About this episode
Welcome to Gear Talk with our friends Annie and Brooke from Swimrun Labs . In this installment we talk about one of our favorite topics: pull buoys! And not just any pull buoys, but the NU Orza Swimrun Pull Buoy . He had a lot of thoughts on this one and can’t wait to share them below. Gear Updates Chris and Chipper tested out the Ark Sports KORP wetsuits in open water at their first Swimrun practice of the year. They both stand by their ratings in the review but they both experienced air/water pockets in the back of the suit. They also tested out the Frank Paddle carbon fiber paddles in open water and they remained as awesome as they were in the pool. They guys switched paddles (medium-sized Ark Sports Blades ) halfway through the practice and the difference was night and day. The Ark Blades felt super bendy by comparison to the Frank Paddles. This got Chris thinking that perhaps using a small Frank Paddle might be equivalent to using a larger regular paddle which could help keep the stroke rate up and keep the shoulder fatigue low. For a full discussion on all things swim paddles, check out our Gear Talk episode “ Paddles for Swimrun ” with special guest John Stevens . New Gear First Impressions The awesome folks at Synergy Wetsuits recently sent the crew four of their new Swimrun Wetsuit to test out. This is an entry-level suit coming in at $200 with male and female specific options. It’s great to see another entry-level/affordable option for folks new to the sport. There will be a full review of this suit coming soon so stay tuned for that. You can see the first impressions video here to get a complete overview of the suit. Tethered Thoughts Chris used his old faithful Ark Sports Keel pull buoy at their Swimrun practice and he noticed after the starting that the paracord for his simple pull buoy mount had stretched. So much so that he had to wear the paracord as a sling over his shoulder to keep it from falling down below his waist. So a general reminder for everyone out there to check your gear before going out there to make sure that everything is tuned up and you won’t have to resort to random stuff to keep your Swimrun practice/adventure/race from going sideways on you. NU ORZA Pull Buoy Gear Review The Orza is a Swimrun-specific wetsuit that costs $50. It weighs in at 150 grams and the dimensions are 24x27x10cm. It has a unique pontoon-style shape designed for optimal positioning and comes with a thin paracord already attached for those interested in using a simple waist mount attachment. Swimming Impressions Chris used the Orza in both the pool and open water and used the Ark Sports Keel for comparison. The Orza was super comfortable to use. It does have less buoyancy compared to the Keel and he was about two seconds slower using the Orza versus the Keel. Brooke thought that the Orza was the most comfortable pull buoy that she’s used. She thought that it was a little bendy where the two pontoons connect but hasn’t experienced anything breaking off or anything like that. Overall, she thought that this pull buoy fits in between the Swimrunners Piraya and the Ark Keel. She was a little bit faster in the Piraya and Keel by about one second per hundred. (Listeners can check out the full pull buoy comparison chart on the Swimrun Labs website .) Annie loves the Orza pull buoy. For her size, she thought that this was the perfect pull buoy for her. In pool testing, she was over a second faster per 100 compared to the Keel. Chipper experienced similar floatation issues to Chris and wished it was a bit bigger. He was a bit worried about how low-profile it was and thought that he was going to lose it on a run. He would switch out the paracord to something a bit thicker than the one that’s included. Transition/Running Impressions Overall, the Orza was super easy to run with and it would stay in place nicely. Transitioning from run to swim, the Orza was pretty easy to wrangle between the legs. Pull Buoy Rankings Rankings Chipper: 4 Pull Buoys Chipper thought that the Orza was a pretty safe pull buoy for folks looking to just have one pull buoy in their stable. He also thought that if a Swimrunner is more on the larger side of things (height/weight) that this pull buoy might not provide enough flotation. He liked that it included the paracord attachment and took away some of the DIY anxiety that folks might feel about cutting holes in their gear. Brooke: 4 Pull Buoys Brooke thought that the shape was awesome and was super comfortable. She liked how she doesn’t feel it when she’s running. For training, she would give it 5 pull buoys. She might rate it higher overall but she hasn’t tested it in a full kit. Chris: 4.5 Pull Buoys Chris gave it a bunch of rankings: 5 for comfort and 5 for running and transitions. While he wouldn’t use it for racing because he would like more buoyancy he still thinks that if it provides the right amount of buoyancy for the user, then this is an excellent pull buoy and only took off .5 pull buoys because it didn’t have universal applicability. Annie: 4.5 Pull Buoys Annie loves this pull buoy while it is the pull buoy for her, it isn’t for everybody for all the reasons that were discussed. She loves the feeling and comfort of it while in use. Overall Impressions This is an amazing pull buoy and listeners can’t go wrong with the NU Orza for either a training tool in the pool or for Swimrun events if it provides enough flotation for you. That’s it for this week’s Gear Talk show. If you are enjoying the Löw Tide Böyz , please be sure to subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast player. You can find us on Apple Podcast , Spotify, and Google Podcast . 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