Do any of you use a compression-type shirt as a ghetto swimskin top (over your tri-top jersey)?
I have a warm half-iron coming up, and am looking for a reasonable alternative to a $200+ swimskin. I am not a fan of one-piece trisuits for halfs and fulls, so something like a Trifoil or Amphibian is out as an option for me.
Given all that, my remaining options seem to be:
Go shirtless on swim and wrestle on tri-top in T1 – although I’ve practiced this a couple of times with* limited* success, I’m sure it would inevitably be the expected embarrassing spectacle of buffoonery on race day.
Wear my go-to race-day tri-top in the swim – not a good idea, since it has mesh panels and pockets (= drag chute).
Wear a tight, smooth top over my tri-top, and then peel that off as I’m running to T1.
I really like the sound of this last idea, and I’m wondering if anyone else has tried it… If so, is there a particular compression top you may recommend? Would a “rash guard” top be a good option - something like this top here?
Still might be too pricey, but De Soto T1 Speedvest might be a good option for you. If this is going to be your go to for all your non-wetsuit races, might be worth the investment.
As a matter of fact, I kind of like this idea for myself, hmmmm.
Speed Vest is a contender, thanks for reminding me about that one…
My only concern with the SV is being stuck when the race is no-kidding not wetsuit legal. For local races up here in MN, that would admittedly be very rare, but when we get scorcher summers like this one, it becomes a possibility.
RA - good call about the full-zip jersey; I hadn’t considered that. Will look into some of those options too.
This is what I used, I got it for under $70 when they had a sale. I have only used it once in a race and was very pleased with it. I did have to put my own leash on the zipper. They also have an e-bay store under the name hannulink. http://www.hannulink.com/catalog/item/4207990/7711465.htm
The problem with this is that many - if not most - of the fabrics used in compression gear are hydrophillic. There’s a reason the swim skins are that price. It’s difficult to make a compressive and hydropphobic garment. The requisite fabrics are expensive. So, yes, you can wear something like a compression top. But it’s going to soak up a lot of water. A LOT. Unless of course it’s not really all that compressive, in which case it will bag out making it a drag chute.
For sprint/oly, that’s totally what I do - I have some uber tight-fitting short-sleeve UA compression tops that work like a champ as a standalone top.
But for long-course stuff, I prefer to have jersey pockets to stuff small emergency-use “extras” in – a gel flask, maybe a small capsule of salt-tabs / electrolyte pills, etc, and even as a spot to stash an extra aid-station bottle when conditions warrant. I use the pockets only on the bike, but not on the run.
I always rock a 2-piece kit on long-course stuff so I can roll the top up into a mankini for the run
At an upcoming OWS practice swim, I’ll try putting on of my UA compression tops over my race-day jersey, and see how that works. Perhaps it will be too wierd of a fit combination, and I have no idea how bad it will be to wrestle the top layer off coming out of the water… We’ll see.
If that experiment turns out to be an epic fail, I think I may just wear the pocketless compression top the whole race, and just stuff gel flask etc down my shorts for the bike
Thanks Jordan - that’s a very good point about the hydrophillic fabric construction.
I forgot to mention earlier that Emilio’s 78-degree swim top seems like a good solution here, but I wish it had more coverage on the back and shoulders (to better “cover up” a jersey underneath), but I fully understand that’s not its intended design/purpose.
I wonder if there would be a potential market for a hydrophobic top as a cheaper alternative to a “complete” swimskin. But I suppose that’s accepting too much compromise in design vs. performance for a company to consider pursuing…
Lots of good info to consider here so far - thanks again to all for your help!
Despite dismissing the 78-degree earlier, I’m now thinking it’s worth a try…
De Soto is sold out, but I found one elsewhere online for $42, so I pulled the trigger… I do loves me my pockets, but I’ll forgo those in favor of a standalone top that’s actually designed to be swim-efficient.
