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?
Not to get too far off-topic, but what is a, "mid-season meet?"
A meet for which you are untapered/unrested.
I often do not wear a tech suit at such meets, unless it is particularly important in some way (eg if I rest slightly and plan to swim an event that I won't swim later at my tapered meet). Or if I want to test out a new tech suit (better to find any problems before the big meet).
As an aside: current polling is 49-37 in favor of keeping the suits.
In the Pittsburgh area, which is very big in YMCA masters, and almost nonexistent in USMS swimming, we have Y league masters meets every 2-3 weeks from September to March. These are what I would call "mid season" meets. I always try to swim my best at these things, but cramming four events plus a relay or two into a 3-4 hour meet doesn't always give you optimum rest between events. In a way, they are almost a cross between swimming meets and sprint practices.
As far as body suits go, I recommend you check out swimoutlet.com (one of USMS sponsors, so I am not sure if it is against the rules to recommend them). Anyhow, they often have discontinued speed suits at pretty hefty discounts. They may not be the absolute fastest suits, but they can work really well compared to normal suits. I just got a Tyr kneeskin for $56 and used it, I am hoping, to make the Top 10 (fingers crossed) in a few events for SCM.
The reason I almost always wear some sort of speed suit in meets is because you never know when the stars will align just so to allow you to swim a really good race, especially in the short events. This brings up a slightly different topic, but I will throw it out anyhow. Which is swimming "mid season" meets half-heartedly. I usually really try in every meet I swim in, although maybe in the 500 is at the end, and I am truly exhausted, "really trying" becomes sort of relative. Anyhow, I see guys all the time come to such meets and essentially loaf, swimming slower than they do in practice.
What's up with that?
especially at mid-season meets.
Not to get too far off-topic, but what is a, "mid-season meet?"
Here in AZ, we have basically 3 meets a year, SCY/LCM/SCM. Once in a while there will be 2 meets of the same course (maybe one in Tucson/Flagstaff and one in the Phoenix area).
For those who voted "YES, they are an abomination, burn them all" or "Yes, there is too much potential unfairness", I say AGING, like life in general, is not fair.:D
B70...the GREAT AGING EQUALIZER:bliss:
to the 45 who have voted "best thing since sliced bread" i have two words for you:
FOCCACIA
CIABATTA
'nuff said
I can't understand how we have managed to get into a situation where the only true net result is that we all end up slightly worse off financially. For the suits to be legal, they have to be available to all. If they are available to and worn by everyone, there is no competitive advantage to be gained by wearing one. If we wear the suits to improve our times but gain no competitive advantage then we are merely deluding ourselves.
No one makes anyone ride the Tour de France in a fat tire Schwinn.
QUOTE]
true, but there are very strict guidelines that rule out aero-dynamic additions to the steed.
Aero plays a tiny role in stage racing.... Aero bars are outlawed for safety reasons.
The time trial stages though allow just about everything.
Interesting that people keep bringing up cycling, because the closest cycling equivalent to a racing suit is the tubular ("sew-up") tire. When I was racing, you just had to have a pair of tub wheels for races if you wanted to be truly competitive, because the clincher tires and rims of the time were so heavy and lifeless. So you paid a lot of money for a light, fragile tire that could theoretically be repaired if it was punctured, but no-one ever bothered because it was a lot of work and was never quite the same after. So - $40-$60 worth of tire tossed in the garbage if you got a flat out on a time trial course.
Now clincher tires and rims are so good that they have been used for pro races, even though a set of silk tubulars is still considered the gold standard. The way technology trickles down, the "clincher rim" version of the tech suit will inevitably be available to level out the playing field. Maybe it already exists and just hasn't received as much attention. Maybe the Blue Seventy is a step in that direction.
I can't understand how we have managed to get into a situation where the only true net result is that we all end up slightly worse off financially.
Google "prisoner's dilemma."
Interesting that people keep bringing up cycling, because the closest cycling equivalent to a racing suit is the tubular ("sew-up") tire. When I was racing, you just had to have a pair of tub wheels for races if you wanted to be truly competitive, because the clincher tires and rims of the time were so heavy and lifeless. So you paid a lot of money for a light, fragile tire that could theoretically be repaired if it was punctured, but no-one ever bothered because it was a lot of work and was never quite the same after. So - $40-$60 worth of tire tossed in the garbage if you got a flat out on a time trial course.
Now clincher tires and rims are so good that they have been used for pro races, even though a set of silk tubulars is still considered the gold standard. The way technology trickles down, the "clincher rim" version of the tech suit will inevitably be available to level out the playing field. Maybe it already exists and just hasn't received as much attention. Maybe the Blue Seventy is a step in that direction.
I disagree. When LeMond showed up with his aero helmet and TT bars to race the final stage of the 1989 Tour de France to beat Fignon by 58 seconds and win his second Tour, he "let the cat out of the bag." He was the first to use aero bars in the Tour and they're now standard for any TT. The sport is no worse for utilizing technological advances, like carbon frames, aero helmets, and yes, lighter clincher wheels and tires. It is worse off for the rampant drug use, but that's a story for another thread.
