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Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit
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Given the aero claims of the best cycling skin suits (and the fact the chamois pad will be better than a Tri one) I am wondering what the time delta is between the aero gains and having to put on in T1 and off in T2
Has there been any research or field tests on it?
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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bespoke wrote:
Given the aero claims of the best cycling skin suits (and the fact the chamois pad will be better than a Tri one) I am wondering what the time delta is between the aero gains and having to put on in T1 and off in T2
Has there been any research or field tests on it?

My Costello BP full sleeve saved about 70 grams (for a rough guess 7watts) over my normal sugoi two piece sleeveless. I decided to race it (BP normalsleeve) in an IM...... Long story short don't do it, I lost about 4min in t1 and T2.

Maurice
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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I did it in Canada in 2015 with a BP Castelli suit, wore under a wetsuit and took it off in T2. Think it was worth it. No way you could put it on in T1, even the sleeves. I found the sleeves to not interfere with swimming stroke. Taking it off in T2 is 20 sec at most, and dry, light running clothes are nice.

All that said, very few pros do it.
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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Why would you put it on in T1, assuming it's a wetsuit legal race that is?

Swim. Overbike. Walk.
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [GrimOopNorth] [ In reply to ]
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Being soft; the joy of a dry Cycling outfit, with lots of Chamois creme

I am sure this is not the quickest way; lots of smart pros (Rapp?) would have done it if it was efficient.
Just curious as to how much slower it actually is
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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Well... first up I'd get a shower then figure out long it'd take to get into a TT suit.

I find it hard enough to put a tri top on when wet, let alone a full suit!

Swim. Overbike. Walk.
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [GrimOopNorth] [ In reply to ]
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GrimOopNorth wrote:
Well... first up I'd get a shower then figure out long it'd take to get into a TT suit.

I find it hard enough to put a tri top on when wet, let alone a full suit!

This. If you can get it on quickly, probably worth it. As far as the poster who said they lost 4 minutes in T2, I don't think it should take more than about 60 seconds to take off a skin suit and put on a pair of shorts. Unless you are a 9:30 IM thinking you need every minute for a Kona spot, there is no reason to sweat a few extra minutes in transition.

In my one IM, I wore a speedo under my wetsuit and changed into regular bike shorts for the ride. Likewise I put on regular running shorts for the run. In a nominally 10-12 hour race I think it is worth spending 5 minutes to put on the optimal and most comfortable clothing. At least for me, just the freshening up of changing clothes was a nice way to make the race a little more pleasant.
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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I've contemplated this before. If you could get it on and off in <60 seconds in both T1 and T2 it would probably be worth it. If you're not on the edge of KQ trying to shave every possible second I'd argue that, for most age groupers, it would be beneficial to let your heart rate come down while you put it on plus there's the benefit of sun protection.
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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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bespoke wrote:
Given the aero claims of the best cycling skin suits (and the fact the chamois pad will be better than a Tri one) I am wondering what the time delta is between the aero gains and having to put on in T1 and off in T2
Has there been any research or field tests on it?

I tested my Castelli Body Paint suit in the wind tunnel and it was the same or slower (I did a few repeat runs) than my LG suit. Given how easy the LG is to put on, and how hard the BP is to put on, it's a no brainer for me to not wear the BP in a tri. And I wouldn't be able to swim with the sleeves on either, not nearly enough motion. I did, however, wear the BP on day 2 of Ultraman Florida because it's significantly more comfortable (and you don't swim first on day 2, it's just a bike ride)

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Re: Ironman leg in a full on cycling skin suit [bespoke] [ In reply to ]
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I did WF long course one year in a skinsuit. Basically, as long as you can swim comfortably with it under your wetsuit I think you'd be better off.

I'm guessing a lot of pros don't do it because they are racing, not time trialing. The cost of missing the pack on the bike puts a premium on not losing time in transition. For many pros it's all about keeping in contact.

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
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