The water temp in Louisville wont be too warm for wetsuits do you think will it?
I have absolutely no idea of the actual conditions there, but, based upon human nature, I would be extremely surprised if the RD did not determine that the water was no warmer than 77.9 degrees, thereby making wetsuits legal.
Yes it will be too warm. But like said above. They’ll find a spot by a bucket of cubes.
I always train for races to be without a wetsuit but I will admit that I am more nervous about doing a non-wetsuit swim in a river against a current for 1.2 miles. I think that it is going to be really close, I think the website states that usually it is between 74-80 degrees in late august. This has been a hot summer so i can’t imagine that it will be legal but I like to hope that it will just barely manage to find a spot at 77 degrees.
Here’s the real question. Let’s say the actual water temperature is 80-82 degrees, and the race officials somehow find a convenient spot that is 77.9 degrees. Would you want to swim 2.4 miles… in a wetsuit… in 82 degree water… to start off what is probably going to be a very hot day? Nothing like getting the dehydration going during the warm up eh?
I know I take in plenty of fluids during the swim-
ummmm, not necessarily on purpose though!
Anyone have an idea on the speed of the current?
If it is, say, 3 miles an hour, I will be going backwards!
that’s my concern. I swim in a fullsiut (b/c it’s faster). I will overheat in 82* water. I’d rather them not allow wetsuits, if that’s the case.
Will you really overheat and become dehydrated on a 1hr swim with the water temp at 82 degrees? Sure you will feel warm but if you are properly hydrated at the start I doubt you will be “dehydrated” for the rest of the day.
You may not be totally dehydrated after the swim alone, but if you are cooking in a wetsuit for and hour or more (as opposed to staying cooler without one) you will definately sweat more and have less in “the tank” for the bike and especially the run. Fluid loss can always occur at a faster rate than your body can assimilate fluids back in. That’s the battle you are trying to win.
Will you really overheat and become dehydrated on a 1hr swim with the water temp at 82 degrees? Sure you will feel warm but if you are properly hydrated at the start I doubt you will be “dehydrated” for the rest of the day.
Have you ever swam in a new wetsuit in conditions that are warm, just to get used to it? It’s amazing how fast you heat up and how much you sweat.
It’s not just dehydration. If the water is 82F, then chances are you’ve got other weather conditions that are conductive to heat-related issues.
I’ve managed to give myself heat exhaustion even while reasonably well hydrated, and it was seriously Not Fun.
Captain Obvious here… you could always swim without the wetsuit, no matter what the RD says the temperature is. If you think that you would roast in a wetsuit, and your performance would suffer, then the decision seems like a no-brainer.
Good luck,
Jake
I check with the Ironman Kentucky folks and they said “Wetsuits will be allowed up to water temps of 84 degrees, however, wearing one above 78 degrees disqualifies you from placing or an IM slots” Seems unlikely the water temp will be > 82 degrees…seems like there is a little current keeping the water a little cooler. My pref. is to wear a wet suit as it provides a little buoyancy and “security” in a kicking mass of folks. I tend to be around 10 minute quicker with a suit on over 2.4.
It sounds like the wetsuit rule is only a “suggestion” from USAT according to an Oly I am doing this weekend:
Forecast for Sunday is warm anywhere from 85 - 92 degrees and partly cloudy. Not bad for a
triathlon however water temperature is in hovering between 77 – 79. With the warm days is
is bound to get warmer. Wet suits are still expected to be allowed however you need to be
prepared. We may have to ban wet suits if the temperature rises above 80. A few years ago
a triathlon in Wisconsin had a number of participants drop out and a large number
over-heated during/after the event. USAT agreed to allow Race Directors to ban wet suits
if safety of participants is a concern. Even if this means deviating from USAT wet suits
guidelines (ban if temp is over 83). If they are banned due to warm water and hot humid
air temperatures please remember it will be done for everyone’s safety. Not just to upset
participants. We don’t want people over-heating so let’s hope for some cooler days &
nights so the water temperature doesn’t rise. If necessary, notice of the ban is expected
to be posted at the transition area.
I rarely wear a wetsuit for Oly and less unless the water is cold. If the temps hit the 78 I want to make sure they throw the “wetsuit” people out of the age group awards, which is the standard procedure.
There was an Oly race in the river, a bit upstream from the IM course, this past weekend and the river was too warm for wetsuits. Temps are forecasted in the mid to high 90’s with heat indexes in the 100’s for the foreseeable future. Get used to swimming without one!
Shut your ‘man pleaser’. You are scaring everyone.
My wife and I are doing L’ville. We had a similar situation last year at IM Germany. Europe was having a heat wave and all week long they kept saying wet suits would be allowed. Well the day before the race they said no! First IM in Europe to ever have a non wet suit swim. I had no problem and wound up swimming about 5 minutes off my PR and my wife swam around 5 minutes slower than hers. But it was in a lake not a river.
It’s kinda crazy that they have to try to explain something like this…I am getting pretty disgusted with the current state of triathlon.
I am not a great swimmer. I learned to swim at 37 and will always face the challenges that most swimmers who learn as adults will face. I am slow and I get panicky at times. However, I have forced myself to become a competent, reasonably proficient swimmer and never expected RD’s or USAT or anyone to design races or bend rules to make things easier and softer for me. That just isn’t the way it is.
You sign up for a race. It has a swim of XX yards. Nobody forced you to sign up. How is it NOT your responsibility to do what it takes for you to be able to actually complete that distance under a variety of conditions??? With a wetsuit. Without a wetsuit. Whatever.
It’s ironic that we do triathlon for the challenge, but then act as if we don’t really want it challenging at all…
G
Five of us swam in the river this AM. A bit upstream from the race site, but still the same water. It was hot, no one wore a wet suit. We also had current, about several minutes faster on the return downstream leg.
Forecast air temps in the high 90’s to 100 through middle of next week. High humidity and ozone alert again today, its August in L-ville.
sb