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Long course age group triathlete Jenny Lucas-Hill recently put the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 to the ultimate test – wearing it for the 2024 edition of Challenge Roth. With race day conditions bringing rain, shine and everything in between. Find out how the EVO 2.3 fared over 140.6 miles of swimming, cycling and running.
After testing out the TRI-FIT GEO women’s tri suit earlier in the season, wearing it for both the Singapore T100 and Challenge The Championship. I was 99.9% sure I was going to wear it for Challenge Roth, too. After all, it had proven itself to be ridiculously comfortable, even in the face of extreme heat and humidity. But after consulting with a nutritionist and devising a fuelling plan for the marathon section of Challenge Roth that would require me to you know – actually take on some fuel during the run. I realised I was going to need more pockets to comfortably carry my energy gel picnic.
It says a lot about the trust the GEO had given me in TRI-FIT’s range of tri suits, that I panic ordered the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 one week before race day, with very little time to actually test it out. The deciding factor? The EVO 2.3 has SIX pockets (plus an IceDrip pocket) for storage on the go.
Foregoing the ‘no new kit on race day’ rule could have been disastrous. But thankfully, the EVO 2.3 didn’t let me down. Read on to find out why I’ve now unofficially dubbed this the ultimate tri suit for long distance triathlon…
Summary
The TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 really does feel like a step up from the TRI-FIT GEO – and that’s no mean feat given how well the GEO women’s tri suit has performed. For long distance racing, the EVO 2.3 solved the few niggles I had with the GEO. 6 pockets make it easy to carry more energy gels than needed. The sleeves are snug, and aero, without the slight bit of tightness I noted on the GEO. And, as seems to be a recurring theme with TRI-FIT’s triathlon gear, the chamois pad was super comfortable from start to finish over the full 140.6 mile triathlon distance at Challenge Roth.
Honestly? Other than the fact that women currently only have the one design on offer for the EVO 2.3, I’m struggling to find much I don’t like about this tri suit.
Initial impressions
The reason I’d stuck with TRI-FIT for my last minute change of race suit just before Challenge Roth was because I’d assumed the chamois pad on the EVO 2.3 would be the same as the GEO – which had already proven itself to be crazy comfortable on the bike and the run. You can imagine my alarm, then, when I got the EVO 2.3 out of the box and discovered the chamois pad was actually pretty different.
Thankfully my concerns were soon alleviated, after a quick taper week bike and run session proved the chamois on the EVO 2.3 was just as comfortable as that on the GEO. TRI-FIT have developed their own pad for the GEO, which is unusually plush (but not bulky). The EVO 2.3 chamois pad actually uses an Italian Elastic Interface pad which is more akin to your classic lightweight tri suit chamois pad. But that didn’t mean a compromise on comfort – and this tri suit ended up matching the GEO for undercarriage comfort levels.
The fabric on the EVO 2.3 women’s tri suit feels luxuriously soft – a major plus point when you’ve got to wear it for 140.6 miles worth of swim-bike-run. The upper body features AeroWaffle fabric, which I noticed is slightly more flexible than the hexagonal aero fabric on the GEO and means the slightly tight fit around the biceps isn’t an issue with the EVO 2.3.
Comfort-factor aside, I was mainly here for the pockets. And this tri suit has them in abundance. Two rear side access pockets, a pocket just behind each hip and two pockets on the inside of the front of the suit. A quick raid of the energy gel cupboard later, and I was confident I’d easily be able to carry all the nutrition I needed for the run at Challenge Roth. Even with room to spare for an emergency extra gel or two, should I find myself out on course for longer than planned come race day.
FIT
With no time to exchange the tri suit for an alternative size should it not fit, I was glad to discover the sizing across TRI-FIT’s tri suit range seems to be consistent. As with the GEO, the size small fit like a glove (for reference, I’m 5ft 4” and a UK size 6-8).
In fact, the slightly more stretchy fabric in the upper body made this tri suit feel as though it were almost made to measure. Where the GEO is an all-in-one design, the upper body of the EVO 2.3 unzips like a cycling jersey which should give more wiggle room for those of you who are taller. And the mesh underarms give you next level freedom of movement, which makes for an unrestricted feeling wearing this tri suit under a wetsuit during the swim.
Just like the GEO, the shorts are compressive and stay put – without creating sausage legs at the gripper. And where the sleeves on the GEO were on the cusp of being a touch too snug around the biceps (should I ever grow any) the EVO 2.3 doesn’t suffer the same issue – sitting close enough to be aero, without any squeeze.
With a few days until the big dance, it was time to put the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 to the ultimate test and wear it to race Challenge Roth.
Comfort & PERFORMANCE
Challenge Roth race day arrived and it was soon time to hop into the canal with the infamous canons blasting every 5 minutes. In a slightly risky move, this would be the first time I’d actually swim in the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 tri suit – and thankfully the mesh underarms and stretchy fabric meant no issues with restriction or fatigue in the shoulders wearing it under my wetsuit.
Race day had actually got off to a pretty chilly start with persistent rain showers for much of the first lap of the bike. The EVO 2.3 did a good job of drying out quickly once the rain stopped and, alongside the addition of some lightweight arm warmers, kept me at a comfortable temperature throughout.
The chamois pad did its job throughout the 180km bike leg. The course has plenty of climbing, but also lots of fast descents and flat sections. Sat up climbing, and down on the aero bars, the chamois was perfectly comfortable.
Heading out of T2, the plentiful pockets were well placed to easily load up my gels and get going. They were also easy to access on the move. The sun had made an appearance at this stage and temperatures were rising. The breathable fabric really came into its own here, as did the IceDrip pocket at the back of the neck, helping to keep my core temperature down. And miraculously, despite drenching myself with water at every aid station, I crossed the finish line with absolutely NO chafe. That never happens in a full distance race!
140.6 miles of swim-bike-run later, and the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 had well and truly passed the long distance triathlon test. It’s also cleaned up nicely post-race (I was worried I’d ruined the nice white top section after spluttering some vile-tasting ISO drink all over it at mile 20). And I’ll have no hesitation in wearing it again for IRONMAN Tallinn in a few weeks’ time – which says it all.
DURability
There’s probably no other occasion where you would spend a decent chunk of money on a piece of clothing, only to dunk it in canal water, sweat in it for several hours, dowse it in energy gels and whatever else you’ve got your paws on at an aid station. And then leave it scrunched up at the bottom of your after-race drawstring bag to fester for at least 24hrs until you get the energy to deal with your race kit. But that’s what we task our tri suits with, and the TRI-FIT EVO 2.3 proved it’s up to the job. The light colourway hasn’t held on to any stains, and there’s no sign of premature wear.
It’s too early to say long term how durable this tri suit is, but so far it seems pretty race proof!
VERDICT
Having put the EVO 2.3 to the test over the full 140.6 mile distance, I can say from a comfort, performance and practicality perspective this women’s tri suit ticks every single box for long distance triathlon racing. It was comfortable throughout all three disciplines. I was able to carry all my nutrition, without feeling like any of the pockets were bulging at the seams. And I didn’t have a hint of any painful post-race chafe to deal with.
Really, the only thing I can pick fault with here is the fact there’s only one design on offer for women. The men’s version comes in a choice of blue or black/white and I’d like to see that choice expanded for us women, too. TRI-FIT have some pretty cool, colourful designs available across the GEO and EVO NEXT GEN tri suit ranges, so hopefully they might treat us all to a new EVO 2.3 design for next season. It would also be good to see the size curve extended to be a little more inclusive – currently it only goes up to an XL.
Other than that, this tri suit has outperformed my (already high) expectations and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it for long distance racing.
