Long time friend of Trivelo TC has been reviewing the Blu Smooh MK3 Elite wetsuit for us this week. TC is a real guru on all things triathlon so be interesting to see what he makes of the Blu Smooth.
Summary of the Review
Trivelo Score – 4/5
I like the thickness of the suit as I am from Asia which has hot and humid weather and I am always concerned about swimming in the low-temperature water. Each time I have tried the suit, the water temp was around 14-16c which for me is quite cold, but I felt super warm inside and able to easily move through the water.
Pros
- Buoyancy is great. Every time I tested the suit in the lake it helped me float along and save lots of energy. I felt like I spent less energy at the same pace.
Cons
- The first time I wore a suit I felt a bit of immobility as it super tight and I could not move my shoulders in a full range. However, after a bit of adjustment, I felt better.
First impressions
The package I received from TriVelo was with the string backpack which is quite great to keep the suit separately from the other stuff when I do the open water swimming session. However, I think that the suit could improve in terms of color and design as there is just black and grey on the suit, and I think it’s too simple and hard to be seen especially in the foggy and cloudy days.
Fit of the wetsuit
As I moved the edge up both from the forearms and the calves, I could see that there were plenty of folded suit skin around my shoulders and my hip. I think this could become quite some drag and cost me some minutes in long distance open water swimming leg of a triathlon. Another good thing is once the suit fit the body, I hardly felt any leakage of water and this helped me to keep my body temperature in the safe range.
Comfort
After the first time I used this suit, I felt quite comfortable in the suit. Every phase of the swimming stroke (pull, push, recovery) went smoothly for me. The cut/ bruise on the neck, which is normally always an issue for me, did not happen at all.
If you are looking for a sleeveless wetsuit read our review of the Blu Smooth Mk1 Racer wetsuit. James from the team at Trivelo has put it through its paces and shares his thoughts.
Quality of the materials
The quality is quite a mid to top range for me. It’s not super light and might not be a good choice for race day. However, if you are looking for a suit that protects you from the cold, is comfortable to wear, and helps you float, the Blu_Smooth MK3 ELITE is your answer.
Durability
I could tell that the thickness of the suit is the strong point. There were many times I did not wear a glove and use my bare fingers to move up the suit, but surprisingly there was no cut left on the suit at all.
Performance of the wetsuit
Definitely, it helped me float and it helped me have more confidence to move through the fresh water which is more difficult to swim than the sea water. Secondly, I did not get any cut/bruise after the swim which is quite rare when you test the suit for the first time.
How this compares to others
I used Huub Axiom before this suit. The first time I put the Hubb suit on I spent 30 minutes and damaged the suit in several locations. I also got a cut mark on my neck with Huub as well. All these issues did not happen to me with the Blu_Smooth MK3 Elite. In conclusion, I am impressed with the suit’s comfort, buoyancy, and protection.
Would you buy this?
Yes, I would.
Video Review of Blu Smooth Mk3 Elite Wetsuit
Hear directly from TC in his video review on our YouTube triathlon channel.
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