Hey, I did my HIM this weekend in 64 with a sleeveless suit and it was PERFECT. I did get a pair of those booties though,and they helped a TON. $20 is a good deal if you can get your hands on them. I personally wouldnt want vaseline on my feet or anything else, it will stick with you for the rest of the race.

Im a greyhound. Id never heard of this before so figured it would be worth the post to see or not. I can handle the cold but yah never know. Always looking for the competitive advantage if its tried and true yah know.

You won't need anything for swimming in Lake Michigan. I've been doing open water swims in Chicago for nearly a month now and it feels plenty warm (even without the wetsuit). There is a huge difference in temperatures from 54 deg when I started to the current 63-65. You'll be fine with a sleeveless and won't need vaseline or booties to handle the cold.

Well my feet get cold easily...heck I still tromp out in my uggs even now when the temps are below 60. So for me the booties were helpful.

Having just suffered in the 59.5 degree water in CDA I was glad to have hat the neoprene hat and booties. They helped to stave off the bitter cold a bit, but I still felt cold even 3/4 of the way into that swim despite all the moving and battling that was going on. Granted I have poor circulation and I have a body composition that just doesn't retain a lot of heat (I think I'm going to incorporate more french fries to my diet to work on that). Still I agree with brittda, the booties (if allowed) and the hat are good aids.

Can you go for a practice swim and see how you go?

Just out of curiosity, why no booties?

I found them to keep my slightly warmer than I would have been without them. I found them to be quite beneficial, especially when you have a long way to run to transition when there is a lot of debris.

+ a million on the neoprene cap. I wore one in my last race and I loved it. Not only was it a lot warmer on my head (which is the most important, IMO) but it kind of drowns out all the noise from everyone else. It really helped me to stay inside myself and just keep swimming.

More stuff to take off in the transition area. the concern is your head to keep the warmth in. Booties are not going to do that. Tuffen the feet up. Drag on the feet. It is important to go over the race course prior to teh event to scoap it out. Chances the area from the water to transition has been cleared from the race crew. Besides, my coach says no and I listen.

65 is actually pretty reasonable temperature for open-water swimming and most athletes are fine in a sleeveless wetsuit at that temperature. At around 65, I get too hot in my full-sleeve and have to start using my sleeveless suit. A neoprene hat is a great thing for keeping the cold water out of your ears and keeping your head warmer. It also helps with that initial shock of getting in. I personally wouldn't use booties, as I think they mess too much with the kick.