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Open water and wetsuits

GraemeGraeme Posts: 48
in General Chat
Hi

I'm a reasonable indoor swimmer and would like to step up my effort to open water.

I know litterally nothing about open water swimming, and would appreciate some advice from you guys on what wetsuit to buy and inside type information on training and equipment etc.

Any advice you guys could come up with would be greatly appreciated.

I have a local open water club to me, so i have a location sorted

Thanks in advance for your help

Graeme

Comments

  • rebborebbo Posts: 58
    Graeme,



    if you have a location sorted, that's the biggest hurdle out of the way! As for wetsuits, it's all about fit, so deffo try some on before buying - ideally somewhere with an endless pool. You could also hire before buying - or buy second hand/ex-hire, rather than shelling out loads. But end of season means bargains approaching!

    Only technique difference I've heard (not that I'm much cop swimming in or out of a wetsuit) is to avoid high elbows - so a straighter arm during recovery.





    Tom
  • loonytoonloonytoon Posts: 673
    Rebbo Like yourself I am no great swimmer in or out of the wetsuit but I read in 220 that the straight arm thing was only needed if you had a shoulder led recovery...Its apparently required that with shoulder led recoveries the wetsuit prevents the shoulder moving properly and hense slows you down...which a hand led recovery you'll be fine...



    That said I don't know wether my recovery is shoulder led or not(or indeed how to spot one) so I must confess to using a straighter arm just in case when in my wetsuit.

  • GraemeGraeme Posts: 48
    I'd never heard of any shops that have endless pools so that you can try a suit out before buying. Do you guys know of any. I guess a meduim length drive to a decent shop is better than getting a suit that doesnt fit properly from a shop that doesnt really know what they're doing. Total Fitness in Bath is my local shop for Triathlon kit, but I dont know if thwy know their stuff on wetsuits or not ?.. I've heard a lot of good reports about Orca suits, and they have a few around the £200 mark, which would be the top of my budget ?

    Also, sorry for the million questions, but how far into the year do you guys normally train outdoors before the cold weather gets a bit too much ?
  • johnnieboyjohnnieboy Posts: 4
    hi



    only place i know with endless pool in-store is triuk in yeovil. can recommend the service that they offered. no pressure whatsoever to buy suit but ended up with real bargain. don't know about any other retailers but maybe others do.



    hope it helps



  • rebborebbo Posts: 58
    Graeme,



    I've got an Orca Sonar - the Apex was way more than I needed! Excellent write-ups and I am very pleased, but as everyone keeps saying, fit is most important. So try on (& try out if poss) as many as you can. End of season should mean lots of bargains - keep your eyes open for offers online and in 220.



    As for training into winter - as long as possible! There was an article in last month's cycling plus by Joe Beer about how to extend the year, which was all common sense stuff, like wearing the right kit & getting out when you can.





    Tom
  • rolyatnairolyatnai Posts: 9
    tri uk guys advice is great - after flunking at Ironbridge the missus bought me a wetsuit - foor quantum 2 from triuk - he spent ages telling me how to look after it and get into it - its great - and has given me a lot of confidence - went open water swimming in our local diving centres pool at the weekend - the most important thing is to be comfy in the suit - took me two goes to get it so it didnt run on the back of my neck - than after that I was away - gonna get lots of practice in through autumn and early spring so i'm ready for next season - actually lots of thanks to the folks on here who gave me my advice on open water swimming - get one you can afford that fits well then just swim - who cares if your good or bad triathlon is about doing soemthing for you, being your best and challenging yuourself to go better next time - not how fast you are - unless your a british team member.



    Ian
  • robsaundrobsaund Posts: 26
    Think I've also seen mention of Dorney Lake (Swim, Bike, Run out of Windsor?) in conjunction with tri-before-you-buy wetsuits, which probably isn't as close as Yeovil (if you're near Bath), perhaps someone could comment on this as I can't speak from personal experience...



    Rob

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