• Welcome to the DeeperBlue.com Forums, the largest online community dedicated to Freediving, Scuba Diving and Spearfishing. To gain full access to the DeeperBlue.com Forums you must register for a free account. As a registered member you will be able to:

    • Join over 44,280+ fellow diving enthusiasts from around the world on this forum
    • Participate in and browse from over 516,210+ posts.
    • Communicate privately with other divers from around the world.
    • Post your own photos or view from 7,441+ user submitted images.
    • All this and much more...

    You can gain access to all this absolutely free when you register for an account, so sign up today!

Skin for Dynamics

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
I was just wondering whether there would be any difference in glide performance between a swimmsuit WITHOUT arms (like nero comp) and a freediving suit with arms (like orca breathe).
Do you guys think the drag of bare arms is significant?
 
It's not just surface drag - the wetsuit compression makes the limbs a more uniform shape, which reduces form drag.
Also lean arms without a wetsuit are negatively buoyant, meaning energy is required to keep them horizontal in the glide phases.
 
Agree with Will on arm buoyancy. Not only do you need to keep them horizontal if they're heavy, you also pitch forward/backwards in the water as you switch between arms-up / arms-down posture. Speaking of which I must get myself a new suit. I'm still using the Alpha 1 Orca gave me in 2008!

On the down-side, a tri-suit does make streamlining slightly harder work in DYN. Not so much of an issue for DNF because you spend less time streamlining.
 
On the down-side, a tri-suit does make streamlining slightly harder work in DYN. Not so much of an issue for DNF because you spend less time streamlining.
Dave, try doing like me, Eric van Riep Paap, and some other competitors: using the arms in DYN too. Finally it is a pity not to use the extra oxygen and extra power available in other muscle groups than just those used normally.

It will not only make the issue of streanlining similar to DNF, but can help you regaining the WR again. Personally I do not compete much lately, so I only improved my DYN in this way by some 10m (though I feel there is a good reserve), but for example Eric improved by some 50m and reached 200m with this style. In our club several freedivers adapted this style and improved their PBs considerably too.
 
Trux you must be out of your mind! :duh

Just for the record, using my arms during dynamic is something I did during my early years when I was young and foolish. I'm not doing that anymore because in time and with practice it is costing me less energy to streamline. I'm also able to do a smaller more controlled vinstroke these days which makes hitting the anaerobic wall feel more like a rubber wall instead. It's about time that I proof myself that I can actually get further without using my arms.

Dave seems to have plenty of reserve to regain the world record in dynamic anyway.
 
My opinion regarding using arms for dyn: it is ridiculous...except just before you do the turn (no offence!).

I think the idea is nice, but you loose more than you gain.

The fastest way to gain extra meters is everydays hard training....
"nothing is impossible....with training"

BR
Andrej
 
Just for the record, using my arms during dynamic is something I did during my early years when I was young and foolish.
Young and foolish :D ? Wasn't it just two years ago that you reached the 200m using this style, just after having your competition PB at 158m (and 141m prior that)? I did not see any better DYN performance than those 200m with arms, from you in the meantime. So it does not seem to be as bad as you tell :)

APNEA.cz ranking - DYN - Eric van Riet Paap
 
Last edited:
@Will
Like covered arms reduce drag, 1mm neoprene does reduce weight. BUT I wonder, if these parameters help one significantly.
I case of weight reduction, i doubt it. Especially since you write that the breathe is a low buoyancy suit.

But I wonder if anyone did actually experience a difference in drag between suits with covered arm and non covered arms. Like "it took me one stroke less per lane" - or so.
 
But I wonder if anyone did actually experience a difference in drag between suits with covered arm and non covered arms. Like "it took me one stroke less per lane" - or so.

my experiences in dnf:
using Orca Breath:
25m pool...2 strokes
50m pool ...6-7 strokes

using Blueseventy Nero
25m pool... 3 strokes
50m pool ...8-9 strokes

..but for dyn i dont like the Orca Breath, because sometimes the water flows in the suit during the performance ... in the neck area!
 
It takes more than 1mm of neoprene to make my arms neutral. 2mm is about right.
 
What were those Alpha suits Will? 1mm or 2mm? Mine doesn't quite float my arms enough.
 
Exactly ropretster! I have the same suits and almost the same performance. To keep water out of my "breath" in dyn I use the neck weight. If the neck weight and the clip is a little thick in the back of your neck then the weight seals the suit.
 
Exactly ropretster! I have the same suits and almost the same performance. To keep water out of my "breath" in dyn I use the neck weight. If the neck weight and the clip is a little thick in the back of your neck then the weight seals the suit.


Dimitris...thanks!
You know, water is leaking inside the neck, even though I wear neckweight...
I think the neckweight does not sit directly on the neck area of the suit. Maybe the suit is a little short on my neck...

But in Dyn i still get very good performance with my Blueseventy Nero. I feel it is a little more comfortable to wear than Breathe (because the arms are free).

BR
Andrej Ropret
 
Actually the suit is a bit short on the neck so I pull her up a lot (here u can see how much the suit is pulled up my shin-bones [ame=http://vimeo.com/24304254]Clear 100m DNF (Dynamic No Fins) HD on Vimeo[/ame] so to have the neck area closing as much as higher as it can).

Nero is not very good if you train in open type swimming pool all year round as I do!
 
Hello Dimitris, i try to do like you say... I hope i can do it also like that.
I thik the main problem for me is, the Breathe is not custom (tailor)-made. I am skinny, but my shoulders a quite big, so because that the fit in this area is not optimal.
Maybe i will get a special custom made suit for dynamics from my sponsor:
Alpha Wetsuits Alpha Corporation .: Wetsuits for freediving sale :. - Alpha Wetsuits - Black SPEED

Btw. in your video i see, the turns are great! nice. Maybe keep the legs more straight, together during the glide phase...so you can get extra more meters.
 
Thanks ropretster for the advice. This video is from spring last year and since then, among others, I am still working on the arms and legs position to correct them and get the most.
 
DeeperBlue.com - The Worlds Largest Community Dedicated To Freediving, Scuba Diving and Spearfishing

ABOUT US

ISSN 1469-865X | Copyright © 1996 - 2024 deeperblue.net limited.

DeeperBlue.com is the World's Largest Community dedicated to Freediving, Scuba Diving, Ocean Advocacy and Diving Travel.

We've been dedicated to bringing you the freshest news, features and discussions from around the underwater world since 1996.

ADVERT