Tried my new wetsuit out at the Y. Water temp around 80. Works very well, but too
warm to do much of a workout. Question: What water temp would be the line for wetsuit
or no wetsuit? Is there a temp set by the event?
OK, that's pretty funny right there.
I even hear that there are "noodle" waves now for triathletes.
Race directors want $$$, so they allow wetsuits to keep the numbers up for their events. It obviously also allows a greater number of people to be exposed to events that they wouldn't otherwise do thereby promoting the sport.
During the old IMSA pro days the only thing you were allowed to have was a suit, goggles, one cap (silicone/latex), and ear-plugs. Part of what separates an OW event from everything else is how you can deal with the conditions as well as the distance. My hardest swims were 15K ocean training sessions before the English Channel. The first day the water was 50 and the second day it was 48. I froze my ass off, but came out of it hard as nails.
True OW marathons will greatly reward the tougher swimmers; not necessarily the fastest.
Look at the shear number of people at the starting line for any Ironman event and compare it to the beach before the Tampa Bay marathon swim. Wimps need not apply.
OK, that's pretty funny right there.
I even hear that there are "noodle" waves now for triathletes.
Race directors want $$$, so they allow wetsuits to keep the numbers up for their events. It obviously also allows a greater number of people to be exposed to events that they wouldn't otherwise do thereby promoting the sport.
During the old IMSA pro days the only thing you were allowed to have was a suit, goggles, one cap (silicone/latex), and ear-plugs. Part of what separates an OW event from everything else is how you can deal with the conditions as well as the distance. My hardest swims were 15K ocean training sessions before the English Channel. The first day the water was 50 and the second day it was 48. I froze my ass off, but came out of it hard as nails.
True OW marathons will greatly reward the tougher swimmers; not necessarily the fastest.
Look at the shear number of people at the starting line for any Ironman event and compare it to the beach before the Tampa Bay marathon swim. Wimps need not apply.
