Ban the tech suits?

If these suits lead to self-delusion that keeps you competing and feeling self confident, I say what's the problem with that? QUOTE] i prefer my self delusion "up with olives"

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.

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. This isn't materially different from the change from wood to composite materials in tennis rackets. Or titanium and carbon fiber in bicycles. Although some of these things are not cheap, they are still affordable for serious competitors. No one makes anyone ride the Tour de France in a fat tire Schwinn. Perhaps the tech suits cause everyone's performance to improve - which makes swimming faster and more appealing to spectators and TV. Yes it makes the sport more expensive - but not radically so. Oh - I agree with Ande's positions on the suits.

"... so by limiting the coverage of the the body we limit the damages that can be done with engineering and biometics etcetera. That plus the idea of one suit alone." John Leonard "Nothing was wrong with swimming before, it was fine, it's worse now because something was introduced that shouldn't have been introduced." Craig Lord I agree 100%. Limit the coverage to limit the advantage of the suit, and make all the suits available to the public 12 mo before a meet. Hi Charged I agree with Craig Lord. :applaud: In the past, FINA’s position was to minimize the effect of the suit and they required that the suit have as little coverage as possible. However with the introduction of tech suits, there are way too many variables to deal with and any attempt to make rules about them will just result in bickering and nit picking. Suit technology (along with all sorts of performance enhancing drugs) is considered a "Cheat Sheet" appraoch and they have severely obscured what can be considered as a true achievement in the athletic world. The suit makers won’t go along with this, but the most obvious and simplist solution is just to go back to the Mark Spitz days in the 1970s when plain old $20 briefs were the standard uniform and the only variables were the individual athlete’s body characteristics. Dolphin 2

I don't know about most masters... That's ok, neither does Dolphin 2. I grew a sweet 'stache a few months back. I had some dudes come up to me with their own squirrel lips and tell me, "Right On!" Unfortunately, the chicks don't seem to dig the hair lip these days.

the most obvious and simplist solution is just to go back to the Mark Spitz days in the 1970s when plain old $20 briefs were the standard uniform and the only variables were the individual athlete’s body characteristics. Can we wear goggles? Do we have to grow mustaches? Women too? And what about the music? Do we have to like disco? Personally, the competitive aspects of masters swimming became much, much more fun for me after I wore my first body suit (a borrowed Speedo Aquablade kneeskin.) I don't know about most masters, but these ever evolving suits have allowed me to swim times in my 50s that I am not sure I ever made in my teens and 20s. I don't compare myself to today's phenoms. This would only lead to dispiriting thoughts like: Amaury Leveaux SC 100m free 44.94 Yeah! He beat me by LESS THAN 15 seconds!!! I do compare myself to myself, however, and when old Jim can beat young Jim, there is a certain motivational factor involved, a "Take that, Reaper!" kind of cockiness that seems to me more than worth the cost of a suit. For what it's worth, the suit I most recently swam in costs $56 on the internet--a discontinued Tyr kneeskin. Eventually, today's B70 will be discontinued (or our masters discount will prove significant), and I might enjoy another slight bump in performance. If these suits lead to self-delusion that keeps you competing and feeling self confident, I say what's the problem with that? Think of them as *** implant equivalents for aging male swimmers! Or *** implant over-comers for aging female swimmers with actual *** implants. Plus i really don't want to grow a mustache. It's too cold, and when your exhalations freeze, it looks kind of disgusting.

I also want to add that if swimmers are permitted to wear full body suits in international competitions like world championships and the olympics, it would be a very bad policy for USA swimming to hold trials for these meets and limit suits the swimmers can wear. Teams need to be selected with swimmers wearing the same suits they'll wear in the big competition.

The Morning Swim Show: Discussion on the Future of Swimsuit Technology; USA Swimming Proposal -- December 17, 2008 "... so by limiting the coverage of the the body we limit the damages that can be done with engineering and biometics etcetera. That plus the idea of one suit alone." John Leonard "Nothing was wrong with swimming before, it was fine, it's worse now because something was introduced that shouldn't have been introduced." Craig Lord I agree 100%. Limit the coverage to limit the advantage of the suit, and make all the suits available to the public 12 mo before a meet.

Hi, I wish they would allow for the wearing of a training suit under a tech suit. It is pretty easy to distinguish between the two types and it would greatly ease the crush in the change area, as well as shield eyes from "the horror", not to mention a last minute suit malfunction. So Allow Jammers or a Girls Training Suit. Tom

The Morning Swim Show: Discussion on the Future of Swimsuit Technology; USA Swimming Proposal -- December 17, 2008