I’ve been looking at skinsuits for racing but there doesn’t seems to be loads of stuff available specifically for road or cx racing. However there are loads of tri-suits & i was just wondering what the difference is, if any? Are they different material or is it just all lycra?

because tri-suits are designed to stay on for a swim and then a bike ride and then a run in they tend not to have a chamois in, which can hold onto moisture from the first bit and chafe somewhat

I just used a normal high collared road/TT skin suit with a thermal underneath and on a couple, with a pocket stitched into the back.
You can also get skinsuits in a roubaix type material now specifically for racing CX.
Pactimo, castelli, bioracer and kalas have in the past done them. (the insulated ones)
Pretty much everyone does TT skin suits (which, surprisingly enough, you can use for any discipline you want to, including XC MTB)

Don’t get a trisuit, they are pretty useless for cycling.

As often the case, the sizing guide is awful, but PX Carnac speed suit was £40, you might still be able to get 20% off clothing for baskets over £50, as code was not working properly over weekend.

Be careful looking at TT skinsuits, many don’t have rear pockets. “Endurance” skinsuits for longer events do, and before the advent of “road-race” specific skinsuits, I used one extensively. Champion Systems provide our club kit. They also make a Roubaix skinsuit for cross, but to be honest, I wear Roubaix bib 3/4 and a jersey instead. Races are short and aero is not such a huge factor in a cross race – well it wasn’t yesterday!

Trisuits have no sleeves, and as such can’t be worn for road racing/TTs, and I wouldn’t want to wear one for CX unless you’re in the Southern Hemisphere!

Tried Ali Express? A friend picked up a couple of plain, cheap Chinese ones and has reported good things. He bought a couple of sizes and sold the ‘wrong’ one for a similar amount to what paid (which was only about £20 IIRC).

The Morvelo skinsuit’s nice.

what are people putting in their back pockets at cross races ?

ive always just used a TT skin suit from pactimo

usually just use a tt skinsuit with a baselayer.

As said above, Tri suits have no chamois. And you don’t need pockets for a cx race!

Why skin suits?

Castelli do some nice ones.

Why skin suits?

More aero!

I’m not sure who’s buying a trisuit without a chamois, but the two suits and tri shorts I have definitely do have a chamois in them. I wouldn’t be doing 180km on a TT bike without one!

Saying that – they are definitely more minimal (i.e. less padding) than a regular pair of roadie shorts. You might also find that padding is in a slightly different area – some trisuits move the padding around to account for a different position on the saddle compared to a regular road position.

If sleeveless is a problem, there are plenty of tri suits coming out nowadays with short sleeves to help prevent sunburn on longer courses.

Trisuits also tend to have a couple of smaller pockets in the back – not jersey sized, but enough for a couple of gels / bars if you need them.

Why skin suits?

No jersey pocket/hem to catch a pedal in. A stretched skinsuit also seems to hold less water.

I tried my Pactimo CX skinsuit for the first time in a race yesterday, it was properly good. Compared to racing in shorts and a jersey it’s miles better (except for going to the loo). Doesn’t ride up or get twisted, seems more comfortable for running, doesn’t ruck up at the front and doesn’t seem to collect as much mud. I wouldn’t want to use it for temperatures higher than about 10 degrees though, but that’s rare in a UK CX season.