blueseventy

steve munatones tests out our swim socks…

Description: Neoprene socks prevent injury to the sole of foot when walking on rocky surfaces.  Form fitting to minimize water entry while swimming.  Keeps the feet warm in cold water.

Sales Pitch: Plush neoprene eliminates chaffing from plastic straps. Adjustable for any size ankle and fitting under or over clothing.

Would I Buy It?: Yes – for specific open water purposes.

Test Location: We tested in Southern California during the month of January at (1) the Huntington Beach, known as Surf City, on its wide sandy beach when the water was 58°F (14°C), both in the early morning and mid-afternoon, (2) McGaugh 25-yard pool at a 5:00 am masters swim practice, and (3) while kayaking in the Pacific Ocean, and (4) while walking at and near Mavericks, a famous surfing location near San Francisco.

Why: The product, simply put, does what it says and is better suited for athletes in the open water – and less expensive – than typical surf booties.

Upside: The blueseventy Swim Socks have multiple uses.  Very importantly, they do keep your feet warmer – especially when they are not yet wet – and protected than they would if you go barefoot.  You can use them for walking on cold sandy beaches, rocky surfaces near ocean and lake shorelines and the cold decks of outdoor pools in the winter, spring and fall.  You can also use them while you are on an escort boat (or kayak) while escorting a fellow swimmer training or during a solo channel swim or marathon relay.  They work well on boat decks and when you walk up on the shore, pier, jetty, breakwater, dock, groin, boat landing, seawall, boat slip or wharf.  The “grilled” sole part of the Swim Socks effectively eliminate our worry about stepping on sharp rocks, shells and bits of glass on the shorelines and piers, especially when it is dark in the morning or night.  They also work very well on the very cool pool deck and the walk from the parking lot to the pool.  Unlike larger and bulkier surf booties, we found the Swim Socks were lighter, thinner and, therefore, more appropriate for an open water swimmer.  You can also use the Swim Socks during your pool workouts that can add stress to your shoulders during pulling sets or specifically help you improve your up kick on your freestyle during kicking, sprint or normal freestyle sets.  The Swim Socks can be folded up and placed inside your wetsuit or swimsuit if you no longer need them when you are swimming.  If you only use them to walk to the water’s edge, then they are light and do not take up much room in your bag.

Downside: The Swim Socks are not waterproof and water gets inside, so the warmth level is what you should expect from a wetsuit when you enter the water.  On the other hand, your feet will stay warm enough, especially if cold feet bother you or if you typically wear a wetsuit and feel your feet are always freezing.  If you have a strong kick or start sprinting, then the Swim Sock can sag down and you feel the weight of the water as it pools in Swim Socks near your toes, whether you are in the open water or pool.  Positively thinking, this feeling of having a bit of water pooling in the Swim Socks can be seen as a bit of a additional workout challenge.  We thought of this sensation as a benefit, but we would definitely not want to do all – or even most – of our workouts with the Swim Socks.  When used in a pool, the Swim Socks quickly sagged down from the ankles due to the constant turns which was more than a bit uncomfortable, especially when doing butterfly and breaststroke.  But, for adding stress on your legs for freestyle and backstroke swimming sets, it can be used effectively as our up kick always needs improvement.

Changes: If we were asked to re-design the product, we would either make the Swim Socks shorter (i.e., reduce the length that it rides up your ankles) or add some kind of fabric or Velcro above the ankles so the Swim Socks would not sag.  But other than that, we think the thickness and overall design achieve its ultimate aim: keeping your feet warmer and protecting against injury.

Overall: Swim Socks are not an absolutely must-buy like a pair of goggles, but blueseventy did a very good job with this product.  The needs – cold feet and injury protection – were identified and the Swim Socks definitely meets those needs.  Overall, a job well done.  The Swim Socks would be a great gift for triathletes, for a parent or friend who is a masters swimmer, for a swimmer who trains in the open water during the winter, spring or fall, for friends who support you on your channel swim or during marathon swim training, or for yourself if your feet get cold or need protection on boats, kayaks, lidos or shorelines.

High-tech swimsuit creates controversy

Sue Winckler was astonished.

“One coach accused me of cheating,” the DeForest girls prep swimming and diving coach said.

All because of a swimming suit. A legal swimming suit.

View full article: http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/314156

A tale of two suits - Tri247

Tri247’s Conclusion of the Helix TST v. 2XU V:1: As has often been said before on these pages, there’s far more to buying a wetsuit that just the headline numbers. Last year we could scarcely distinguish between the top two suits but, a year later, the 2008 derivatives do seem to have clearly set themselves apart. Both are fantastic examples of what you can do with neoprene but it does seem that the blueseventy Helix TST has now just edged in front of the radical 2XU V:1. Offered either you wouldn’t turn them down but, given you get a proper fit with both, the smart money does now indicate that the Helix TST is the preferred suit.

Read the full review here »

a great pointzero3 review

We very much believe in what we do and are super confident that our customers will like our products and find them to be beneficial. Still we always quite enjoy it when a customer or a magazine gives us an enthusiastic thumbs up, kind of like 220 magazine recently did with our blueseventy pointzero 3 swimskin. 

blueseventy convert

I recently competed at Ironman Australia in the new Helix TST. I had been using an old sleveless Stealth wettie and swore I would never use a full length wetsuit again after a couple of bad experiences. I used to get so much fatigue in the shoulders and the first time I used a sleveless wettie it was amazing. I felt my open water swimming wasn’t where it should be so I decided to try the new Helix TST a couple of days before IM. It felt awesome!! I very quickly bought it and on race day lined up with a new sense of confidence. At IM Aus 2007 I got smahed and beat up and had the worst swim of my career. Due to some issues with my (now previous squad) I had done half the training I did compared to last year. I probably only went at about 75% perceived rate of exertion and still managed to come out of the water almost 250 places higher than last year!! I felt no fatigue in the shoulders and had expended so much less energy in the swim. I don’t come from a swimming background, but I have always been a solid pool swimmer, however struggled in the open water. My coach (Mitch Anderson) tell’s me to swim open water more. I prefer to buy a new wettie to try and get my swimming back on track as I am not a fan of open water swimming! I now can’t wait for next season. And I no longer dread the swim leg which should really be a strength. Craig from the Auqua Shop fitted me perfectly in the suit and took great care of me! Oh, and before I forget. I was given a pair of vision goggles. I have tried goggles that were “leak proof” and haven’t worked. My previous goggles which are no longer in production would sting becasue I had to wear them so tight to stop them leaking. I tried the vision goggles the day before the race and they were amazing! They didn’t leak and felt soft on the face. I quickly bought a second pair and will get a couple of additional pairs in the off-season so I know I always have a couple of spares. A very happy Blue Seventy convert signing off! George

I love the helix tst

Just wanted to let you know I got the new helix tst and I love it. It fits perfectly and it has been a dream to swim in. Thank you so much, Kristen

new blueseventy helix TST ‘an honour to wear’

The days of breaking in a wet suit are long gone since the revolution of the Blue Seventy Helix. Having the opportunity to wear the new Helix 08 is an honour on its own and I wondered how Blue Seventy could surpass my previous 07 Helix model. Well it did!! In only a few strokes I could feel the difference. Having worn other brands of wet suits I have fatigued from just the resistance of the wet suit in each arm rotation let alone from the swim I am doing, but with Blue Seventy’s Helix with TST it felt as close to swimming without a wet suit as I’ve ever been. I am informed that there is more technology behind this Wet Suit than just TST that add to the ease in which I can swim in this suit such as the larger underarm gusset, 1.5mm thickness in the arms, the reduced collar bulk to avoid that nasty neck rash and the swim cuffs to stop water entering into the suit at the front of the stroke but all this relates to for me is this wet suit is made to make open water swimming easier and faster. This is a superb wetsuit and an amazing step up on the Helix 07 another super wet suit and I can only recommend that if you are looking for that swimming edge whatever your ability then this wet suit is going to give it to you. Thank you Blue Seventy for your continued support, I look forward to bringing the new 2008 Helix out at the front of the pack. Kind regards Andrew Mackay Tauranga Half Ironman 08 - 3rd Fastest Swim Rotorua Half Ironman 07 -Fastest Swim (Team) Tauranga Half Ironman 07 - 2nd Fastest Swim Port Macquarie Half Ironman 06 - Fastest Swim Shepparton Half Ironman 06 - Fastest Swim

blueseventy at 2007 Ford Ironman World Championship

blueseventy firmly grounded themselves as a world leader in the manufacture of triathlon and open water swimming products at this year’s Ford Ironman World Championship in 2007 with their pointzero3 swim skin.

blueseventy (70% of the earth is made up of water) went from watching 16 professional athletes wearing the revolutionary pointzero3 swim skin at the 2006 Ford Ironman World Championship, to having 601 participants wearing the pointzero3 in 2007, including age group athletes and professionals alike. One third of this year’s field swam in a blueseventy pointzero3.

Designed to be worn during non-wetsuit swims, the pointzero3 swim skin features an incredibly low surface friction co-efficient featuring the exceptional fit and performance characteristics blueseventy have become renowned for.

Both 2007 Ford Ironman World Champions, Chris McCormack of Australia and Chrissy Wellington of Great Britain also chose to wear blueseventy as part their race day tactics. Linda Gallo (first woman to exit the water and 2nd swimmer over-all) wore a pointzero3+; the latest blueseventy swim skin addition launched a day before race day.

blueseventy is proud to have introduced an innovative product to the world of triathlon and open water swimming that has had such a profound affect on an athlete’s swim. The 2007 World Champion, Chris McCormack was quoted as saying pre-race to the public,
“If you do not swim in a swim skin, you will be at a definite disadvantage to those who are”.

Not since the invention of aero bars in the late 1980’s has a performance product been in such high demand. During pre-race week, men were purchasing the last of the women’s sizes of the pointzero3 so as not to miss out on available swim skins.

The best performances in sport have been predicted by innovation and attention to detail. The pointzero3 swim skin is the continued evolution of such performance. blueseventy is completely committed to exploring their limits with producing the best products an athlete can perform in.

blueseventy focuses solely on manufacturing wetsuits, swim skins, accessories and goggles all designed for the open water swimmer.

Due to concentrating on producing such specialist products, the blueseventy brand is the highest selling wetsuit brand in the USA.

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No Longer The “Masked Man”

I may have done some triathlons, but by no means am I a swimmer. Like many other age-group triathletes, I do not have the background of having grown up in a pool or swimming laps. Before triathlon, I did not have experience in using goggles, masks or other swim products. So, when it came time to swim, I tried cheaper goggles. The only thing they taught me is my eyes are highly sensitive to chlorine, which is why I avoided the pool when I was younger. Thus, as most triathletes without a swimming background, I ended up with a mask. After all, what could seal better than a mask around your eyes and face? The Basics In comes the Blue Seventy Vision. The goggles retail for about $19.95, about two-thirds the price of a mask. I have the blue lenses which are used for indoor conditions and cloudy, outdoor conditions. They offer a range of lenses from clear to smoke for the brightest of conditions. Blue Seventy claims their goggles will fit most faces. Based on my past experience with goggles, I figured I was not most faces and they would leak, so I was skeptical to give up my mask to try these things out. I kept my mask on the deck, just in case. goggles The first thing I noticed is how easy the goggles were to put on and tighten up. I just threw them on, pulled the strap, and I was ready to go. As with any mask user, I figured I needed to pull the strap tight on a goggle to keep the water out, not so, once I had the right fit, I was set. In the Pool For any swimmer, the fogging of goggles or a mask is a pain. It’s distracting, causes sighting issues and is just plain annoying. The Vision did not have this problem. The goggles were crystal clear for all my pool swims and did not fog once. From a comfort perspective, the Vision was more comfortable than a mask. The goggles retain suction over the eye with little pressure. Unlike my mask, where although the rubber seals the face, a tight strap is still needed as the swim goes on, these goggles could be used with minor pressure on the eyes or face. The Visine Test As stated, my eyes are, and always have been, extremely sensitive to chlorine. Whether it is a morning or lunch-time swim, my co-workers can comment late into the afternoon about my eyes being red even when wearing a mask. Recently, I found eye drops actually work to relieve some of this discomfort and redness; however, co-workers still knew when I was sneaking in a swim before work or at lunch from my eyes. The Vision actually changed this. Due to the fact that there was zero leakage of water into the goggles while in the pool, my eyes not only did not need the eye drops, but my co-workers do not ask, “What is wrong with your eyes?” To me, that is the biggest compliment of these goggles. In the Open Water open water Open water is the true test of any swim product. In the open water, sighting is an issue. After all, you have to be able to see where you are trying to go. These goggles exceeded my expectations. Even though it is not the big “windshield” I had with the mask, I could still easily sight in the open water. The only negative, compared to a mask, was when I would stop and pull my head out to sight; it took a bit longer to focus. It should be noted though, on normal breathing rhythms, the Vision was equally as good as a mask for sighting. Once again, the goggles did not leak in the open water. The seal on the face, even with moderate ripples in the water, stayed closed throughout my swims. Conclusion You have to test goggles, just like any other piece of equipment you use and find what works best for you, for me however, the Blue Seventy Visions are now in my gym bag. My mask is now in my wife’s gym bag

REACTION Wetsuits

blue seventy’s entry level suit will keep you buoyant for your first forays into open water while allowing a free and comfortable arm turnover- just what you need when you’re starting off in the sport. The thickness of the chest and torso panels extens to the knee to high in the water, the arms are a much thinner 1.5mm to enable a high cadence stroke. The materials in this uit a notably stretchy and designed with durability in mind. blueseventy’s femme fit is well designed for women, with an innovative longer zip to make taking the suit off easier ,and a comfortable lower neck. You’ll hardly notice this suit is on so you can concentrate on your swimming.