I found someone to swim for my brother-in-law’s relay, but she doesn’t have a wetsuit. She asked if I could suggest any tips for staying warm short of buying a wetsuit. Not having much experience wearing women’s clothing I thought I’d ask here. Are there any suits made for staying warm?
I’m not sure what the water temp. will be, this will be in Lake Conroe near Houston on Oct. 19. The race organizer says the temp will be between 65 and 75 degrees. This is for a 1/2 IM swim and I expect she will finish in about 50’.
Only ones made out of neoprene (ie. wetsuits). Even those full body lycra suits deigned for scuba diving/snorkelling in the tropics offer no extra warmth.
Not sure if you have the luxry of a Tri store near you, if you do see if they rent wet suits. I know at Inside-Out they rent them for $25-30 dollars for a race. That’s what i did for my first tri. I didn’t want to drop the money on something that i might not enjoy. The best part was, they money it cost for the rental they will apply to the purchase of a new wet suit, so i wound up buying one after the race.
Water over 65F shouldn’t require a wetsuit, especially if it’s nearer 70F. She could buy a surfing rash guard and wear it over the top of her normal swimsuit. That will help.
Some SF Bay swimmers (non-wesuit types) swear by silicone ear plugs and neoprene hoods. She can also try wearing two swim caps in the absence of a hood.
If you go this route, wear the rashie under the wetsuit. If you stick it on over the top it’ll add drag. Guys only wear them on top for surf comps to get spotted easily by the judges.