I'm near least-qualified to comment on swimming in this forum, but my understanding is the slower you are, the more you're going to benefit from a wetsuit.

Tip i had someone share early on was to cut the bottom part of the legs off-- up to the mid calf (there's usually a seam there... don't go above it) and it aids tremendously in getting the wetsuit off quickly. I can get out of my wetsuit legs in under 10 seconds. Which, i definitely save more than 10 seconds from wearing it in the swim.

You should be able to get it unzipped and removed down to your waist while running into T1. From there, it's just practicing the little wetsuit dance to remove it quickly once at the rack.

There is no way that I would wear a wetsuit for 400 meters.

I was never the strongest swimmer, but I do okay. My take is this: Yes, I lose some time taking the wetsuit off, but I'm faster on the bike right away because I'm not as cold coming out of the water. YMMV.

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It's been a long time and honestly I'm goofing off at work so I can't go back and check my data now, so don't take these exact numbers as fact... But I once measured myself in the pool wetsuit vs no wet suit and timed my takeoff time (which is VERY bad for me) and even a poor transitioned like me, in a short swim like 400yards I was still like 30 seconds slower without the wetsuit.

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I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I wore mine in a sprint Saturday. Water was 65° F. There were a bunch of people without wetsuits, but I think most had them. My general vote is always a wetsuit. In most cases, I think they may you about 10 seconds/100 faster. So, a wetsuit will save you 40 to 60 seconds in a typical sprint, and wetsuit removal (for me) is under 30 seconds. Maybe 20 seconds.

I have heavy legs and poor swim fitness. There is little doubt that I would be faster through end of T1 if I wore a wetsuit. I'm pretty fast to get it off because it's cheap (so I don't care about ripping it off aggressively), slightly too large, and I use baby oil at ankles and wrists. T1 time can be 30-40 seconds with wetsuit, and probably only 10 seconds faster without. I probably save close to 10s per 100m with wetsuit.

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Sleeveless might be a bit quicker to get off than full sleeved.

Absolutely to a wetsuit in a sprint. The Brownlee brothers where them - why wouldn't you?

And that's been my experience (as a member of the slow swimmers club).

I've done the same race that starts with a 500m swim at least a dozen times. The water temperature is always wet suit legal, but normally in the low 70's. I've done it both ways. No wetsuit takes me about 10 minutes for the swim. Wetsuit takes me about 9 minutes for the swim. I'm about 30 seconds slower in T-1 with the wetsuit. Net gain of 30 seconds if I wear the wetsuit.

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"Human existence is based upon two pillars: Compassion and knowledge. Compassion without knowledge is ineffective; Knowledge without compassion is inhuman." Victor Weisskopf.

Yes, wear a wetsuit for a 400m sprint. There is a sprint series in my area with a 400m swim and all of the top contenders wear wetsuits (even though the water is warm enough to not need them).

A good wetsuit is worth ~10s/100m over a trisuit for a MOP swimmer....so 40s even for this short a swim. Figure 15-20s to remove the suit (you pull it down to your torso while running to T1, so it's just getting the legs off) and you are still 20+ sec. to the good.

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Every year on the super sprint at Triple T I've worn a wetsuit and have left T1 earlier than people that didn't wear a wetsuit and who normally swim faster than me.

That swim is normally between 200 and 300 meters.

So yes, I'd wear it and I'm a 1:30/hundred swimmer in the pool

As Chopper would say, HTFU. 60 degree water isn’t cold. You’ll be in it for 6 minutes. People swim cram SF to Alcatraz in colder water every day. You can survive in 40 degree water for at least 3-5x that long. Do a proper dry land warm up and swim hard. You’ll be fine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yla0WyORsYM

I would wear a wetsuit if the water was in the low 60s. It takes me < 10 sec to get out of my wetsuit and that is worth the cost of keeping my core and muscles warm, and the additional buoyancy it would provide (which probably makes up for the 10 sec in time, just in itself)

I Sure Would! I wear a Synergy two piece. I have the top off in seconds, as I’m exiting the water, and the bottom slips off in a second or two. The time to use it, is neglegable.

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Athlinks / Strava

As a non-flexible fatty who can't afford a DeSoto I'd like to know how do you like that two piece? I've had my eye on it and I need a wetsuit.

1) too fat to fit into mine (damn you COVID)
2) Even if I did this thing is like 6 years old and it could probably be replaced anyway.

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I still lapped everyone on the couch!

I did a sprint in the spring in Iowa once that was so cold that several people also kept the wetsuit on for the bike! I didn’t see anyone running in a wetsuit so they took them off in T2.

I'll go ahead and echo what others have said, and say as long as a race is wetsuit-legal, I'll be wearing a wetsuit. Not so much to keep warm, but for the buoyancy / swim speed benefit. I know for certain I am a faster swimmer with a wetsuit than without, so I'm taking that extra speed if I'm allowed. If the swim is longer than 200 yards, it's pretty much guaranteed the amount of time I save on the swim is greater than the few extra seconds it takes in transition to take the wetsuit off.

If you're worried your wetsuit removal time will negate your swim time gains, practice taking your wetsuit off quickly...you can get faster! :)

Absolutely love it. It gave me the opportunity to get a medium bottom and large top for a good fit. A friend has a Desoto, and it’s got some thicker panels in places, but overall very similar. The Desoto is a bib bottom, and the Synergy is just a simple pull on bottom (like longy floaty pants. I also have the long sleeve top and vest top, so I have some options on race day. I had them for 3 years now, and I don’t think I could ever go back to a one piece. The Synergy 2 piece is one of the best sleepers in the tri world.

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Athlinks / Strava

Weigh the pros and cons and do the math. Swim some repeat 100's or 200's in the wetsuit and then finish the second half of the set without the wetsuit. Now you know how much time it saves you per 100. Time yourself taking it off and you know how much time it will cost you in transition. Finally, assess the benefits of wearing it (added heat, confidence in the water, etc) vs the negatives (restricted arm motion, feeling claustraphopic, needing to take it off efficiently) and make the decision.

I have used buoyancy shorts in races under 800 meters.
Most of the benefits of a wetsuit and much faster to remove.

How many seconds/100 meters faster are you with a wetsuit?

How many seconds does it take for your to take it off?

There is your answer

Agreed-these are the only two questions you need to answer and then do a little math ;)