Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 10:29:33 GMT

Apparently the sunblock and epoxy is mixed with gold and unicorn sweat :D love it!

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 05:38:43 GMT

Leonard, I use the Watermans SPF 33 vs. the SPF 55

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:14:14 GMT

I used the Waterman's this weekend at the BLS. It worked pretty well, and much better than anything else I have tried in the ocean, but it was definitely mostly gone after 3 hours. I think the hunt for the perfect sunscreen continues, though I'll repeat that the Waterman's is by far the best I have tried.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

orca1946 — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 04:38:12 GMT

As a kid life guard we used zinc ox & it works & is cheap.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 12:28:32 GMT

Thanks for the thread and info Jansen. This is an important topic, we are swimming both pool and OW in South Florida outdoors year-round. Sunscreen is crucial. I also am new to this climate from Canada and have very white skin that is not, as of yet, sundamaged, like many others down here. Yesterday we did a 3000y OWS, the swim plus beach time was about 2 hours in the direct afternoon sun. I wore Banana Boat Sport SPF 30 all over my body and Neutrogena SPF 70 Age Shield on my face. I didn't burn at all but got the startings of a "killer" tan - damage. I am going to try the BullFrog Superblock 50 and the Waterman 55. Thanks again. T

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:20:50 GMT

Leonard, Do you think tis stuff is adequate for 3 -4 hours in the ocean? Or do I need to get all greased up with zinc like Ripple suggests? Although I haven't tried it in the ocean, I am guessing that it would. The reason is that it definitely holds up for more than 2 hours in the pool and my experience is that the pool chemicals seem to strip off sunscreen faster than fresh or salt water. I have used Bullfrog for 4 hours in the ocean - and that was the older variant of it - without big problems. The Waterman's is better than both the old and the new, improved Bullfrog, so the guess is yes. Just remember to bring your Dawn dishwashing detergent with you. -LBJ

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 09:11:53 GMT

This is funny. While I was reading this thread I noticed that one of the Google ads at the top of the page was for Dawn Detergent. The local Dollar Tree store has a crappy shaving gel called On The Go For Men. It absolutely rips sunscreen off your body, even better than Dawn detergent. I found this out when I decided to shave right after a workout and before showering. Some of the gel dripped off my chin and onto my chest. In one second the sunscreen on my chest was gone. Sounds like the "On The Go For Men" marketing people have an opportunity to target an entirely different audience than the shaving crowd...

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 06:25:31 GMT

Leonard, Do you think tis stuff is adequate for 3 -4 hours in the ocean? Or do I need to get all greased up with zinc like Ripple suggests?

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:25:56 GMT

Eureka! I accidently discovered something that takes off all sunscreens with almost no effort. The local Dollar Tree store has a crappy shaving gel called On The Go For Men. It absolutely rips sunscreen off your body, even better than Dawn detergent. I found this out when I decided to shave right after a workout and before showering. Some of the gel dripped off my chin and onto my chest. In one second the sunscreen on my chest was gone. It's only $1.00 and a tube will last for 5-6 de-suncreening applications. It works with other brands of sunscreen too (Bullfrog, Ocean Potions, etc). -LBJ

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

srcoyote — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:06:52 GMT

Gojo, orange goo, etc. It has pumice in it, good for scrubbing grease and stuff under your finger nails. This is also the Fast Orange to which I referred earlier. The grease will come off taking the outer layer of skins cells with it.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:07:43 GMT

What do car mechanics use? Gojo, orange goo, etc. It has pumice in it, good for scrubbing grease and stuff under your finger nails.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 13:38:48 GMT

ammonia plus Clorox together is lethal to all manner of grease. DO NOT mix bleach and ammonia. When mixed they form chlorine gas. Very dangerous.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 12:59:18 GMT

Update on this: The adventure on removing this stuff continues. I tried Noxema cream and it didn't even touch it. The Court Without Appeal handed down a harshly worded ruling when she found out that I had used her entire jar of Noxema trying to get this off. I barely escaped the death penalty - fighting the cats for sleeping room on the couch last night. However, I did find something that DOES work: Dawn dish washing liquid works GREAT. Takes it off in 1 or 2 applications, slick as can be. I reasoned that if it works to remove spilled oil off of birds and otters, it might work on this. The Court Without Appeal's judgement on this: "Do you have any idea of the horror of being married to someone whose brain works like a carnival's house of mirrors." No guess if using Dawn like that is a good idea, but for now, that's what I'm stuck with. -LBJ

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

ViveBene — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 12:43:49 GMT

Dawn dishwashing liquid is great! For nonhuman application, because it is noxious (Chris Stevens could say why), ammonia plus Clorox together is lethal to all manner of grease. What do car mechanics use?

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:01:03 GMT

Okay, here's a cheap substitute: zinc diaper rash cream. Yes, you will look like an Australian Aborigine doing some kind of ghost dance wearing it. On the other hand your alabaster-white arms will be very visible to passing boat traffic and possibly show up on the Google Earth satellite shots. But it does stay on...and on.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

srcoyote — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:40:33 GMT

Both good to know should I successfully make it up to those longer than 5K races I anticipate entering next year. I wonder if Fast Orange would take off that Waterman's. I had the chance to exfoliate my entire body yesterday using that stuff. I was simply changing a serpentine belt, but ended up covered head to toe in grease and oil. Fast Orange. You can buy it for a couple bucks at any auto parts store.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

Former Member — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 05:42:33 GMT

haha, yeah as an Aussie I use zinc for the long swims. Sticks like s#@$ to a blanket and gets stuck all over your suit, but it works. Only problem is keeping it out of the goggles. Thanks for the info on the Waterman sunscreen! it would be nice to try a new one. I agree about the Bullfrog too. That's a good one.

RE: Be careful what you wish for: Sunscreen

FindingMyInnerFish — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:06:59 GMT

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 Maybe the reason it's so expensive is that it is meant to be permanent. Unicorn sweat is STRONG STUFF! :weightlifter: :D