The wetsuits made for triathletes have more room in the shoulders
(for the swim stroke
). Are they necessary? It depends on how cold the water is. Regulations say if the water is less than 78 degrees at the start of the race, you can wear a wetsuit. It will make you more buoyant and provide with some confidence
(OWS can be intimidating
)...
If this is for your first tri - I would recommend renting one
(most of the local tri stores should have rental suits
)...see how you like the whole experience.
There are a lot of good articles on this site for how to get into
(and out of
) a wetsuit...well worth the time once you have the suit in hand.
Typically, you would wear your cycling bottoms
(tri shorts, specifically because the "pad" doesn't hold as much water as "normal" bike shorts
) under the suit with a sports bra
(for women
) and nothing for men. At T1
(the transistion from swim to bike
), you peel off your wetsuit
(again - look at the articles for recommendations on how to do this quickly
), pop on your shirt, socks
(optional
), helmet, sunglasses and shoes and get on the bike. Poke around this site for a bit and all your questions will be answered!