The 2XU brand has a history to it. In the 1990s, probably the most vibrant company to rise up and give me a smack in the face when I was a wetsuit maker was Orca. In the period intervening, some of the folks who were primary at Orca peeled off to form their own brand, and that brand was 2XU.

This new company and its wetsuits immediately shot to prominence, however the company has had so much success with textiles, compression wear in particular, it might seem like 2XU has taken a bit of a breather in wetsuit design, maybe lost a bit of focus. That impression would not be correct. It just seems that way when you contrast the upward trajectory of its wetsuit business with its faster-yet-growing apparel segment.

I'm bringing up the history not just to reminisce, rather because it informs a narrative about the fit and features of this wetsuit. One thing about the old Orca suits that were so popular among so many of the ITU pros 10 and more years ago: They had a tendency (my impression) to fit rather short in the torso relative to the suits I was making. This was neither good nor bad. It just was. If you were average or long-legged, the Orca was your suit. But if you were a fire plug and all torso, the Orcas of that era were, on average, less likely to fit you than a suit that I might have made.

And why is that? Because I'm slightly long in the torso and, of course, being as self-centered as the next guy, when I made wetsuits I wanted them to fit me. Consequently, QR wetsuits fit me and if you were built like me they fit you too.

My first impression, upon putting the 2XU V:2 Velocity Wetsuit, was: very well made, form fitting, lots of features, and a pattern somewhat reminiscent of the Orcas from that company's heyday. Maybe part of the braintrust the ex-Orca folks brought with them when they started 2XU was an attention to fit that matched the Orca paradigm.

When I swam my first set of 4 x 100yd, I did not especially like the suit. The rubber in the neck area is stiff, and the lack of torso length pulled back on the neck. It was not comfortable.

The sets are chronicled below, and the TYR Hurricane Cat 5 was my control suit. As you probably know by now, I'm swimming in a pre-hydrated suit, three sets, repeating on the 1:30 base, short course yards, 7 minutes in between sets to get these suits off and on again (putting on a wet wetsuit is no fun and takes extra time).

Set 1: 2XU V:2 Velocity

1:11
1:12
1:12
1:12

Set 2: TYR Hurricane

1:11
1:11
1:11
1:12

Set 3: 2XU V:2 Velocity

1:12
1:11
1:11
1:11

The third set went better, as you can see. I was much more comfortable, because I knew what was in store before I put the suit on. I pulled the V:2 Velocity way up tight before I commenced the set.

I believe this suit every bit as fast as the Hurricane. However, it's better for the right swimmer, and I'm not that swimmer. The size MT—Medium Tall—in which I swam is advertised for 5'10" to 6'4", and 163lb to 183lb. I'm right smack in the middle of the height range, at just a tad over 6'1", and I'm sitting just under 170lb, so, we're good there. And the circumferences of the suit were fine.

My recommendation: In this size, if you're 6'0" you'd do fine if you're average morphology or long legged. If you're taller than 6'0", in my view you'd do best if your extra length is in your legs, not your torso. I suspect this is going to be the case throughout the size run, however, I don't know for certain.

You might argue that, hey, my second set was a second faster per 100, just as fast as any suit in which I've swum during this set of tests, obviously the V:2 Velocity fit me fine. Fair enough. However, I suspect I'm more likely, after 25 years of this, to be skilled in pulling these suits up high and tight than the typical person. So, if you're the typical person, keep in mind the profile of the swimmer who is likely to do best in this wetsuit. Ask yourself whether it is you.

Consider the flip side. If you are of average, or short-torso, morphology, and you swim in a wetsuit made to fit somebody like me, then, will you have a roll of rubber around your waist? No good. Wetsuits, like bikes, are not one-size-fits-all-morphologies. Except for Gumby suits made entirely out of Yamamoto #40, but these have their drawbacks.

That established, I did not find the suit ill-fitting at all in the arm and leg length. I often find that when I pull the arms up tight into the armpits, many wetsuits creep too far up my forearm, so that I'm not wearing a fullsuit anymore, rather, mostly a fullsuit (a few inches of the arm is missing). Not so this one. I had plenty of arm. And I suppose that's in keeping with a suit that honors those with long arms and legs.

This suit continues the trend, in upper-end suits, of a slim fit in the torso. It was all I could do to zip this suit up, and likewise with the Hurricane for that matter. These wetsuit makers are doing their darnedest to keep these high-end suits fast, and that means trussing you up like a Victorian in a corset, both to preserve body position, and to not let water balloon the suit.

Even thought the suit was comfortable, flexible, and I could swim without any restriction, this suit is a tank. And by that I mean this is not a suit that's going to be prone to seam separations, fingernail tears and rips. It's reminiscent of the very first wetsuits we ever made, before we discovered Yamamoto's rubber, and some of those earliest QRs are still going. This 2XU is much more elegant and gentlemanly than those early QRs, but just as tough. Frankly, if there is a more durable suit in triathlon I don't know what it is. I don't think I've ever seen a suit that is less likely to fail than this V:2 Velocity.

Now, that has pluses and minuses. The TYR suits have 2mm panels of #40 sewn into the terminus of the leg. That suit is easy to get off your feet, wet or dry. But, that part of the suit is rather fragile. This 2XU is 5mm down to the bottom of the leg. Not fragile. However, you'll want to take this wetsuit off immediately after, or soon after, you exit the water, and carry it to transition. Just in the run from the water to your bike rack, the outside of this suit may dry out, and the suit may not pop right off over your heel. That'll cost you extra seconds.

I mentioned that the neck is stiff. What I mean is, it's not the typical, soft, floppy, 1.5mm smoothskin #40 rubber folded over. This suit's neck is made of something else. But, I didn't chafe. It was not uncomfortable. And, because it had some body and character to it, it stayed put. I didn't mind it at all.

Many suits today feature a pattern in the rubber, such pattern impressed by a stamp, the die formed to generate the desired impression. Likewise this suit, and the purpose of the pattern is to provide—as well as I can divine—channels that keep the suit trending straight ahead. Do they work as advertised? I could not tell. I suppose I would have to swim in an identical suit made without these channels to know for sure.

This company's wetsuit size chart lists 12 men's sizes, and 7 women's. "In my day" we eventually landed on 16 sizes, all told, at QR. I thought that was pretty comprehensive. Kudos to this company for outdoing what we did. While these 2XU suits will not fit everyone, it's certainly not for want of sizes.

Overall, I'm very happy with the suit, with the caveats attached that describe the sorts of people who I think will best fit in this wetsuit. This is a $600 suit, so, it's not inexpensive. It's right there with the high-end Aquaman, TYR and blueseventy suits. There are higher-end suits that some of these companies make, such as the TYR Freak of Nature, and 2XU makes a suit called the X:2 Project X. But I'm a simple guy. I can't imagine what you would do to these $600 suits to better them. But I'm teachable, and the product reviews of these hoity toity suits—the purchase of which require dipping into your home equity line of credit—are forthcoming.