After seeing a woman break 24 seconds and I think we can stop the discussion of "IF" the LZR suit is faster and start thinking "how much faster".
The previous line of suits (Fastskin and so on) were pretty similiar to a shaved swimmer. Sure - they do feel like they make you float, but overall the times seemed to move along "in line" with what I would expect to see in terms of improvements in the sport. If the previous suits would have been that much faster than shaving, you would have never seen people just using the legskins. By the way - for us Masters swimmers there was always the added benefit of keeping in all the "extra layers of skin".
So how much faster are the LZR suits ?
If I had to guess based on the results so far, I would say 0.25 to 0.30 per 50 and double that for the 100. I can see the Bernard going 48 low in the 100 and I can see Sullivan getting close or just breaking the 50 record. It makes sense that Libby Lenton would swim a 24.2 or so in the 50.
I think one of the top regular teams out there should do a test - you need a good amount of world class swimmers training together to be able to do a test. Here is the test I would propose:
8-10 swimmers
2 days of testing
4x50 on 10 minutes all out
Day 1 - swim 2 with a Fastskin2 followed by 2 with the LZR
Day 2 - swim 2 with the LZR followed by 2 with the Fastskin2
Get the averages of all 10 swimmers - maybe drop the high and low and there you go.
Why do the test ? I would HAVE to know. Swimming is a big part of your life and you just set a massive PR using this new technology - my very first question would be " How much was me and how much was the suit?"?
If everyone has an LZR, swimming remains pure in that the better athlete will win. Given the price, however, the winner at lower levels (high school, maybe Masters) may not necessarily be the better athlete but the richer athlete. This is an unfortunate direction for swimming to take.
In relation to Masters, so what? So I can afford just a regular pair of jammers and you have a Speedo LZR, that means what? In regards to each of us, it means nothing.
Unless you mandate that everyone wears the same thing, then what's the point? And if it does come down to that, then congratulations, you've turned swimming into NASCAR but without the crew chiefs to bend the rules.
I think you are putting waaaaay more value into a place finish than is warrented with regards to Masters. Not to discount anyone's view of Masters but, at the end of it all, a first place finish is just bragging rights, and your milage on that is limited to the willingness of people around you to put up with it.
Maybe it's me, but I would rather finish DFL and do a personal best than finish first with a time well off my current best. The value of that first place finish is nearly zero, at least to me. What does it bring me? A blue ribbon or a 'gold' medal? Sorry, not very thrilling. I had shoe boxes full of those when it supposedly 'mattered'
If everyone has an LZR, swimming remains pure in that the better athlete will win. Given the price, however, the winner at lower levels (high school, maybe Masters) may not necessarily be the better athlete but the richer athlete. This is an unfortunate direction for swimming to take.
In relation to Masters, so what? So I can afford just a regular pair of jammers and you have a Speedo LZR, that means what? In regards to each of us, it means nothing.
Unless you mandate that everyone wears the same thing, then what's the point? And if it does come down to that, then congratulations, you've turned swimming into NASCAR but without the crew chiefs to bend the rules.
I think you are putting waaaaay more value into a place finish than is warrented with regards to Masters. Not to discount anyone's view of Masters but, at the end of it all, a first place finish is just bragging rights, and your milage on that is limited to the willingness of people around you to put up with it.
Maybe it's me, but I would rather finish DFL and do a personal best than finish first with a time well off my current best. The value of that first place finish is nearly zero, at least to me. What does it bring me? A blue ribbon or a 'gold' medal? Sorry, not very thrilling. I had shoe boxes full of those when it supposedly 'mattered'
