And I mean full vs. sleeveless - not full vs. no suit.
Say I only have ~$200 to spend. I can spend ~$200 on an xterra full sleeve, or ~$100 on an xterra sleeveless and $100 on something else (am guessing I could find an aero helmet used for close to $100)
I can save ~60 seconds with an aero helmet in a 40K (someone correct me if I’m way off base). Will a full wetsuit really give me 60 seconds over a sleeveless in a 1500m swim? Or maybe a $100 front wheel cover is the way to go over an aero helmet?
Will you be safe swimming in a sleeveless at the given water temperature? If its too cold then get a full sleeve.
Will you be challenging for the podium and expect that 1 to 30 seconds may be the difference between prize money or just a finisher’s shirt? If not then go with sleeveless.
proposed that you should just save your money for a while, rather than anguish over how to spend $100.
you might need to replace a tire soon or something.
Point taken. But there’s got to be others that willing to spend hundreds, but not thousands, on aero equipment. Just curious what others with similar reservations on spending $$$ have done… I’ve spent no money on anything other than my bike and fit. I’ve got a few hundred bucks I wouldn’t mind spending on my hobby and was curious the best bang for the buck.
The water has to get pretty chilly to really need a full suit. A sleeveless is going to serve you well in most cases, and will be only slightly slower than a full suit, depending on your comfort. Me? I’m actually faster in a sleeveless because I can feel the water better and my arms aren’t restricted so much. If you have big shoulders, then sleeveless is the way to go.
An aero helmet can be had for under $100. My first one I bought used off of Patrick Schuster for $50 (didn’t know who he was at the time. sheesh.) And it’s well worth the money. I noticed a dramatic difference in effort at speed, and John Cobb says they’re worth up to 15 watts. FYI, that ~60 seconds you might save is only there if you don’t drop your head, don’t sit up, and your helmet fits well. Something to think about.
BTW, latex tubes are cheaper, and may save you more time from what Tom D. & Jackmott says.
Will you be safe swimming in a sleeveless at the given water temperature? If its too cold then get a full sleeve.
Will you be challenging for the podium and expect that 1 to 30 seconds may be the difference between prize money or just a finisher’s shirt? If not then go with sleeveless.
No podium challenges in any races offering money… I did a 62 degree OD swim last year with no suit - so even a sleeveless is a massive upgrade! I’m tending to lean sleeveless as well…
I’m still trucking along w/ my 7-8 year-old sleeveless wetsuit; it’s the leg buoyancy that matters most.
Another way of looking at it… I was definitely more interested in triathlons 6-8 years ago, but over that time I’ve become relatively less enamored with swimming & running and more so with just biking, so spending money there can pay off extra if you start doing stand-alone TTs in addition to triathlons. Much more opportunity to ‘double-dip’ on bike gear than a wetsuit for most of us (unless maybe you happen to live on a nice lake or bay).
A wetsuit, depending on your stroke, will buy you 5-10 sec per 100 yards. Less if you’re a really good swimmer, and typically more if your stroke is less efficient to begin with. So with a 1600yd oly, we’re talking maybe 2 min. That’s a LOT.
A sleeved will be faster than a sleeveless- but I don’t think anyone knows how much faster. Think about the water temp you’ll be diving into.
you don’t need a high end wetsuit. They aren’t any faster than the lower end ones. They do have some extra features- like extra stretchy material in places so they’re easier to get off, or a bit more comfortable, but the $600 wetsuit isn’t any faster than the $200 one.
Find a deal or a sale. I picked mine off of SierraTradingPost. it was a prior year closeout Orca Sonar. msrp $400 for, at the time, less than $130. it has served me well in many a race. Fits beautifully over my Zoot Ultra Race suit that I bought off the Zoot site last year when they were having a 75% off sale. Point being… there are great deals to be had out there if you’ve got the time to wait and look on the internet. Bonktown has wetsuits sometimes too.
I tried a full suit and found the shoulders really restrictive (for me). I have done all of my wetsuit legal races in a sleeveless, including Oceanside 70.3 when it was 55 degrees in the water and 45 degrees on land (2005 & 2006).
But, If you really want to see an inexpensive full suit - look at the Xterra suits. They are perpetually on sale, and they’re a cool company.
An armless is a lot easier to get out of, especially if you wear a bulky 310XT watch. I have to remove my watch before removing my sleeved suit, which takes up valuable time in an Oly. Even if the water is freezing cold with a sleeveless, you are only going to be in it for 20-25 minutes. Most times when I wear my sleeved, I am on the verge of getting too warm.
Oh, you will also have a really hard time trying to put a wet sleeved suit back on after a warm-up swim and then bathroom pit stop.
??? See my post above… had the same wetsuit for years and years, doesn’t seem to be any worse for wear that I’ve notice anywhere in the crotchular region despite a pathologically small bladder. I’d think it’d get rinsed/diluted in pretty short order anyway (and I do give it a fresh rinse in the shower before storing after races).
Of course, you’d still need to visit the porta-loo and take the suit down to do more serious business…
Get the full sleeve suit (you can’t upgrade a suit later…you’ll be out another $200). Get a good used suit; you can get crazy deals (the SportsBasement by me was selling off this year’s rental suits for $50). Check out ST classifieds for cheap used suits as well.
Other aero gear to get:
Aero Helmet: $100-$150
Wheel Cover: $100
Used Deep-V front wheel: $250-400
A wetsuit, depending on your stroke, will buy you 5-10 sec per 100 yards. Less if you’re a really good swimmer, and typically more if your stroke is less efficient to begin with. So with a 1600yd oly, we’re talking maybe 2 min. That’s a LOT.
A sleeved will be faster than a sleeveless- but I don’t think anyone knows how much faster. Think about the water temp you’ll be diving into.