You're thinking about buying a wetsuit for open water swimming, or maybe your first triathlon, and straight away you're hit with too much choice. Too many brands, and once you've picked the one you like (hopefully it's Great Ocean), you've still got to work out which model actually suits your goals.
These days, most athletes lining up on the start line are wearing full sleeved wetsuits. But have you ever thought about swimming in a sleeveless one instead? Truth is, most swimmers, me included, get a bit of FOMO and just default to full sleeves because that's what everyone else is wearing.
Now, I'm not saying skip the full sleeved wetsuit. They're great and they've got real advantages. You get more warmth, which matters if you're swimming in colder water or you're someone who feels the cold easily, and feeling cold on race day will slow you down. You also get better sun protection. And generally, full sleeved suits are faster, not because sleeves themselves make you faster, but because most brands pour their top tier R&D into their flagship full sleeved model. For us, that's the G2 compared to our SL2, the sleeveless equivalent of our SV2.
So why go sleeveless after all that? A few reasons. First, they're cheaper, mostly because they skip the flexible neoprene through the shoulders, which is the most expensive part of any suit. Second, and this is the real benefit, they last longer. Ask any triathlete and they'll tell you it's always the flexible neoprene through the arms and shoulders that wears out first. No arms, nothing to wear out. And no matter what the marketing says, there's no shoulder as flexible as having no shoulder at all. There's always a bit of resistance in even the most flexible neoprene. Finally, if you're swimming in warmer water, a sleeveless suit will work in your favour. Just like getting cold in cooler water can hurt your performance, overheating in warmer water while wearing a full sleeved wetsuit can do the same
So next time you're shopping for a wetsuit, don't write off the sleeveless option just because it's not what everyone else is wearing. It might be exactly what your swim needs.
