…and all her swims have been slower than with her six year old entry level suit.
Been swimming slower in all five tris this season. I’m sure the suit has nothing to with it, but it’s always a bit of bummer when you drop cash for a newer piece of equipment and you’re not faster. Guess the upside is that at least she didn’t buy a P4. 
If she has another race this year, she should wear her old suit and see what happens.
The first time I wore a wetsuit, I borrowed one from a friend and it was way too big (at least by manufacturer’s recommendations) and I swam my fastest 1500m by 3min. I was so convinced wetsuits were awesome, I bought one of my own, fit and snug. Except every race I’ve used it, I’ve bombed the swim…after 2 years, I’m ready to blame the suit - I think it’s too small…
Keep in mind that the distances in the swim portion are quite variable from year to year and that you really ought to be looking at how she stacks up to the rest of the competitors. This is also subject to bias if you get a bunch of different people. What I would do is compare her against somebody that is very consistent. It will probably be some 50 year old dude that races but doesn’t improve from year to year.
I know for myself that there are some suits that are faster and some that are slower.
Have you looked at some of her competitors’ paces/times as well? Could be that the courses are different, etc.
Don’t go by KTown last week … that swim was very hilly
i had a two piece that i LOVED, LOVED (like George Castanza and his suede fetish, I felt ensconced in neoprene) but I was slower in it than my sleeveless starter suit (which was a couple sizes too big anymore). i bought another one piece sleeved that is significantly faster than either. I did several 1000m pool comparison swims in them side by side (rotating which one I used first, etc). I think it came down to which one was better suited to the way I move/rotate when I swim. All of them great suits - one just works better for me. Sold the old ones to folks that love them. go figure.
i really dont believe that having sleeves on a wetsuit makes fop swimmers faster. fop need 5mm rubber everywhere possible but their arms just for the flotation bonus.
FYI, it was velvet 
.
Oddly…the old school folks on Scott DH bars and eating Fig Newtons and hot dogs with 32 spoke wheels seemed to go faster than most do today…no wind tunnels either.
Triathletes always think they can just buy speed by laying down the cash. None of that pesky training stuff when you can slap down cash for a new wetsuit or $2000 race wheels
It wouldn’t happen to be a 2XU Velocity by any chance?
I bought one earlier this year and had to get rid of it after 3 races, a great suit in concept but completely rubbish in action, I found it incredibly restrictive (yes it did fit properly) and swim times were shocking as a result.
I changed it for an Orca Alpha in the same size (MT) which is now quite easily the best suit I’ve ever worn. + the times are back to what’s expected!
As with a bike, it’s all about personal fit I suppose.
…and all her swims have been slower than with her six year old entry level suit.
Been swimming slower in all five tris this season. I’m sure the suit has nothing to with it, but it’s always a bit of bummer when you drop cash for a newer piece of equipment and you’re not faster. Guess the upside is that at least she didn’t buy a P4.
Some wetsuits can slow you down if they don’t fit right OR if you don’t use them right.
Is she familiar with the proper method of putting the suit on? (hiking it way up and bunching it up around the shoulders).
Does she get in the water, pull the collar open and fill the body of the suit with water?
Does she do the same with the arms by opening the cuff?
These steps are important to ensure the suit doesn’t constrict or hinder breathing and circulation in the arms.
Ironically I have a pair of Scott DH bars I’m thinking about sticking on my race bike for the rest of the season.
yeah. knew that. didn’t make the translation in my post.
To reiterate another post - a friend was having the same thoughts about his wetsuit until he got some advice on putting it on properly - it made all the difference for him and solved his issue.
“It wouldn’t happen to be a 2XU Velocity by any chance?”
Funny that you should mention that, it’s a 2XU, not sure which model but I think it’s their second from the top, but I’d still be very surprised if it was the suit slowing her down. There could be a lot of other factors. Read Allan’s post about the swim being “hilly” referring to big waves at one of the tris.
The point of my original post was that it’s not always about the equipment.
“I know for myself that there are some suits that are faster and some that are slower.”
Have you tested a lot of suits? If so, very curious about your thoughts?
Take the two suits to a pool and test them. try to make the test as equal as possible from her energy expenditure standpoint and see if you can quantify the differences in the contained environment of a pool. I am interested in knowing what your wife experienced as I am sure many others are. It is nice of you not to use the brand names but put them out there.
I absolutely agree, the majority of the time i’d definitely say it’s a fit/fitness/open water skills issue but it’s just something that happened to me this year and took me a while to figure it out. It’s odd that it is a 2xu all the same!
I tested out the 2xu V1 and Orca Alpha both on 2 separate occasions and the Perceived effort for similar splits (a 400m test in on 5:50) was large. I gave an average perceived effort of 14/20 to the Alpha and 17/20 to the V1 on those times. Not exactly scientific but an indicator none the less.