela Ryf being so dominant in the sport over the years on Felt bikes. It’s cool to be able to join the team and it’s been an amazing experience so far—everyone has been really supportive and I’m really looking forward to the years to come.

FELT: You’re a high achiever, somebody who wants to be the best, and you’re talented across a lot of different elements of the sport. You also have really strong family values, and you’re known for holding a good balance in life. Do you believe that helps you succeed?

Braden: Yes. Keeping a good balance between family, racing, and general life is really key. Having experiences that I enjoy and am passionate about outside of racing allows me to focus on my training and racing when I need to. No matter how good or bad the training day is, I’ve got so many good things to get excited about outside of it, and this helps keep me in a really motivated and positive frame of mind. For example, if it’s a tough day of training, I think about getting home to hang out with my kids and I love that so much that it seems to flow into my training and gives me more motivation to push through. Or maybe I’ve got a boys’ trip coming up that I’m stoked on, and that seems to sustain my mental game during training, having that reward at the end.

FELT: Does it give you your spark when you’re actually racing, to draw on all the good things in your life?

Braden: Yes, it does. I like being different in that way so I don’t feel like a robot and I’m not monotonous. It’s an awesome tool to have when I’m racing as it allows me to be quite dynamic and, I guess, unpredictable in a lot of ways. People never really know how I’m going to respond and that definitely helps me perform better.

FELT: Do your past racing experiences help fuel you?

Braden: The fact I’ve had some pretty perfect moments across different elements of different races and being able to link them together and pull off the ultimate race definitely gives me the belief that if I can put them all together again.

FELT: From the past to the present to the future, and having that break in between, what are the most important elements now moving forward?

Braden: It’s about having the time, ability, equipment, technology, and training locations to be able to perform in the way that I want to perform.

FELT: Are there any fundamental philosophies that you focus on?

Braden: Yes, being able to apply consistency and focus in a simplistic way helps tick the boxes when it comes to training and racing.

FELT: Coming from such a diverse background of endurance sport, did you ever think you’d be such a committed athlete to one pursuit?

Braden: Honestly, no. I’ve always enjoyed the diversity within my racing and I love having that ability to switch styles. But I’ve learned that to be able to perform at Kona, your focus has to be purely on the Ironman discipline.

FELT: Do your children help drive your desire for success?

Braden: Much of my drive to succeed is based around that feeling of success and being able to achieve one of the ultimate goals in front of the kids. This would be the ultimate feeling of success.

FELT: We’ve heard people describe you as someone who just doesn’t give up. Where does that come from?

Braden: I really enjoy the grittiness of racing. That fight is something that drives me to race the most. It’s those moments of extreme pain that define us, when it comes down to gritting our teeth and really doing the work when it hurts. I don’t know where it comes from but it’s what I enjoy.

FELT: Do you feel like you need support behind you to achieve the ultimate goals in your career?

Braden: Yes, I think in the last few years I’ve realized more than ever that this sport has got bigger than just me and that I can’t tolerate the training and the balance of life around it without having partners and the support of family to be able to build a platform that I can perform my best off of. This is one hundred percent one of the keys to success.

FELT: What do you think makes you different from other athletes?

Braden: I just want to race. I don’t really see myself as any different. I enjoy chasing the goal and that feeling of success, and I enjoy the physical challenge that is needed to be able to do that.

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