We headed over to Gear West. It's always a bit of a drive to Gear West, but they're a top-notch shop and worth the drive. We were helped by 2 guys (I think Curt and Devon were their names) who really know their stuff. And it was a good thing they did because Katie and I were noobs to the whole process! I started out with a sleeveless Blue Seventy suit. It fit ok, but I was looking more for full suit. I'll also say this: putting on and taking off a wetsuit is no small task! This was exemplified by my next suit. It was a full Blue Seventy suit on sale, but I was toward the upper end of the sizing, and they didn't have any in the next size up. I had the darndest time trying to get this on, and reached a point where I couldn't go any further. I had to ask the employee to give me a hand, and since the zipper wouldn't go all the way up, we concluded it was much too small.
Back into the fitting room. I spent the next 5 minutes trying to get that suit off. It got stuck on my ankles, so I wasn't in a position to ask for help, but couldn't really get it off. I eventually got it off though, and tried on a suit made by Profile. This fit better, but the zipper went the opposite way (up to down), and just wouldn't be practical for me. So, back to the fitting room to try on a QR suit. This one went on really easy—which meant it was too big. So, one size down in the same model QR suit. This one fit perfect, and I could even do the zip myself! This was the one!
Katie was having her own issues, but also found one that worked (a QR suit too). In the end, it took 3 employees, lots of tugging, and boxes and suits littered all over the sales floor for us to find the right suits. It looked kind of like a disaster there (between the two of us, we tried on eight suits—and I did five of them). The guys were extremely helpful, though, and provided a lot of helpful pointers on what to look for. Here's what we ended up getting:
Katie and her new suit. It's a QR (not sure of the model), and it has pink flowers on the leg cuff. Katie was excited by this.
Me with my QR Hydrofull suit. No flowers. I'm ok with that. It has fun red accents though. (I'm convinced now that red is becoming my "racing color".)
We both worked up quite the sweat though, and found ourselves exhausted by the whole process. If I had any tips for people going to get their first wetsuit, I'd say this:
- If there's a store in your area that sells wetsuits, go there. Buying online may be cheaper, but if you've never tried one on, it's best to have people who know what they're doing to guide you through the process. Had I ordered my suit over the internet, I would have deemed it too small and exchanged it for the bigger size (which would be too big). I ended up trying on 5 different suits over the course of an hour, and that's not something you can do online.
- Don't be afraid to ask for help. You'll have questions like "Is the neck supposed to be this tight?" or "How does the zipper work?". The people working in the store know the answers, and you won't feel embarrassed for asking.
- Try on lots of suits. I know it's a lot of work, but if you've never had anything to compare them to, it will take a while to find that "right suit".
- It will be tough to put them on and off (particularly if you're putting one on that's too small). Don't worry about it, and if you need help, ask.
I'll say that Katie and I are very eager to try out our new suits in the water, so once the lakes warm up, that's where we'll be!
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