In his own words:

A little more about me, why not. I did my first triathlon in 1987 and have been a triathlete ever since. I'm in my 8th year as president of the Triathlon Club of San Diego. Check out our website if you have the time, http://www.triclubsandiego.org/. After seeing thousands of new triathletes start in the club, I realized it was a good thing when a new triathlete wore a wetsuit in open water. Prior to becoming the club president, I ran the club races for three years. If I could just get a wetsuit on all the new triathletes for their first race, I wouldn't have to worry about one thing -- they couldn't sink! The warmth the wetsuit provides from the cold water also cuts down on people hyperventilating the first hundred yards or so. The main issue which prevents people from wearing a wetsuit is the cost of a new wetsuit and the lack of rental options. New wetsuits start at about $189 and go up to $599. For the new triathlete who doesn't know for sure if this sport is for them, it's hard to justify spending that kind of money for a piece of equipment they might only use once.  So for little money, you can rent a wetsuit that will fit you properly. You might even enjoy your swim and go on and have a great time in your race. So that's how the wetsuit rentals started, trying to fill the need of those new to our sport that could benefit from a expensive piece of equipment.