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?
Do college recruiters today take note of weather a swimmer is using a tech suit vs. briefs or jammers?
In short yes. Athletes are profiled far beyond their times; coaches want to know the swimmers potential to improve and they spend time trying to come up with ways to evaluate this.
The high school question is an interesting one. When I swam as a senior I was less than a second away from breaking our high school record for the 100yd fly. Is $300-500 bucks for a swim suit worth a high school record, a 1st or 2nd place finish at state finals vs. 2nd or 3rd? Do college recruiters today take note of weather a swimmer is using a tech suit vs. briefs or jammers?
Let's say a swimmer can swim a 100yd free in :45.00 in a pair of jammers. What would the improvement be if they were to wear a tech suit? And also, is there any empirical data to support any time drops, or are there too many variables? Will a suit help a less conditioned swimmer drop more time than a more conditioned one?
Random cheerleader emoticon:cheerleader:
Hey funkyfish
You could have easily broken (and very much suceeded) your high school's record much easier by just putting on a pair of paddles or flippers instead of buying an expensive suit.
I know this makes people mad as hell, but whether you use paddles and flippers or a so called "low drag" suit, I don't see how breaking a record through mechanically aided swimming is a personal accomplishment. :confused:
Dolphin 2
