Under Armour vs. Tri top

I was having many of the same questions - still new to this and don't want to order a tri suit or tri shorts off the web yet.  Not sure how they fit and haven't been able to find any in the local sporting goods store to try on, etc ...

So was wondering about other shorts, Champion makes a C9 series of shorts and shirts, bought some "running shorts" last night at Target, has a liner so probably okay to wear without underwear (learned that tid bit from the "Underwear" thread), and is made of "duo dry" material.

Not sure if this is the same chamois material I read that tri shorts have in them or not, or what exactly UA clothes are made out of.

So, I'm now thinking getting an UA shirt and use in the swim, bike, and run - can use this vs. a tri top (my first few swims will be in pools or inside so not worried about wetsuit yet).

Will these "running shorts" be okay for swim and bike also, or do I still need a tri short, or does UA also make some sort of short?

For the original poster, you asked about UA vs. a tri top.  What are you wearing for shorts?  Are you wearing it for all 3 events?

Thanks to all for your help and advice.

I went shirtless at my first tri, and caught hell trying to put the Nike compression shirt on over my wet torso.  Bad, bad, bad....

Swim with it or ride w/out a shirt (ugh), would be my advice.  I just sucked it up and ordered a one-piece Pearl Izumi tri suit, so we'll see how it does in a couple of weeks. 

As a side note if you are considering tri suit vs. tri top I would go with the top and tri short seperate.  It will give you more flexibility to train with, ie. use the tri top in a marathon, use the shorts for a swim.

Also I put on a nike compression shirt in T1 before I had the tri top...took about 1 second extra.  It was a bit overcast and I "thought" I would be cold coming out of the water so I figured a dry shirt might help.   

Also, tri clothing tends to run small...if your ordering off the internet go for the up size if your a in between type. And many of the tri tops are designed as midrifs so if thats not your thing make sure you get a full lengther. 

Anybody tried swimming shirtless and then putting on a full zip sleeveless cycling jersey in T1 and wearing it through the run.  Would the full length zipper make getting it on easier?  Just looking for another alternative to the tri top.

X2

I was a little worried about biking without a shirt but it was fine in the tri I just did. And running without a shirt is fine too (for me- I prefer it to wearing any kind of shirt weather permitting). Is this your first race? I'd consider holding off buying too much gear until you get a feel for what you like. The one thing I would recommend though is a pair of tri shorts...they are so comfortable to swim, ride and run in and just save you a lot of worry/hassle in transition (i.e., "I already have my pants on- thats handy. Oh, and I don't need to put a shirt on either. Cool. Grab shades, helmet and number and get movin'". Now if you are uncomfortable cycling and/or running without a shirt, none of what I have written applies (except the tri shorts). Good luck.

In canada, ja! Not so much in the ol' US of A.

Yeah, here in the South they are just happy if we have most of our teeth!