Before IM Canada in Whistler I was contemplating cutting up an old wetsuit and rigging together a neoprene top that could go under a full length lycra top to put on in T1. Instead I settled for the full length top with three garbage bags inside, toque for inside my helmet, rubber gloves, calf sleeves to act as tights. I barely made it through shaking uncontrollably on the verge of hypothermia and a DNF for 5.5 hours out of my very slow 5:56 survival ride.

At my size and body composition, i have come to the conclusion that the only material that can keep me funtioning in cold rain (it was 9C and heavy rain, many DNF's, and I think the rain was super chilled from higher elevations lower than that) is neoprene.

I am thinking that either a neoprene vest (front and most of the back with neoprene arm warmers, or even something like a Desoto top in 2 mm neoprene, but with a zipper in the front so I can get it on in T2. I think the former option might work better....put the vest on, and then start riding and wait for arms to dry up with the neoprene arm warmers on the aerobars and then unroll them onto the arms.

Not quite Matty Reed "do the entire ride with a westuit on" but not far off. I think this is the only way I can get by and actually race in brutally cold rain. Or just pack it in and only sign up for races in Texas, Taiwan and Malaysia.