Uniform

The basic team uniform consists of a t-shirt and a latex racing cap provided at no extra cost.

There are some other optional clothing and equipment items (such as sweatshirts, swimsuits, silicone caps, and flippers) that we offer for sale at various points during the year. Swimmers normally purchase their own equipment including swimsuits, goggles, and caps to wear at practices and/or competitions.

Team Equipment, Clothing & Gear

Racing suit: Before purchasing a racing suit, please see our swimsuit purchasing guidelines (below) for information. If you have any questions about swimsuits or equipment, please speak with your swimmer’s coach.

Team caps: We have latex and silicone

Training fins: If your child has outgrown last season’s fins, you may sell or donate the pair to another swimmer to use.

Snorkel: Youth and Adult sizes

You may wish to purchase other equipment for personal use. However, please speak with your swimmer’s coach beforehand to make sure that the equipment you wish to buy is appropriate.

Ordering

Please contact the club administrator or speak with a coach regarding any items that are for sale.

Where to buy?

Team Aquatic Supplies in Burlington is a retail outlet that sells everything swimming; they also deliver online orders.

Locally, Sport Chek and Dan’s Dive Shop (St. Catharines) have a limited selection of items like swimsuits and goggles.

Swimsuit purchasing guidelines

The purpose of this guide is to help swimmers and parents understand the differences among the myriad of swimsuit styles that are manufactured and marketed for competitive swimmers. Likewise, since swimsuit trends continuously evolve along with regulations that restrict their usage in competitions, we provide these guidelines to assist in the optimal development of our swimmers.

Swimsuits made for competitive swimmers fit into two broad marketing categories: “training suits” and “racing suits”; racing suits encompass the subcategory “technical suits” (or “tech suits” for short).

Swimsuits marketed as “training suits” are predominantly made with polyester and may also include “long life” Lycra/spandex and can seemingly last forever. These fabrics are more resilient to pool chemicals, can stand up to daily usage, and are therefore more economical to wear in a training setting. When choosing a training suit, it should be comfortable to wear for the duration of swim practice sessions. Note that suits made with polyester will not stretch or be as elastic compared with suits made with other fabrics; and therefore, swimmers will usually wear a larger size than a suit made with stretchy fabrics like Lycra/spandex.

Wearing a “training suit” at competitions is acceptable! Depending upon the age of a swimmer and the circumstances, this may be commonplace, desired or preferable; swimmers of all ages and at all competitive levels will sometimes choose to do so.

Once swimmers gain some experience competing, they may wish to have a separate swimsuit that they keep specifically for competitions, and thus wear minimally at practices. This suit will likely fit a bit tighter and may be made of a material that is not nearly as hardy as the polyester training suits.

The suit that a swimmer wears at a competition may be one marketed as a “racing suit” — which come in a confusing array of styles, materials, and prices. We caution, however, that families should not be pressured into purchasing an expensive racing suit for an “age group” athlete.

(We define an age group athlete as one that competes below or outside of “senior” or “open” levels of competition; i.e., competitions where there are no age groups. Age group athletes are younger, in mid-teenage and younger years, and are growing, developing, and improving steadily/rapidly; and typically compete at Regional and Provincial championship levels. By contrast, senior athletes are in mid-teenage and older years and may compete at Regional, Provincial, and National or higher levels.)

There are several specialist swimsuit manufacturers in the market. If unsure of best options when purchasing a suit; we suggest a brand like Speedo or TYR that has been in the business the longest, and often offer the most options at the best prices.

The following are our recommendations as to appropriate racing suits for our swimmers:

Bronze, Silver & gold Group swimmers

The “Brock” logoed suits available through the team are a good option. The suit material includes some spandex for more stretch in the fit (but it will not last as long as 100% polyester, hence the suggestion not to use it for daily wear); and the cost is reasonable ($40–65). Swimmers in these groups may alternatively choose to buy a suit elsewhere, but should not be paying more than about $60–75 (male) or $75–90 (female) for a racing suit.

Suits come in brief-cut and jammer style which covers a portion of the upper thighs. For age group swimmers, we emphasize that the difference between wearing a brief vs. jammer (or the intermediary “square leg” style) is a preference/choice based on personal comfort (i.e. modesty) and should not be tied to enhancing performance; thus, we deemphasize that there is an advantage for young swimmers in wearing a more expensive jammer over a brief in competitions.

Gold & Diamond Group swimmers

As with the age group swimmers, the Brock suits are a good and inexpensive option. Some athletes may be ready to upscale their racing suit as they progress in the sport (and stop growing so quickly). Moderately priced racing suits are available for about $60–100 for males and $100–150 for females. These suits will mostly be jammer style (also called a “knee-skin”) for both genders, meaning the suit extends down the upper thigh to just above the knee. The fabric will be tight-fitting, offer some compression, and will deteriorate with use.

High-performance Diamond group swimmers

“Technical” racing suits are expensive and range in price from $300–600. These suits are not for age group swimmers! They have a limited-use period (deteriorate rapidly) and should be reserved for only the highest levels of competition. Swimmers considering making such a purchase are urged to consult with their coach first.