Just returned from the DAM scm meet in Dallas. The format was slightly different this year, with all events on one day, but the pool conditions were the same. Tapered and shaved and wore Aquablade jammers instead of a full body B70. My training had been solid, and I'd had no recent illnesses.
What I found was a 2 second difference per 100 in the 400. Granted this was the last event (at 11:30 am), and I had already swum the 1500 four hours earlier (which was by the way slower than my 1650 in February also wearing a B70). I plan to retaper for zones in two weeks and swim another 400 (first event of the day). Perhaps I will be able to shave a bit of time off (no pun intended).
Train harder? Train smarter? No--I believe the difference in suits is very real.
My 2010 times are much slower than my 2009 times, some of it is how I trained this summer and fall (didn't lift weights) but much of it is the suit, racing in new blue 70 full body versus a textile jammer.
Female swimmers still have a significant amount of coverage, their times would be more effected if they were required to wear a bikini or jammer bottoms & a sports bra like top, exposing the mid sections.
Even though textile isn't as fast as rubber coated textile, the current legal suits for females provide a great deal of compression and a way better hull surface than bare flesh. Swimmers are swimming very fast in just textile.
Lean young firm swimmers aren't as effected as flabbier older not as firm swimmers.
Loose skin or skin on the loose creates more drag.
At the 2010 Ron Johnston SCM Meet, Jeff Commings swam very fast in just a jammer, his 2010 times were fairly close to his 2009 times. Though his SCM 2:09 200 IM in 2010 was 2 seconds slower than his 2:07 in 2009
It is possible for masters to swim faster in textile suits than they did in rubber suits but for many it will take some serious preparation.
here's a few of my time comparisons
event / 2009 / 2010
100 IM / 1:00.15 / 1:03.5
200 IM / 2:11.28 / 2:16.26
100 FL / 0:58.0 / 0:61.9
050 BK / 0:27.4 / 0:28.8
I'm training for a meet in 2 weeks to see if I can improve my 2010 times, but right now it ain't pretty.
Ande
Agree! I have Alzheimers about my college times.
Gull is correct. The suits definitely make a difference. Exactly how much is still unclear to me, though Gull's estimate for free seem quite reasonable. I think the difference may depend, in part, on body type, size, age, stroke and conditioning.
Since the ban, in SCM and LCM, I've done a couple personal worsts and had some big gaps even in 50s (1.5 seconds off previous tapered times). But in the two meets in question I was either coming off the flu or having taken time off training, so they were not apples to apples comparisons. And I can't seem to do evilstroke at all anymore.
I only have two fairly straight up comparisons in yards in the 50s. At Zones last April, I swam 2 50 frees, one in a B70 and one in a kneeskin. .4 difference. At this year's Sprint Classic (compared to last year), I was .2 slower in the 50 fly, but .4 faster in the 50 back in a kneeskin. My 50 back kneeskin time was actually faster than my time in a Jaked from Atlanta. But that may just have been due to better execution.
I have CZ/NE Champs in a few weeks, so I will have a better sense there. I'm hoping to keep the differential under 1 second for the 50s in SCM. I fear the gaps in the 100s will be much vaster than the 50s though ...
I maintain my previous stance of absolutely hating kneeskins. I don't think they seem any easier to get on either.
My 2010 times are much slower than my 2009 times, some of it is how I trained this summer and fall (didn't lift weights) but much of it is the suit, racing in new blue 70 full body versus a textile jammer.
Female swimmers still have a significant amount of coverage, their times would be more effected if they were required to wear a bikini or jammer bottoms & a sports bra like top, exposing the mid sections.
Even though textile isn't as fast as rubber coated textile, the current legal suits for females provide a great deal of compression and a way better hull surface than bare flesh. Swimmers are swimming very fast in just textile.
Lean young firm swimmers aren't as effected as flabbier older not as firm swimmers.
Loose skin or skin on the loose creates more drag.
At the 2010 Ron Johnston SCM Meet, Jeff Commings swam very fast in just a jammer, his 2010 times were fairly close to his 2009 times. Though his SCM 2:09 200 IM in 2010 was 2 seconds slower than his 2:07 in 2009
It is possible for masters to swim faster in textile suits than they did in rubber suits but for many it will take some serious preparation.
here's a few of my time comparisons
event / 2009 / 2010
100 IM / 1:00.15 / 1:03.5
200 IM / 2:11.28 / 2:16.26
100 FL / 0:58.0 / 0:61.9
050 BK / 0:27.4 / 0:28.8
I'm training for a meet in 2 weeks to see if I can improve my 2010 times, but right now it ain't pretty.
Ande
Agree! I have Alzheimers about my college times.
Gull is correct. The suits definitely make a difference. Exactly how much is still unclear to me, though Gull's estimate for free seem quite reasonable. I think the difference may depend, in part, on body type, size, age, stroke and conditioning.
Since the ban, in SCM and LCM, I've done a couple personal worsts and had some big gaps even in 50s (1.5 seconds off previous tapered times). But in the two meets in question I was either coming off the flu or having taken time off training, so they were not apples to apples comparisons. And I can't seem to do evilstroke at all anymore.
I only have two fairly straight up comparisons in yards in the 50s. At Zones last April, I swam 2 50 frees, one in a B70 and one in a kneeskin. .4 difference. At this year's Sprint Classic (compared to last year), I was .2 slower in the 50 fly, but .4 faster in the 50 back in a kneeskin. My 50 back kneeskin time was actually faster than my time in a Jaked from Atlanta. But that may just have been due to better execution.
I have CZ/NE Champs in a few weeks, so I will have a better sense there. I'm hoping to keep the differential under 1 second for the 50s in SCM. I fear the gaps in the 100s will be much vaster than the 50s though ...
I maintain my previous stance of absolutely hating kneeskins. I don't think they seem any easier to get on either.
