I have a DeSoto liftfoil tri suit and am contemplating wearing it as a swimskin in Raleigh if it’s too warm for a wetsuit.
I wear just the suit for shorter distance races, but anything over an olympic and i prefer the convenience of a two piece suit.
Has anyone wore a liftfoil or a similar suit as a swim skin in a race or am i just grasping at straws and this is a dumb idea?
Plenty of people do it, the garment is actually designed for it.
As long as it is good and tight on you, you are good to go.
Lift foil is an awesome piece of gear. You may even gain a little from having the buoyant pad in there as well.
That’s funny. I was just thinking of this last night. I used to race in a Liftfoil, but now I have a custom printed suit, but was thinking of using it for the few non-ws races I might do. For an Olympic distance, I’m not sure it’s worth the 10 second savings (15 seconds in the water - 5 getting it off) and covering my charity logos… but would be worth it for long course.
Would it still be legal as a swim skin if it has a pad? It might be a little weird kicking with 2 pads.
I can tell you that your idea works, but I am obviously biased. The best thing for you to do in this instance is to follow this:
Emilio’s First Law of Triathlon:
NEVER USE, WEAR, OR DO ANYTHING IN A RACE, THAT YOU HAVE NOT USED, WORN, OR DONE REPEATEDLY IN TRAINING.
Try it in a pool or open water, and see if it works for you!
Would it still be legal as a swim skin if it has a pad? It might be a little weird kicking with 2 pads.
I don’t have the rule book memorized, but I have never heard of anything like this being an issue.
As far as the spirit of the rules, I don’t see how having two small pads (one in your tri suit and one in your swim skin) would be any different than swimming in a pair of traditional cycling shorts with a very large pad in them (which is obviously legal).
We are probably splitting hairs anyway, I can’t imagine there is too much buoyancy achieved from these small pads, but I guess every little bit helps (I will take 1 watt on the bike where I can get it, so this is probably no different).
As far as kicking, I can’t relate, my kick is awful, always has been, even when swimming 5k meter 2-a-day workouts in high school.
Sticking two pads in between my thighs might actually improve my kicking form!