I tried on the FS PRO today, it was very tight... even the XXL was tight, although I think the XL will work fine... but, but... it just seems like a full body paper suit... versus the FS 2 which has all the cool material, etc..
Which one is better? $450 dollars is the price here, is there a better way to order it? I'd rather wait for the LZR in the fall if that's the best I can do.
By the way, maybe there are sports out there associated with poor academic performance, but I've never known swimming to be one of them. Most of the swimmers I've known (not all, by any stretch) were also very good students. Swimming teaches discipline and the meaning of hard work. I think it has served me very well in my life to have suffered through some truly excruciating training.
From Hofffman:
“Much of this seems incredibly judgmental. Who are you to say that an Average Joe buying a LZR has a serious problem? Maybe some Serious Joes think swimming very fast is very important.
As for fast cars - people have enjoyed them since cars existed. To these people it is not throwing away big $$$.
Are you similarly judgmental about other expensive things people spend their money on? Watches? Electronics? Shoes? Music? Art? Musical instruments?”
Reply From Dolphin 2
Yes my opinion IS judgmental – just like any economist will tell you that most Americans have a serious personal debt problem and they had better get a handle on their spending. I chose to own my home and make the mortgage payments instead of spending money on fancy cars and other expensive personal items while many others are still just renters and their net worth is -zero-.
Furthermore I find it ironically amusing how people are grousing and fuming about the high price of gas (which requires $Billions to drill for and produce) yet they will not hesitate to run out and plunk down $450 for an LZR (which is probably made in China for a few cents on the dollar). So who's the biggest price gouger -Exxon Mobil or Speedo?? :lolup:
Furthermore, the U.S. does have an obsession with sports and athletics similar to the Roman Empire and the Gladiators and too much public money is being spent on stadiums to hosting pro-sports teams. In addition, parents are aggressively prodding their children into sports at the expense of reduced academic achievement –just look at the poor test scores in reading, science, and math. In fact, many critical thinkers have proposed that the U.S. may actually undergo a socio-economic collapse just like ancient Rome and cease to be a superpower. :lolup:
Am I proposing that people paying $450 for an LZR is going to lead to the destruction of the U.S.? Obviously not. But taken in the context of the overall picture of the U.S., this fanatical approach to swimming a little bit faster than someone else gives me (and quite a few others) pause for concern about what’s going on in the psyche of the American people. :doh:
Dolphin 2
Why is paying $450 for a suit any more sports-obsessed than posting to a swimming forum instead of being productive at work? Or enjoying the beautiful California weather? Or any other thing that non-sports-obsessed people do with their time?
Pardon me for “hitting a nerve” with everyone...
I don't always agree that economics, as a discipline, is as value-free as economists say...but I do think that think that equating consumer preferences with morality is usually a pretty slippery slope. Best not to do it at all.
With some effort, I can even convince myself that not all owners of Hummers are evil people. :)
Buying a LZR (or not) is a pretty harmless thing, all things considered.
Jonathan, the college swimmers at U of Richmond I have talked to all greatly prefer the Pro to the FSII. I have never worn a Pro so I do not speak from direct experience. For myself, I have not found the FSII to have a big impact on my performance (as I've posted here), but others' mileage clearly differ.
Pardon me for “hitting a nerve” with everyone, but the whole idea of people going on a spending binge over the LZR, Fastskin, etc. craze really seems like something I would be reading about in MAD magazine (which is a parody on the almost endless number of idiosyncrasies of American society). I recall Mr. P.T. Barnum’s (one of the founders of the Barnum & Bailey’s Circus) old saying that “There’s a sucker born every minute”.
Reflecting on his words, I can’t help but think that the people at Speedo, Tyr, Nike, etc. are sitting in their corporate offices laughing until their bellies ache over the thought of all the people that are slapping down big bucks and carrying their latest & greatest "techy" swim toys out of the store with a huge grin on their face. By comparison, the suit manufacturers are making all those evil, nasty, price gouging oil company execs look like a bunch of saints!!! :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:
By the way, I can’t wait until someone sues the suit makers (like what a bunch of the “I can’t wait to get one” consumers did with Apple and the iPhone debut last year) because they allegedly “ripped off” the first buyers by cutting the price of the LZR in ½ just after two months of it first coming on the market. :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:
Dolphin 2
One more thing - I don't think the USA is sports obsessed. If we were - we wouldn't have an obesity problem. Too many children are inactive, except with their thumbs. Too many adults are fat. And they are raising fat children. And considering our country's wealth - we don't perform all the well in many sports against international competition from far smaller, and more sports-obsessed countries.
I think we may be somewhat "professional sports obsessed" but what "first world" country isn't? Professional sports obsession may be the byproduct of not having to worry about survival/war/famine on a daily basis... That isn't necessarily a bad thing...
Dolphin 2 - you seem proud you are a mortage owner instead of a renter. In property-precious California, it might be smarter for many people to move to a lower cost area instead of spending $800 per sq. ft. and using interest only loans to buy homes.
They could spend $200 per sq. ft. in Texas and happily pay for their kid's college. Buying a LZR might be a bit easier.
Perhaps you have a silly vice some of us wouldn't approve of. I hope you don't buy Kenny G. recordings because I think no one should ever do that. :lmao:
Pick your poison so to speak. One of the best things about the USA is that we can generally indulge ourselves without harming others. I manage my finances carefully. I doubt I will buy a LZR. Maybe a FS Pro on ebay if I can find a good deal. But first I need a new drag suit to replace me 2 1/2 year old one.
One more thing - I don't think the USA is sports obsessed. If we were - we wouldn't have an obesity problem. Too many children are inactive, except with their thumbs. Too many adults are fat. And they are raising fat children. And considering our country's wealth - we don't perform all the well in many sports against international competition from far smaller, and more sports-obsessed countries.
Dolphin
every sport has equipment, swimming is no different
ours is just getting better and costs a bit more
Most swimmers don't swim for the "connotation of superiority"
They do it for health, personal achievement, and friendship
Like paul wrote: it's all about the journey not the destination.
Perhaps Freudianism has crept its way into you.
Each person knows their personal budget and can decide if they want to get a LZR or not. One LZR purchase isn't likely to be the cause for someone to drown in debt
Suit makers make suits to help swimmers swim faster.
Hey Chris
While swimming is truly a fine athletic art, it is also the slowest of any sport. Compared with track events, even fast swimming is the moral equivalent of "plate tectonics". Although the statistics (as measured in percentages) indicate that swimming has become faster over the past 10 years, it is still a very low velocity sport. If sheer speed is the only objective, I would go into some land based activity like the 400 meter run.
Unfortunately, athletics has turned into some kind of Freudian exercise in which people obtain gratification through the connotation of superiority instead of making true achievements in their personal or career life. Sports has also become a manifestation of international militarism such as the arms race during the cold war era.
Like people throwing away big $$$ on expensive sports cars just for the emotional thrill of being faster on the street, this suit technology craze seems to be an example of how Freudianism has crept its way into swimming.
Unless they are swimming in $$$ (no pun intended), any Average Joe who would shell out over $450 for an LZR has a very serious problem with managing their personal finances and they will ultimately wind up drowning in debt (another pun not intended).
However I bet the suit makers are hysterically laughing their way to the bank with the big bucks they’ve made off all the suckers who fell for this suit technology craze!!! :lmao::lmao::lmao:
Dolphin 2
Unless they are swimming in $$$ (no pun intended), any Average Joe who would shell out over $450 for an LZR has a very serious problem with managing their personal finances and they will ultimately wind up drowning in debt (another pun not intended).
I know what you mean. To save up money to buy a LZR I've decided to start lighting my Cuban cigars with rolled up $20s rather than my customary $100s.
I know what you mean. To save up money to buy a LZR I've decided to start lighting my Cuban cigars with rolled up $20s rather than my customary $100s.
Hmm, maybe I should have gone that route instead of not paying my mortgage? or feeding my kids?
