Xterra Vortex 4 Wetsuit Review

Xterra sent me a wetsuit to train in and use for my 70.3 race. It’s a good thing they did because I otherwise would have donned my green bikini, spray painted myself black and called it good.

Ease of Getting On and Off:

Due to weather, I only got to use my wetsuit twice before the race.  Wait, that’s a lie. I did use it the day it arrived. In the bathtub. Go ahead, label me “dork” and tell me to “get a life.” It doesn’t hurt me:

I can’t say I love the feeling of putting on a wetsuit. It is similar to stuffing a swollen foot into a too-small shoe or a beefy sausage into a straw.

Chris from Polar USA gave me a good tip that made things slightly easier: put plastic bags over my feet before putting my legs into the wetsuit. This made it slide on much easier, but then there is still the struggle of pulling it up around your crotch. I always felt like I couldn’t get it high and snug enough, kind of like a saggy pair of panty hose. That is my malfunction, not Xterra’s.

I was always careful to put Body Glide on my ankles, wrist and neck so stuff would not rub and the wetsuit would hopefully peel off my body easier. I actually watched some videos on You Tube about how to remove a wetsuit quickly, and this helped. The Vortex is actually quite easy to get off in a hurry.

Getting a wetsuit on is a pain regardless of brand. I don’t think the Vortex performed any differently than other wetsuits of similar style.

Fit and Appearance:

The Vortex 4 is a full wetsuit. I debated weather to go sleeveless, but in the end decided I’d rather have the sleeves for increased buoyancy as well as warmth if I ever do a colder climate race (hint, hint). I’m glad I went with the full, even though the day of the race was very warm and the water temps were 74 degrees. I was worried I would sweat like a prostitute in church, but I never felt hot, probably because the air temps were still cool at 6:45 a.m..

I ordered the size small, which at 5’5” and 110 lbs. is a good fit for me. I ordered it online without trying on first, but found the manufacturers’ size charts to be spot on. I actually ordered the Vortex 3, but was sent the 4.

It is slick in appearance and highlights my boyish figure. I like the bold yellow “X’ on the front. It screams, “I am tough, don’t mess with me.” I think I scared a lot of people.

Performance and Comfort:

Being my first wetsuit, I cannot do much of a comparison with other brands. I can say, however, that the suit was comfortable and performed well for me. I also never noticed restrictions to my arm stroke while swimming. Flexibility in the arms and chest was good. Mind you, I am not the most stellar swimmer, but I found the suit very easy to move around in. Buoyancy was noticeable due to the suit’s 5mm layer of neoprene (the thickest layer available that is still legal in races) that extends from the neck to the ankles on the front side of the wetsuit. While I did not need it, I think this thicker layer would also provide extra warmth if necessary.

Drawbacks:

I cannot say if this is an issue with Vortex suits, or just wetsuits in general, but I was surprised at how easily the suit got nicks in the neoprene. I only wore it twice before I noticed two small gauge marks which I assume came from my fingernails (see fingernail shape below). I had been exceptionally careful when putting it on and taking it off, so this was surprising. It is frustrating because I had deliberately cut my nails short, so I am not sure what else one can do to avoid this. I’m thinking about total fingernail extraction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cost: $400 with free shipping. This is for the Vortex 3. I could not find pricing for the Vortex 4, but am assuming it is comparable.

Bottom Line:

A good quality wetsuit is not cheap, and the Vortex 4 is no exception. Having only been able to train in it twice and race in it once, I cannot attest to how the quality of the suit holds up over time. I can say, however, that Xterra suits have an amazing track record and that they perform well. My experience was that it was a comfortable and flexible suit that provided exceptional buoyancy. I am eager to train in it more consistently and to test it in colder conditions.

Xterra, thank you for your generosity in sending me the suit. I’m excited to put it through some tough training in the future!

SUAR

Fine Print: Xterra Wetsuits sent me this item free of charge in exchange for my unbiased review.

Hope She Didn’t Drown ‘Cause She Was Cool

I so love starting out the day inspired.

Don't get me wrong. It wasn’t like I jumped out of bed feeling that way. In fact, when I got up at 5:30 a.m., pushed “start” on the coffee maker and prepared to hit the road for an open water swim in Boulder, I tiredly tried to count just how many early mornings I have put in since starting my half ironman training. Probably over 80 in the past three months.

Training has been incredible, but for someone like me who loves lazy mornings with the Denver Post and a cinnamon roll as big as my head, this has been a different sort of summer. That said, I’m the type who needs to get it done first thing, or it ain’t gonna happen. Mornings are best for a lot of things (TWSS).

Back to what inspired me. The inspiration I’m talking about came in the form of a 61 year old woman with a Southern accent. As we arrived at the reservoir, she was putting on her wetsuit. She came over and asked for a friendly hand in zipping up the back while I put on my wetsuit, Xenia from Xterra.

I tried to ignore how Xenia grabbed for my Body Glide and spilled a tampon on the ground. So embarrassing in front of my new friend!

Ken commented I should use the tampon just for extra buoyancy.

Finally I stopped the shenanigans by just putting her on:

My 61 year old friend told me she was doing her first half ironman in California this weekend, Barb’s Race, a women’s only HIM put on by Vineman. She said today was her third open water swim and that the first one she did was last week. She had a panic attack and had to be rescued by a kayaker. She said her second time went better and was we entered the water, she said, “And today I’m not scared at all.”

As we prepared to start swimming, I looked her in the eye and straight from my gut and heart I said, “I am so impressed by you.” It’s all I could say. To have the guts to do this race at her age is nothing short of amazing to me. At the age of 61 she believed she could do something that 99% of people her age think is outrageous and out of reach.

As we started swimming I lost my friend (I hope she didn’t drown, I was kind of self focused), but I will think about her for a long time. Especially when the going gets tough in my race. If she can do it, I can do it. If she can do it, we all can do it.

Anything inspire you today?

SUAR

She Felt Me Up

I’ve got my new Xterra wetsuit (the Vortex 3 Fullsuit) and she seems to have a life of her own. First, she tried to look like a wedding dress in disguise.

Then she laid on her ass all afternoon not even lifting a finger to help with the kids, laundry or cooking:

She felt me up on the stairs (pervert!).

I wonder if I’ll even fit into her (TWSS):

She had the nerve to use the crapper when I wasn’t looking. Gross, skids in my suit:

And, she stole a Blue Moon beer from the fridge (drunkard!).

She even got on my bike, and no one gets on my bike but me. Especially since the reflectors are gone and it is 1.5 ounces lighter.

I was going to wiggle myself into her tonight with the help of some Body Glide (TWSS) and go for an open water swim at the reservoir.

But, the monsoon moved in with lightening and it was not to be.

So, I did the next best thing because I am ridiculous:

Hello, Xterra Wetusits, if you are reading I cannot thank you enough for sending me the suit to try out and review. I feel like Catwoman. I know I’m going to love it.

SUAR

Hurricane Bertha and the Wetsuit

If you, too, want to look like an ass at your local pool, just do what Ken and I did last night.

So, the plan was to find wetsuits and go out to the local reservoir to get in our first open water swim (OWS). We’ve put this off far too long and the race is now only a month away. Ken rented a wetsuit in Boulder. I borrowed one from a friend hoping there were no pee stains or skids (there weren’t). We sent Sam off to baseball and sent Emma to a friend’s house. We were free to go kick some open water swim ass (OWSA).

The closer it got to the the time to leave, the darker the skies got and the windier the air became. “Toughsky shitsky,” as my dad used to say (I think that’s Russian). I was going no matter what. It could be hurricane Big Bertha around here and nothing was going to stop me. What’s the worse that could happen? I drown and leave my children motherless? Big whoop.

We got to the reservoir and I noticed major white caps in the water and rough seas. Like I always do, I figured the more challenges and ball busting stuff that happens, the better it is for my training, right?

Best laid plans.

No open water swim due to rough waters. Bunch of pussies.

Plan B: Ken suggests going to our local outdoor pool and swimming in our wetsuits to try them out. I know we are gong to look ridiculous swimming laps at a crowded family pool on an 85 degree day in a wetsuit, but no way am I not getting my workout in. In the damn wetsuit.

There is no dressing room at the pool. It is under construction. So we are both on the side of the pool trying to squeeze our parts into these wetsuits which is kind of like when you are 17 trying to put on your Jordache Jeans and you have to lie down on the bed just to pull them up and zip them. Or squeezing a fat Italian sausage into something tight. TWSS.

I now realize that Body Glide would have helped tremendously, but that never occurred to me at the time.

So, I finally get my wetsuit on. I am stifling hot. I ask Ken to zip it up in the back. He can’t figure it out because….I had it on inside out. I am not shitting you. I swear, if I make it through this race in one piece and don’t die from doing something absurdly stupid, it will be amazing.

Remove wetsuit. Turn right side out. Squeeze into suit again. I am smiling but I am really suffocating and my boobs are being smashed to bits. No camel toe, though.

That dude in the back is the one I had for my disastrous first master’s swim – now he really thinks I’m special. He is doing Eagle pose.

We just did 1,500 yards. The buoyancy of the suit is awesome, but takes some getting used to. I was scalding hot in this thing, though, I realized I really want a sleeveless number for doing summer tris in Colorado.

The very, very good news is that Xterra, one of the best well known makers of wetsuits, says they will give me a wetsuit in exchange for a product review. Score.

Simply awesome of them!  Oh snap, I am going to be one stylin’ Xterra chick. I may swim slow as an ant in molasses, but I will look good. Maybe not like her up there, but good enough. I may consider doing the whole race in that suit.

Do you get like that too? You are simply NOT willing to give up the damn workout come hell or high water?

SUAR

PS: Don’t forget my $50 Active Headband giveaway!