I am just back from the SPMA meet where all the top finisher were wearing the latest generation tech suits,mostly B-70s(or were named Jeff Commings.)I have here to for been in favor of the suits,but now I am not so sure.First,they eliminate the old bench marks.I went my fastest 100m BR in 5 yr in my LZR,but it was only .3 sec faster than I did untapered 5 wk earlier in my first swim in the LZR.So was my swim good or not,I'm not sure.Also,instead of focusing on technique or pace I found myself ruminating over aspects of the suits,how many more swims did the suit have,is it the right size,was the reason I didn't get better results from my B-70 because it was too big?etc.The B-70 has somewhat mitigated the "too expensive,not durable" problem,but for how long.
Lets say a company comes up with a suit that is much faster,say 4 sec/100.Further that it is very expensive(say $1000) lasts 4 swims and is very hard to make so that quantities are always limited and the fastest way to get one is to bid up to $3000 on ebay. Now lets say your nemesis has one,or that getting one is your best chance to get TT or AA or a ZR or WR,or that your child is close to making JO cuts,or finally beating his/her nemesis etc. Is it worth it and where does it stop?
What it comes down to is this. Speedo(and Blue70) developed suits "just" in time for trials and the Olympics. AT THE TIME the suits seemed to meet the standards,i.e. no buoyancy, and the suits were allowed. In hindsight that decision may have been too hasty, but neither the NCAA nor FINA have done any testing of their own(as far as I know).Until they test and prove or disprove that the suits are adding buoyancy they are legal. Any records set while the suit is/was legal should stand, this was the case when records were set during the doping years.Big money was spent on developing and promoting these suits and that jacked up the price. The huge difference here is that for Olympic and even college swimmers suits were either made available for free or at a reduced cost. Even with that, many college teams have had a hard time financing and finding suits for their swimmers. But HS teams do not have the type of sponsorship or budget, so if you want one you either buy it yourself(how many of you can afford that?) or maybe you are lucky and can get one trough your club. But that leaves the majority of HS swimmers without the suit. And I think that is where the unfairness comes in......
I think your money would be better spent on furthering your education instead of spending it on a tech suit. Just my opinion. When you get out into the work force (permanently) perhaps it'll be a little more discretionary.
What it comes down to is this. Speedo(and Blue70) developed suits "just" in time for trials and the Olympics. AT THE TIME the suits seemed to meet the standards,i.e. no buoyancy, and the suits were allowed. In hindsight that decision may have been too hasty, but neither the NCAA nor FINA have done any testing of their own(as far as I know).Until they test and prove or disprove that the suits are adding buoyancy they are legal. Any records set while the suit is/was legal should stand, this was the case when records were set during the doping years.Big money was spent on developing and promoting these suits and that jacked up the price. The huge difference here is that for Olympic and even college swimmers suits were either made available for free or at a reduced cost. Even with that, many college teams have had a hard time financing and finding suits for their swimmers. But HS teams do not have the type of sponsorship or budget, so if you want one you either buy it yourself(how many of you can afford that?) or maybe you are lucky and can get one trough your club. But that leaves the majority of HS swimmers without the suit. And I think that is where the unfairness comes in......
I think your money would be better spent on furthering your education instead of spending it on a tech suit. Just my opinion. When you get out into the work force (permanently) perhaps it'll be a little more discretionary.
