It is pretty obvious to the triathlon community that triathlon wetsuits are not all created equal.

At the same time, it often feels like we have taken the importance of exactly how a triathlon wetsuit is actually constructed a bit too seriously. After all, when it comes right down to it, is really necessary to get excited about a wetsuit because it is a millimeter thicker than the one you owned the previous season?

It appears that the goal is to have a creation that is thinner and faster, but still as warm as a wetsuit with thicker construction.

IN THE EARLY DAYS

In the early days of triathlon the races were few and far between. To make matters worse, in many areas with water temperatures that hovered around 60 degrees Fahrenheit it was a challenge for many triathletes just to avoid hypothermia. There simply were no wetsuits back then except perhaps for the early "Farmer John" type that did nothing at all to keep a person warmer, which begs the question, "what exactly did they do"?

Of course a person could always buy a "dry-suit" --that would be impossibly heavy and hot-- at a dive shop, but it would be years before the real triathlon "wetsuits" were available to all triathletes regardless of where they lived.

For the Canadian triathlete, it was pretty much almost a certainty that hypothermia was going to rear its head in any triathlon swim leg in Canada back in the eighties unless the race happened to be on the West Coast. The severity of the hypothermia often depended on actual swimming ability of the triathlete. The better a triathlete could swim back then, the sooner the swim leg would be over so it was a simple matter of those whoever got out of the water the soonest were less likely to suffer from the cold as much.

EFFICIENT SWIMMING IS THE KEY

If a triathlete did not have an energy-saving stroke it was often difficult to retain enough co-ordination once out of the water to be able to climb on a bike. It was not unusual for it to take ten minutes or more for a triathlete to warm up enough to be able to cycle at all. Some of the early triathletes reached the danger point of hypothermia and were often unable to carry on in the race at all.

The wetsuit was born in the mid to late eighties and began to evolve at a quick pace in the decades to follow. Every single year you could pretty much be guaranteed that a new improved wetsuit would be on the market. Often the new wetsuits came with the promise that it would make you a faster swimmer then ever before.

FASTER IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER

This philosophy of "faster is better" really sucked people in because they had yet to figure out how little importance swim time really has on the end result of an Ironman. This is especially true of age-groupers who simply want to finish the race any way they can. Still, many triathletes were sucked in over and over again and could spend a few thousand dollars on wetsuits over a career.

Unfortunately, it would take years for some triathletes to figure out that swimming faster is not the secret to a successful Ironman. Real success is realized when emphasis is placed on finishing the swim leg of an Ironman with as little energy loss as possible. In reality, success in an Ironman has very little to do with the thickness of a wetsuit, how seamless the stitching, or how stretchy the armpits are.

STAYING WARM IS THE KEY

Ultimately, the most important feature of a wetsuit for the average age-group triathlete or novice Ironman is the protection it provides from the cold. It is of paramount importance to always keep in mind that if you burn yourself out from the swim because you lack a smooth, energy-saving stroke you will most likely be part of the Ironman "death march".

For the beginner triathlete or novice Ironman, the goal should be to get through the swim with as little discomfort as possible and with as little mental, emotional, and physical stress as possible. Any type of stress has a way of contributing to the loss energy that will without a doubt be desperately need later on in the race. This is most especially true to the Ironman because of the sheer distance of the race.

Image taken on 2004-11-07 20:50:49 by Bracani....Antonio.

We are still unaware about the fact that how wetsuits came into existence. We ought to know the birth of these wet suits to pay little tribute to the inventor!. By this we can improve the designs making it more fashionable. Hugh Bradner, in the early 1951, is said to have toyed with the idea of keeping warm against cold water. Then somehow this idea never came into reality.

Jack O'Neill, is regarded as the founder of the modern wetsuits. Eye-patch wearing wetsuits have become icon. He worked very hard in bringing the desired shape, texture, clothing and the result expected by him. So his wet suits became instant hit in the market. He brought out such wetsuits which could withstand the severe cold of the water as he was an architectural aluminum seller. It means he knew exactly the pain of cold water and was desperately in search of a new way out.

Probably Jack's life was waiting to steer away in another direction. He was alleged for spoiling the blue prints of a building hence got kicked out of his job ad was forced to open surf shop. At this time exactly Jack stumbled upon neoprene, a lightweight and easily manipulated material. But this neoprene was in raw and unprocessed form, which was not that comfortable for the skin. In 1970double-lined, neoprene came into existence lined on each side with nylon. A revised and safe material was out in the market.

After this, wetsuits found so many varieties and types like full suit, shorties and two pieces. Nowadays wetsuits are used for surfing and water sports, so they are famous as well as in demand. They have proved the best against cold water. Wetsuits have become an integral part of the water sports. Jack's brain and the advanced technology have brought out the best for the water sports enthusiasts.

A Wetsuit is made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by divers mainly, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports, providing thermal insulation, abrasion resistance and buoyancy. The insulation properties depend on bubbles of gas enclosed within the material, which reduce its ability to conduct heat. The bubbles also give the wetsuit a low density, providing complete freedom in water.

Then a wetsuit started taking a better shape gradually with gluing, taping and blind stitching. It helped the wet suit to remain waterproof maintaining the helpful temperature around while surfing. Again further improvements in the seals at the neck, wrists and ankles produced a suit known as a "semi-dry".

Different types of wetsuit came into existence with different uses and for different temperatures. Ranging from a thin (2 mm or less) "shortie", covering just the torso, to a full 8 mm semi-dry, mostly complemented by neoprene boots, gloves and hood.

If you are a surfer then wetsuit is a must for you. These are available in all shapes and sizes. You can go for  boardshorts meant for all the season and time. Now what you see is the most refined version of the wet suit. They are available super light, super stretch and some don't even have zips! Wetsuits are made from neoprene, a stretchy synthetic rubber material. The neoprene is available in different thickness from 2 to 6 mm. The thicker the neoprene the warmer the suit will be. Wet suit has to be perfect in fitting. If it is little loose or tight then it won't give you the expected results. The best brands like Billabong Clothing, Oneill clothing are available with us.  A Billabong wet suit is the innovation of so many efforts, endeavors and brains.

Image taken on 2008-07-05 21:46:04 by pnoeric.

www.wetsuitcentre.co.uk Jeff from the Wetsuit Centre talks through the Rip Curl E Bomb Pro Summer Wetsuit for 2010

When I was a child in the early sixties, the age of sixty was old, not because I was six and anyone older than 21 was decrepit, but because seniors in their sixties were seen as waiting by their firesides to die.

Five decades later, the conceptual view of seniors is more likely to be them bathing on the beaches of Borneo or other exotic places instead of sitting by their firesides. Greater advances in health care mean that people are not only living longer but are fitter and healthier, in control of their health and lives.

Seniors over fifty are thankfully no longer prepared to accept their life is over. There are many things that they are attempting both by traveling and being more adventurous on their own doorstep.

I have been a passionate scuba diver for over thirty years and I have learned a thing or to about it and the first is that scuba diving is not one of those hobbies that age is a barrier to; age is of a positive benefit to the scuba diver.

Is scuba diving dangerous? Yes, it can be--but so is driving, and for that matter, living. And I am not sure that it is not one of those things that everyone insists is more dangerous than it is!

Is it such things as shark attacks that make scuba diving dangerous? Statistically the majority of people bitten by sharks are bitten while standing on a beach not far from the shoreline. I have been on hundreds of dives in the Pacific, the Red Sea, and the Indian oceans. Have I ever seen sharks or whales? Yes many times. Do I consider them dangerous? Yes, I do. Has it ever stopped me from diving among them? No, it hasn't. However, neither fact is highly relevant: it is a fact that in the vast majority of dives, you will not see either.

What has accounted for the greatest number of diving incidents I have personally witnessed? That one is easy: the vast majority of incidents have been caused by sinus and breathing difficulties, nothing to do with equipment error, but just the simple human error of not knowing how to equalize pressure properly. I was very fortunate when I learned to dive--I listened to my dive instructor. Sounds stupid but it is true.

I was terrified of water, and that is why initially I wanted to learn to dive to face my demons. I was very heavy at the time and frightened witless, so much so that I threw a wobbly and refused to even walk in the water. It was under a pier in Savu Savu, Fiji. My diving instructor hauled me in the water and apparently took me around the pier while holding my hand. Apparently I missed seeing a whale. I was so frightened that I had my eyes tightly shut. However, I learned a very valuable lesson despite being hysterical before getting in the water: once in, there is little choice; you have to breathe! Trust me, it is either that or drown. That was the lesson I learned: all you have to do to make a good diver is breathe, nothing more and nothing less. Once you have mastered the fact that you can breathe under water quite normally, nothing else matters.

Once you breath deeply and naturally underwater, you are in a different environment: it is your own personal underwater Jacques Cousteau television show. It is too exciting to worry about anything. No one anywhere in the world is allowed in the water without a diving certificate. Earning that diving certificate teaches you everything you need to know, including how to cope with most minor incidents.

Have I ever personally felt threatened while diving? Yes, I have; but not in the last twelve years. I vowed on my fortieth-birthday dive that I was not going to dive with anyone under thirty ever again, whatever the circumstances, and since I have adhered to that rule, I have encountered no problems. The eldest person I have ever personally been diving with was 76, but I know for a fact that Jacques Cousteau died at the age of 87 and he was still diving. I have also been diving with someone who was seventy-three and a learner.

When I learned to dive, there was none of the gadgetry that is available today. You had to work out how long, how far, and how deep you could dive. These days, a computer does it all. If you are older than sixty, you will remember double de-clutch while driving and how easy it is now. If you don't know what I am talking about, well, you are too young to be reading this article anyway!

We are being told at every juncture that exercise is good for us. Well, there is nothing like diving because once under water, you have the buoyancy of the water and all the aches and pains disappear. There is nothing like swimming with fifty or more species of fish within a few feet of your head. It is something that you never ever tire of; and night diving is different again and offers a completely new world.

Age is no barrier to diving:age bestows common sense and a healthy respect for the deep. If it is something that you have always wanted to do, go ahead and try it. Have one test dive and see how you feel. Once you have done it, there is no going back--you will have opened your horizons forever.

All the rules you need to know about scuba diving are below.

1) Gently equalize your ears and mask as you descend. That means nothing more that holding your nose and exerting a gentle blow-out pressure.

2) Never hold your breath while ascending. Always breath normally and come up slowly and steadily.

3) Always dive with a buddy.

4) Never drink and dive.

5) Don't fly for 12 hours after a no-decompression dive, 24 hours if your dive required decompression stops. It won't kill you but it is something you will not want to repeat after you feel the effects.

6) If you have friends and family that have concerns about your diving, don't tell them until after you get your diving certificate.

7) You do not even have to be a strong swimmer to dive; I have often been diving with people who can not swim at all. However, I would personally recommend that you can swim thirty yards because you have to get to the boat!

Scuba diving is a lot harder than snorkeling. That is a myth that snorkeler will tell you but no diver ever will.

In conclusion, scuba diving is a relaxing hobby and most if it is done less than thirty feet from the surface. Most of the world's coral reefs are not deep; we are not taking about forty thousand fathoms under the sea. A few people say they can't bear the idea of all the weight of the sea above them: while diving, you can feel neither the weight above or below, and in fact, it is the nearest thing to weightless that I can imagine. A common misconception about diving is "I would be too frightened!" The chances are that you will be so enthralled that you will forget to be frightened, and you will surely not forget to breathe! Then the excitement of your own private aquarium will never leave you, even if you dive only once in an open water dive and stay a landlubber ever after.

Catherine Ford is a freelance writer for ASeniorHaven.com, a site providing resources for senior health and travel.

Author: Walter Fitzpatrick
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Prototype PCB Assembly

Image taken on 2008-06-24 09:59:24 by josephvieira.

Having a wet suit for your kids is very important for their protection and enjoyment as well. Itâ??s probably one of the best outdoor presents that you can give children. Young ones will definitely enjoy their beach activities especially if they have a kids wetsuit on.

When you want to buy a wet suit, the problem sometimes is that there arenâ??t shops nearby your place where you can buy your child a wetsuit. Letâ??s say, youâ??re closer to the beach than the shops. Youâ??re option is to buy a kids wetsuit online. The question is, is this wise to do?

Buying any kind of apparel online can be a little risky. There is no universal size for small, medium and large. Each brand has its own version of sizes so itâ??s really difficult to know exactly.

When you buy apparel online, you usually send your sizes so that the company can send you their best recommendation for the size. Despite this, thereâ??s just this specific feel when you wear something that you need to find in order to convince you that you like the piece. If this doesnâ??t happen to something youâ??ve purchased online, itâ??ll be just a waste.

Itâ??s more complicated with wet suits because you need to find the almost perfect size. A childrens wetsuit cannot be too small because it will be difficult for the wearer to move.

Especially, it cannot be too big because it will let cold water in the suit. It will defeat the whole purpose of a wetsuit.

A wetsuit has many different sizes to make sure that every body size is accommodated. There are too many sizes compared to the usual small, medium and large. Fortunately, this allows you to choose something that will fit well.

If you want to buy online and canâ??t find a way to go personally to a shop to buy a girls or boys wetsuit, itâ??s best to do two things. First, you can send your body measurements, including height and weight, to the shop first. Tell them to give you an advice on the size first before they send you the product.

Next, ask your family and friends who has already purchased a wetsuit. They can give you an idea on how the sizes go. Itâ??s much better if they have already purchased a wettie for their children so you can ask for advice not only on the size but where to buy.

Now that you have suggestions at hand, you can decide on the size more accurately.

Remember that a wet suit needs to be fit but not too tight. Donâ??t be afraid to buy a wetsuit that is seemingly very small at first. A wetsuit expands in time as it is being used. It also expands more in water than when it is dry.

It is also recommended that you buy a more expandable wetsuit for children so that they cannot easily outgrow them. Children grow faster than we expect and if you donâ??t choose wisely, you might waste your money. Think carefully before buying anything.