My wife is racing the aquabike at Santa Cruz this year (usually 50-55F in the water) and needs a wetsuit she can transition out of. She has a thick Blue Seventy she uses for Alcatraz but takes forever to get off. Also, swimming is her strong suit, and she wants to be able to move in it, as much as possible given the temps.
Any suggestions appreciated.
A thicker wetsuit isn’t necessarily going to what she is looking for. Yes more neoprene will be warmer, but a perfectly fitting wetsuit will give her warmth and flexibility. I’d recommend trying some suits on and finding the one that fits her the best.
For the most part the thickest panel you will find is 5mm, as that is the maximum legal thickness with most governing body’s. That 5mm panel will likely only go down the front of the wetsuit. A 3-4mm panel is usually the max thickness down the back of the suit, and anywhere from 1-3mm in the arms and shoulders. The thickness’s and flexibility of every suit will vary depending on fit, thickness of neoprene, suit construction, and flexibility of the neoprene.
Ultimately fit is should be the number one concern. A proper fitting wetsuit will perform at a higher level and help to keep her warmer.
Jake
The warmest wetsuit I’ve worn is the two pice Desoto T1 but they are all fairly warm to me.
Thanks, jakers - I know she’s pretty fussy about fit. (She likes her Blue Seventy, warm and she can swim in it, but realized she can’t get out of it in a reasonable amount of time, and asked me to post this.)
Practice, practice, practice…
Practicing get out of the suit more than you generally care to, can help on race day. That being said, some suits are definitely easier to get out of than others.
jake
Are you buying a special wetsuit just for the “cold”? (Don’t- Cowell’s is at least 60 right now). Buy the best wetsuit you can afford and make sure it fits her like a glove.
Another vote for the T1.
I get cold very easily, don’t like swimming in cold water at all, am a slow swimmer so I’m in the water for a very long time.
I wore a DeSoto T1 two piece wetsuit for IMCdA and my core was quite warm the entire 1.5hr swim (my hands and feet froze completely).
I found the T1 very flexible/comfy and easy to remove (when my fingers aren’t completely frozen - but then I couldn’t even buckle my helmet).
Water temp was 57-58F I believe.
Cheers,
Cathy
Another vote for DeSoto - once you’ve had two piece you’ll never go back!
I recently started using a new wetsuit that fits slightly better than my old one. The end result is that less water gets flushed out of it and the water that does get in it stays there and warms up. So if you’ve got a properly fitted suit, my N=1 experience says that it will be warmer than something that is thicker, which will probably just help more with flotation rather than warmth if the fit isn’t perfect.