54 min listen
ARK SPORTS ORNÖ X Wetsuit Review
ARK SPORTS ORNÖ X Wetsuit Review
ratings:
Length:
56 minutes
Released:
Jun 29, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Welcome to Gear Talk with our friends Annie and Brooke from Swimrun Labs.In this episode, we have another wetsuit review. This week we do a deep dive on the brand new Ark Sports ORNÖ X Swimrun Wetsuit. This suit was just released a few weeks back and we were lucky enough to get 4 suits sent to us to test by our friends at Ark Sports.Our complete review is coming later in the show.Gear UpdatesBrooke finally realized that she is small and not a medium as she previously thought after using Trista’s Ark Sports KORP suit. That small fit much better and resolved her issues of water entering the suit.Chipper just picked up 3 pairs of the Magic5 swim goggles. These are allegedly custom-made and are sized to fit your face by using a facial recognition-type app to get the sizing right. Chipper also is trying out the Hoka One One Torrent 2 as his new Swimrun shoe. More updates on how that goes in the coming weeks.Annie also got a set of the Torrent 2’s and will report back as well.Chris recently updated his “team” race kit by replacing his trustworthy compression bandage with a new slimmer H&H Mini Compression bandage. It’s a lot slimmer than the old one and capable of being worn in a kangaroo top due to its design.Untethered ThoughtsThis week’s untethered thought comes courtesy of Greg Dierksen of the Boston Wet Sox. He DM’d us with the observation that there is very little information about “the tether” out there and recommended that we do a Gear Talk show on the tether. Great observation and suggestion and we will be releasing that show soon! Thanks Greg!ARK SPORTS ORNÖ X Wetsuit ReviewCheck out our first impressions video here to get our first look at the ORNÖ X wetsuit.Here’s how ARK describes the ORNÖ X:ARK Sports ORNÖ X is an evolution of our flagship model ORNÖ which has been tested and trusted by the Worlds best swimrun athletes since its launch in 2017. A pioneering suit positioned as the most thermal and buoyant suit in the ARK Sports line without compromising of keeping the lowest weight. What came to be the world's fastest swimrun suit, has now been developed, optimized, and revolutionized for the start of the 2021 swimrun season.The suit retails for $710 and features premium Yamamoto Limestone neoprene, running+ bottom, thermal+ foam waist belt, and comes with arm sleeves. A men’s medium weighs just 510grams and a women’s medium weighs 500grams.Out of the box, this suit looks and feels premium. But how does it perform?Swimming ImpressionsChris and Chipper tested the ORNÖ X during two long Swimrun practices where the water temps were around 55 degrees. The suits worked amazingly. The suits felt properly warm and the thermal+ belt really helped to keep the core warm. The shoulder mobility was excellent. The anti-leak neckline worked as advertised. The running+ bottom felt like it was providing some warmth which might be due to the neoprene material lining of the running+.Annie tested the suit with both a pull buoy and without. She felt that the ORNÖ X provided some buoyancy even without a pull buoy. She was surprised by how great the shoulder material felt during the swim. The shoulder material also feels more flexible and stretchy compared to the ORNÖ 02 which might mean that it will have better durability (read: fewer armpit holes requiring repair).Brooke got her mind blown by the suit. She felt like she was swimming in a second skin and a perfect suit for the Pacific Northwest. She thought that just how it performs in the swim makes it well worth the money. Transition ImpressionsBasically a non-issue. Everyone thought that the suit performed great coming in and out of the water. The zipper size felt sturdy. Cabbing down and up was a little challenging, partly because of fear of tearing the suit.Everyone loved the new design of the rear pocket on the suit. It was really well thought out and worked as advertised. Similar feedback for the zipper size of the suit.The .5mm arm cuffs were another innovation in the suit that ever
Released:
Jun 29, 2021
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Ötillö Catalina Course Preview 2 & Swimrun Gear w/ Team Baywatch: We are releasing another episode this week to give our listeners yet another Ötillö Catalina course preview and some more deep diving into swimrun-specific race gear. On this week’s show we chat with the Huntington Beach-based swimrun team Kawika and Blake, A.K.A. Team Baywatch, to discuss the world series course and all things gear with two veterans of the sport. by Low Tide Boyz, a Swimrun Podcast