If the neoprene is the same thickness and the fit is similar you would likely see zero difference in your swim results.

---

Favorite Gear: Dimond | Cadex | Desoto Sport | Hoka One One

Wetsuits fit very differently across the price range. The fastest suit will be the one that fits you best which isn't something you can work out from the price. In general very good swimmers and very slim athletes need expensive suits to get the fit right. As an athletes gets larger, less flexible and their swim form gets worse the lower end suits will work better. This is because the top end athlete needs a suit that is flexible and is significantly smaller relative to height than a suit made for the average person. Such a suit requires a lot of different pieces of rubber and won't sell in high volumes. Alternatively the fastest suit for the average triathlete will be the one with maximum buoyancy which are less complex to make and sell in higher numbers.

My advice is start with a pull buoy. If it make you faster stick to the cheap suits because you need the buoyancy. If your body position is good enough that losing the ability to kick offsets the extra floatation then you need to think more about the more expensive offerings. I enough triathletes literally dragging ass in the pool to know that ultra flexible wetsuits are not always a recipe for free speed.

Probably right, but the thing I find frustrating while shopping around, is that the suits that tend to have the most buoyancy in the trunk and legs, tend to come with thicker neoprene in the shoulder area. I want max float but with a 1mm or less shoulder like in the orca predator or deboer wetsuits. I guess they figure us 'sinkers' don't want freedom in the shoulders.

Just buy a few models from companies who allow testing and find out for yourself

No one is going to be able to tell you

I tested 4 suits and wanted the lower priced one to be faster

Unfortunately After a week of testing the Maverick X was fastest. So I returned the others and kept that one

I'm in Canada, no easy or free shipping/returns to and from the US, like within the US. High shipping rates, import taxes, etc. And no places in Canada that really stock multiple wetsuits and allow you to try and return.

Fit matters more.

---

___________________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/...eoesophageal_fistula
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_palsy
2020 National Masters Champion - M40-44 - 400m IM
Canadian Record Holder 35-39M & 40-44M - 200 m Butterfly (LCM)

Roka makes great suits but so do other companies. Now that FINA allows wetsuits in elite open water when the water is under 20C you see a lot of Arena suits in those races. I have their Carbon suit... the core compression is fantastic and based on their Carbon Pro tech suits.

---

___________________________________________
http://en.wikipedia.org/...eoesophageal_fistula
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_palsy
2020 National Masters Champion - M40-44 - 400m IM
Canadian Record Holder 35-39M & 40-44M - 200 m Butterfly (LCM)

I just got a ROKA Maverick X.
Last month, training for a race-
- swam 1650 in the pool without the wet suit in 22:21
- 2 days later did it with the ROKA in 20:38, my PR.
That is a remarkable difference. The suit feels great and fits me well. It really works well with a long reach stroke.
That weekend I raced Morro Bay tri and was 6th out of the water overall men's group (unfortunately the course was short so hard to make an apples-apples comparison).

My previous wet suit is the Blue Seventy Reaction; have gone 21:57 and 21:59 in Oly races. But I think the ROKA fits better and puts less strain on the shoulders.
The Blue Seventy is a bit warmer, though.

BTW, ROKA's are on sale for 50% off right now.

Here's my take on swimsuits. Roka makes a good suit because they have more flexibility in the shoulders, but so do a lot of other brands. But fit makes a huge difference.

But all boils down to this. I swam against a guy who's zipper broke before the race. He Velcro'd the top and swam with it. I had a Maverick Pro wetsuit. He beat me by a 1:30. Why? Cause he's a faster swimmer than me. All the suits make you faster, but you're still not beating a faster swimmer out of the water.

just my 2 cents.

Very valid!

My 2 cents: I did some self testing (not super accurate but its best I could do). I swam on a set outdoor course thats always 9:30-12 min (depending how hard I push it and wetsuit vs no wetsuit); its also is marked with buoys. Wore a (2 year old) Blue Seventy Helix vs a (Brand new) Roka Mav X. The blue seventy felt like it had more flexibility in shoulders and overall feels like I can move around a little more in it. I did 3 swims in each suit every time the Roka won by 15-20 seconds. By far not a exact science and I still feel like I had better shoulder movement with less shoulder fatigue in the BS, but I swim in a Roka Mav X now. If I had a good deal on a new Helix I would still consider going back to it.

The better swimmer will almost always swim faster though. (Almost)

---

2024: Bevoman, Galveston, Alcatraz, Marble Falls, Santa Cruz

First, I really can't comment on how my Roka Maverick compares with other high end wetsuits as it's the only high end one I've had. I can, however compare it with the run of the mill Xterra suit I previously used.

I'm definitely faster with a pullbuoy. I'm also definitely faster with my new Roka than the Xterra, despite the thick neoprene of the Xterra. While I'm swimming better than ever this year (at age 66!), in my one race without the suit, using a swimskin, my swim results were mediocre and failed to demonstrate any improvement over previous year's non-wetsuit swims. The two races with the Roka were my best placings in the swim in the 8 years I've been doing triathlon.

I don't doubt that the difference between other high end suits is marginal, but I do question the advice to stick to cheap suits for those helped by a pull buoy. Only one data point, but there it is anyway.

I used a orca sonar for years, very reliable, which was good for training and racing (the first yrs).
Got a Maverick pro (1) yrs ago which I only use for racing, it’s the fastest suit I swam so far (tried zoot, profiles and other orca).
It gives you lots of flexibility in the shoulders combined with lots of buoyancy for the legs (exactly what I needed).
But it’s kinda fragile too, that’s why I keep it for racing.
Got 2 maverick elite (1&2) for training, same buoyancy but less shoulder freedom.
Got signs of wear on both of em a little to early in my opinion. (Cracks where the pieces are glued together.
Since they are on sale now you can’t go wrong I think. But like others said...it gotta fit.

---

-shoki

If you want shoulder and arm flexibility it’s tough to beat the .5mm in the Zoot Wiki

https://zootsports.com/products/wikiwiki

---

-Of course it's 'effing hard, it's IRONMAN!
Team ZOOT
ZOOT, QR, Garmin, HED Wheels, Zealios, FormSwim, Precision Hydration, Rudy Project

The heavier neoprene on those buoyancy suits is for extra rigidity to prevent snaking. Basically they're trying to help slower swimmers in every way possible.

Zero.

Fit is most important. Fit (comfort, flexibility) is the difference between low and high end wetsuits. Wetsuit makers blanket claiming to be faster than other wetsuits, without qualifying that statement, is just marketing BS.