Open Water Beginner Wetsuit.

rodtheplod

Hi,
I am a complete beginner at open water swimming and was looking for some advice on wetsuits.

Swimming in Scotland.

What thickness should I be looking at getting?

I had an opportunity to by an O'Neil Reactor 3/2 for £60 but did not know if that would be a good starting suit.

I dont want to be spending too much money in case it is something I hate or simple cant do.

Any help will be graetly appreciated.

Cheers

Rod

shadowone1

most wetsuits have different thicknesses in different areas and some wet-suits are thinner overall. I am from scotland and I have an Aquasphere Blue Marlin and I've swam in various places and the wet-suit has been fine.

The important thing with a wet-suit is fit. You need to make sure it fits properly otherwise you'll end up swimming like you have a massive soaking nappy on. I think there is a place in Hamilton that allows you to try on various wet-suits - Athlete i think its name is.

Much depends on the budget as well. but a decent wet-suit will cost about £150 ish

kirkby

hi just bought my first wetsuit, I went to a good tri shop and was amazed at how tight it has to be to keep you warm, also I was shown the best way to put it on and take it off. Had I just ordered over net I would have bought the wronge size. Do try before you buy and get someone in the know to help.

wayfarer

I had a similarly dilema earlier this year, though was looking for guidance on hire/buy combos.

Anyway, following advice give on this forum, I went for a wetsuit from TriUK. If I elect to keep it at the end of the season it'll cost me £100 in total, if I return it at the end of year it'll simply cost me a hire price of £35 (plus £15 p&p).

As for sizing they provided a pretty good sizing chart on the website, but a quick call to the shop answered any queries.