Three weeks ago, I came up with an fun idea. Not that all my ideas are intelligently or completely thought out, but I was looking for the answer to an age old question in adventure racing. Can an adventure racer just sign up for a triathlon ironman and complete it in a reasonable time? I happened to have an Ironman close by and was not working, so I gave the idea some consideration. Now, I had slightly less than 3 weeks to prepare. I had bike time in my legs and that would be the easy part. However, I hadn't been swimming, and my run workouts were focused on speed and nothing long, so I wasn't really in AR shape long and slow fitness that I was accustomed. However, I had been doing some paddling workouts. I actually started running the numbers in my head on my pace estimates, I figured with lots of good nutrition and luck, I could do it in 10 hrs, with those 3 weeks of training. While I spent 24 hrs deciding how bad I would destroy my legs to test this theory, the ironman registration closed, but the Aquavelo division still had spots. More importantly, I remembered I had my son's soccer game at 3pm, so the Aquavelo division it was. So, I signed up. If I wanted to prove my theory, then I suppose I could still do the run unofficially, but having to miss the soccer game. Anyhow, now I had 15 days left to train my swimming. Some where along the way, I signed up for an AR race and had a few bike races in the future that I was ruminating over, so I decided not to test the full ironman theory, as I knew there would be too much recovery and an upset wife and son. I did add 10 miles to the bike and ran 4 miles back to my car, making it closer to 124.6 miles. That's sort of close to 140.6. I suppose they won't give me the 140.6 bumper sticker though. By the way, the soccer game ended up being rained out.
Back to the wetsuit: I figured I had 4 key workouts to get in in those remaining days. I needed all the help I could get. My options of wetsuits was a farmer john Orca and an ironman Vo2 full wetsuit. The problem with these, the velcro area on the neck had frayed a wee bit and everytime I got in them and swam more than 400 yrds, I had neck abrasions that became infected over the following days. It had been awhile since I had used them, but even trying them on and doing a few strokes in my backyard pool, that darn neck attachment was tearing away dermis layers with every stroke. Fearing the 2.4 mile swim might scrape away enough tissue to expose my C3-5 vertebral bodies, I decided it was time to get a new wetsuit. I hopped online and read what I could in the time I had. Looked for one without a zipper, and I came across 2 choices. The Desoto was the only one available, so with only 2 weeks left, I payed full retail. Maybe I am spoiled, but I am not used to paying retail for things. Ouch! I could of gotten a discount on a QR wetsuit at my bike shop, but they are essentially similar to my current suits.
Now, if you scan thru reviews on wetsuits, they all seem industry biased. I scanned a few forums and found only a few words on the Desoto. Mostly stuff like it was "revolutionary" but difficult to get out of quickly. However, I also read that some felt it was easy to transition quickly. Most everyone commented on the less strain in the stroke because of the two piece. Desoto does not seem to sponsor many elite triathletes, so I didn't see much in the pro ranks. Some age groupers commented that they had slightly faster swim times and transitions.
So, here is my review:
The Desoto T1 is a two piece, which is part of the reason it does not have a neck zipper. Because it's two pieces, it is about 10% more expensive than a traditional one piece suit. However, you can order a farm john style no sleeve and also have a full sleeve, making it more versatile, and then about the same price as owning two complete wetsuits for warm and cold swims. Also, Desoto includes a 14 day return policy if you don't like the suit. That I liked. The bottom is made of thicker 5mm neoprene and the top is slightly thinner, like all wetsuits. When I got the wetsuit 3 days later, I immediately opened it like a young kid on his bday. I threw the wetsuit on and hopped in the pool. My wife was wondering what the hell I was doing out there in the dark for so long. Well, I was comparing it to my other two wetsuits, as I had 14 days to get that $500 back. Putting the wetsuit on was no more difficult than the other suits, accept for the fact I didn't want to tear it with my finger nails if I was gonna return it. What is first noticeable in the water is the fact that wetsuit stays drier for longer and so cold immersion is more gradual than my other one-pieces. I did read that online, which also makes me wonder if it would hold slightly more air for buoyancy and thus less wetted surface--meaning more speed. Hmm... When swimming with it, the two piece does allow a less restricted stroke on the reach or catch. (that was mentioned online also). Comparing it to my other full wetsuit, my shoulder girdle muscles seemed to have an easier time. That would be important since I had only 2 weeks left in training.
Now, the lack of zipper on the neck. Well, I had no rub or abrasions after using it for 30 minutes continuously. I was sold and am likely putting the other wetsuits up on ebay. For some reason, I have lent my wetsuit to others, who had no problems with the zipper issue. I had tried duct tape, body glide, and electrical tape, but something about my neck and body type causes the abrasions.
Now, was it hard to get out of? No, if anything, it was slightly easier. Since the top piece doesn't pull down as tight on the shoulder, the upper part seems to come off more easily. This did not mean the top piece of wetsuit rides up while swimming, which I did worry about. I suppose my body type makes one pieces more restricting and difficult to get out of, as I am built more like a blocky fire hydrant. Michael Phelps, I am not. The Desoto was definitely easier to pull off than my other two wetsuits. It was only 2-3 seconds faster, but it took less effort and straining.
Now, was I faster in the water? Well, I don't think so, but that is not why I bought it in the first place. I guess I would have to swim for 30 minutes in all 3 wetsuits to see if one was faster than the other and try to duplicate the test several times to come up with an acceptable confidence interval and answer. That ain't happening.
The final test came on race day. I had 4 1/2 swim sessions in me and was late to the start (long story, but it was just a training day), and didn't have a great race time. I do know that prerace my 100 yd splits were on par with my swim times from yesteryear, with not much training. I am sure from this, the wetsuit wasn't slowing me down. Why I was so slow on race day I am not completely sure. There was an excessive amount of current on the nose for part of the course and it was very choppy out, likely making my time slower, and I was stuck trying to break thru the back of the pack for the first 1.2 miles. I also started a few minutes late. Since it was a mass wave start, it was absolute mayhem back there. Prerace, I still thought my swim splits were on par for about a 1 hr swim time. I know 4 swim sessions is not alot for an ironman swim, but that was part of the experiment. I used to race freestyle as a kid, so the biomechanics come back quickly, and paddling has a mild crosstraining effect. I know is not a great swim time, but it's enough to keep me only 3-5 minutes off the top age group swimmers, who are usually catchable on the bike if they aren't doping or training 30 hrs/week. The run is another story. The elite tri folks are in a whole different league in the sub 50 min swim category. Great swim times are also not my body type, as I am only 5'8", if I stretch the truth:-) What was very noticeable about this wetsuit after 2.4 miles were my arms were not as tired as I expected and the suit slipped right off when I got out of the water. I did feel less short of breath while taking the thing off. I distinctly remember my other suits causing my highest heart rate of the whole race. I also had no deep abrasions on my neck. I loved this thing. I have done enough tris in the past to remember how tired my arms have felt in the past on much shorter swims, with or without much swim training. There must be something to the two piece. My wife examined my neck area that evening, as I did have some mild irritation on my neck. I had gotten a few jellyfish stings and thought maybe that was it. She did notice the irritation was in the area where the neck neoprene touches the skin. She said it was Contact Dermatitis, so I applied some Cortaid. Next morning, the irritation was nearly gone. Very cool! Surely, this is nothing like what I would of seen with my other wetsuits. In summary, I really loved it. So much so, I will fully test the AR/ ironman theory in the next few years.
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