Goggles strap: Outside your swimcap, or inside?

Former Member
Former Member
I've been told that "real swimmers" strap inside. Yet, looking at images of world class swimmers in action, I see many strap outside. Discuss.
  • I haven't ever seen anyone strap inside while training, but many do while competing. Some double cap. Inside cap, goggles, outside cap.
  • I haven't ever seen anyone strap inside while training, but many do while competing. Some double cap. Inside cap, goggles, outside cap. I always strap inside, training or competing.
  • Inside the cap the goggles, when properly set, are less likely to slip off during the the start. Sometimes during events I wear goggles over cap with a second cap over goggles.
  • For racing, goggle strap under the smooth silicon cap = less drag. Every hundredth of a second counts! Also, in open water, while I prefer to NOT wear a cap, most races make you wear a cap. With sighting, I find that a cap can move around a lot during a race. If my goggles are under the cap and the cap moves, the worst thing that happens is that I lose the cap. If my goggles are over the cap and the cap moves, my goggles might fill up or my cap might fall off, but then get lodged in the goggle strap and fill the cap up with water. If I only looked badass bald like Telly Savalas, I'd go bald and then never have to worry about a cap!
  • If I only looked badass bald like Telly Savalas, I'd go bald and then never have to worry about a cap! Ha! Nobody knows who Telly Savalas is anymore. 70s and 80s references, I have found are lost on everyone...I feel so all alone:sad: Back to the question: I prefer outside (or no cap as I overheat in distance easily) in a pool (but Patrick is right--inside is more aero). I find when I need to adjust them or clean the fog off before racing, if they are under, they don't sit right and I need to do everything over again (take off cap, put goggles on, then replace cap) I learned the hard way that inside is the way to go for open water. During the Inaugural IM Arizona 2005 a guy from the start pulled my leg and elbowed my goggles off my head. I frantically searched for them as 2500 people began to swim over the top of me...to no avail. I swam 2.4 miles in pseudomonas-laden Tempe town lake without goggles. I still was 2nd out of the water (bested by the great Mike Melley). I was also partially blind the next 3-5 days and had to bike 112 miles and run/shuffle 26 miles squinting. Athletic Darwinism at it's finest and really the birth of my disdain for many triathletes.
  • But why? :) Is it personal preference? Fear of goggles moving? In competition, the goggles stay on more securely under my cap on the starts. I use a different brand of goggles (cheap Swim Outlet Sporti goggles) for training, and the strap slips on my cap during turns unless I adjust the goggles quite tight. I would rather have the goggles fit a bit looser, which is more comfortable for me, and have the cap hold them securely in place.
  • Former Member
    Former Member over 3 years ago
    But why? :) Is it personal preference? Fear of goggles moving?
  • But why? :) Is it personal preference? Fear of goggles moving? Strap out when training because I may mess with my goggles. Strap in in competition to help reduce the potential for them to fall down, and maybe the straps are a bit less streamlined when flopping out in the water. Although in looking at a picture, when I did our unofficial open water Bridges to Bluffs swim this past November, straps were out. 2 caps I guess is mostly my girls. They'd get their hair managed with the first, goggles, then a second. Now they jsut roll up their hair on top of their head and throw on the cap.
  • So ---- is it legal for Masters to wear 2 caps?I believe so, but I've never understood the two cap rationale.
  • I believe so, but I've never understood the two cap rationale. 2 caps are legal. I wear a latex one under the silicone competition cap and they both stay on better(no riding up.)