racing suits

These articles may help you: Tip 201 Which Suit Suits you? More On Racing Suits Tip 213 Even More On Racing Suits 1) Depends what you're looking for: I prefer the Blue Seventy Nero Comp 2) racing suits are for competition and preparing for competition. It's a very bad idea to try out your tech suit for the first time at your meet. Get one several weeks in Advance, test it out on fast swims in practice. Get used to it. 3) Shaving: Definitely shave exposed areas, many swimmers clip, shave, nair, or wax other areas. 1) ok so i decided to swim in meets this year, my question is about suits that are acceptable during meets.Since there are lots of people with extensive experience here then maybe you could help me choose one, types etc. 2) do you use racing suit ONLY during competition or sometimes when you do race pace during practice? 3) do you shave? - but of course! what a dumb question! Thanks!:) Robert

since I prefer jammers I shave. I don't were my FS Pro at practice, but I do have tighter jammers that I take to workouts on days I want to swim fast. otherwise I have two drag suits on for 90% of my work outs.

1) ok so i decided to swim in meets this year, my question is about suits that are acceptable during meets.Since there are lots of people with extensive experience here then maybe you could help me choose one, types etc. That is up to you and your budget. Elsewhere Jim Thornton has provided a helpful list of the hierarchies of the suits. IMO, the improvement of the "last" generation of suits (through the FSII) over shaved skin is negligible/marginal. The FSII bodysuit did not make me any faster than jammers, though YMMV. I have never used the FS-Pro and can't comment on it from experience; I've heard good things from others. The best bang for buck may be the B70 or the XTerra Velocity, which I've heard is similar to the B70 but seems to be a little cheaper. I haven't used it (yet). 2) do you use racing suit ONLY during competition or sometimes when you do race pace during practice? I only use it in competition to save on wear and tear. Others (notably Ande) use them extensively in practice, the idea being that you feel quite different in the suit than without. 3) do you shave? - but of course! what a dumb question! Not a dumb question. You certainly want to shave your exposed areas (eg, arms). When I first starting using the FSII, I thought its #1 advantage was not in the pool but saving me the hassle (and lost energy/time) of shaving my body and legs. But now I do it anyway, for two reasons. First of all, with the porous suits, your hairs can stick through the fabric. Secondly, and more importantly IMO, sometimes the suits fail (fabric rips, zipper breaks, etc). I want to be shaved in case it is necessary to forego the suit and swim in briefs or a jammer. Plus, I love the sensation of swimming shaved in warmups, it gets me psyched up for the race.

1) I think wearing tech suits is goes a bit overboard at times (esp in masters). For regular meets i find just an aquablade to be fine... in my last meet i wore a plain old speedo and still squeeked out a personal best. Smaller/normal meets i generally use an aquablade or regular jammer. Nationals I have invested in some leg skins to wear for one maybe two races i really want to focus on. I like the leg skins the best... brand/type is something i dont have much experience with. 2) It would be nice if i had money to spend on speed suits that i could wear at practice... as chris mentioned the feel is quite different. 3) I only shave my legs at national meets (partly tradition partly so i dont pull out hairs when putting the suit on), but im not completely sold on hair being a huge factor... maybe if i'm going at olympic pace, but not at my speed. Again the feel thing is a big thing here too.. since shaving exposes nerve endings.

I have only done meets for fun. Wore a speedo brief practice suit. Didn't shave. Didn't taper. There will be a broad spectrum of preparedness of the meet participants. You can just show up in your practice gear and fit in fine. I just wanted to chime in so you didn't think tech suits and shaving down are the norm for a masters meet. They will be there racing too, but there will be plenty of "normal" people too :)

Ande, since this guy is form your backyard, have you tried this suit yet: www.austin360.com/.../0112fitcity.html Because you give comprehensive reviews, I nominate you as the guy that they just give a suit to and then you can write a review for the forum. I would think 20-30 people are going to buy a Blue70 simply because you said you prefer it.

Robert - I think you will be VERY pleasantly surprised at just how inclusive USMS meets are. All ages, speeds, and body types, and certainly all suit types. Whatever you feel comfortable doing is the way to go. Shaving mid-season is probably rare, but again, do whatever you want. If you are interested in an 'introductory' speed suit either for fast sets in practice or for meets, search 'Yingfa' on ebay. You can get a new pair of leggings for $30-$35. I just replaced the pair I bought a year ago. They lasted for dozens of swims totaling thousands of yards. They are certainly not as fast as the B70 or LZR, but they are definitely faster than swimming unshaved, and give you that tech suit 'feel.' Good luck!

hey guys im new to the sight. from what i have heard and experienced, is that using a tec suit during parts of your taper is the best thing possible. i have a tyr aqua shift and a couple fs II's, and i like using the aquashift as a taper suit