Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

As some of you may know, I am a bit obsessed with sunscreen since I have rotten, non-tanning skin and like to swim long distances. To date, Bullfrog has made the best, most waterproof sunscreen that I have been able to find. First of all, let me say that it appears that Bullfrog has made their sunscreen (the Superblock 50) even more waterproof than it was. It works very well. However, even with that improvement, they just slipped to #2 on the Jansen Totally Subject Sunscreen Scale. I just remortgaged the house, cashed in all my 401k's and bought a bottle of Waterman's SPF 55. I had heard that this was amazingly durable in the water. Durable isn't the word. I'm not even sure what the word is, but it works astoundingly well. I spent 2.5 hours swimming in the direct sun this weekend and don't even have the slightest sign of red. Even the improved Bullfrog doesn't hold up that well. Apparently Waterman's decided to skip using things like waxes and oils to make their sunscreen waterproof and just mixed it with marine epoxy instead. That's the good news. The bad news is that it is EXPENSIVE - I paid about $20 for a 3.4 ounce bottle (3-ish applications) at www.swimoutlet.com. Apparently the sunblock and epoxy is mixed with gold and unicorn sweat or some other exotic stuff that necessitates the price. The really bad news is that it is almost impossible to wash off. Even after being in the water for hours, I had to soap down 5 times (I tried Ivory, Dove, Dr. Bronner's, some generic soap and a soap that I make myself that is usually very good at removing sunscreen) and use an exfoliating scrub to get it to the point that I thought I had most of it off. Maybe you have to pay them another $20 for the secret of getting it off without using a barbecue grill brush, a belt sander and trichlorethane. OK. I'm sold. This stuff is great. It definately goes in the bag for races and long workouts. Now I just need a second job and a waterproof belt sander. -LBJ