Cold Weather Gear for Northern Climate

[lucabrasi]

This jacket may work well for sup. 
Or it may not. 
What were we talking about again??

Cold weather gear.

[Bean]

I've yet to feel the need for anything more than my 4/3 full  with 5mil boots and gloves for winter, even in the 30's water temp.

I use the 100 degree rule for switching down to my 3/2 suit, for instance water 45, air 55 or higher.

[raf]

4/3 hooded with 7 mil boots and good mitts for what we have in Maine.  For flat water, if its sunny and windless, you can easily rock a 3/2 and get hot in 5 minutes, even in freezing temps.  Wind and cloud cover are the 1 and 2 cause of cold if you are appropriately dressed. 

If you will be far from shore and/or in heavy surf, its best to be over-dressed and have at least a 5mil suit on.  Or a 4mil and a backup plan

[mrbig]

Luca - You wouldn't have an old Broadway Joe coat in storage would ya? Coulda used it yesterday when KMARNORTH33 reported a 91.3 gust right here in Chatham. I did not go out - getting old an long in the tooth...

[JimK]

I gotta second RAF for Nj/PA winters

JimK
www.extremewindsurfing.com

[OR Ned]

With the Soul drysuit, whether I'm in the water or standing on the board, it feels just like ski or snowboard clothing. It's perfectly comfortable. The only difference is that it's completely waterproof.

I get a lot of looks when I go walking into the surf in the middle of winter wearing what looks like nothing more than rain gear. People sometimes ask if I'm wearing a wetsuit under it.

What is remarkable is the no looks you get... Myself and another colleague here went for a kiteboarding session before work a few weeks ago. We walked into the coffee shop and grabbed a couple javas to go... didn't see anyone give us a second look, the thing that caught anyone's eyes were the neoprene booties!

Hey Shoals, what is your contingency plan if your dry suit comes apart in the surf?  I know its not likely but a fin cut, or even a defective seam could become a huge issue.  Am I wrong in thinking that the suit would fill up with cold water?

I love the idea of a dry-suit but that would be my biggest concern.

Great question, and one we get all the time. In the very unlikely event that you get a rip in one of our drysuits, you will get wet. You will not have the suit fill with huge amounts of water in a matter of seconds!

We actually did a 'dunk test' recently and captured it on video to show what happens when you use our  Ignite suit and go for a swim. You will see in the video that the main dry zip is completely open, with the just the jacket done up. Important to note that the Ignite suit in the video does have an anti-flush belt to help avoid water retention.



You can see there is of course some water in the suit after, but really quite minimal.

I was about 100 yds out in weak 3' and managed to skeg the back of the
shoulder on a dry suit open.  It filled quick and only my leash saved me
as I couldn't surface!

It was a long time ago, 70's, so I guess materials are stronger now.
Just saying.

Absolutely correct, materials are much different. It takes a lot to rip one of our drysuits, but it can of course happen. We recommend our suits for SUP in smaller surf conditions - they are not fit for double overhead and we are ok with that!

The biggest benefits of a drysuit vs. a wetsuit, in our minds, are mobility, comfort, versatility, and lifespan.

Instead of fighting 3-6mm of rubber, you feel like you are wearing a regular jacket... you will be paddling a lot longer without that shoulder fatigue. Full range of motion really makes a difference, just think of how much more fun paddling in a t-shirt is vs. a thick wetsuit, just from the mobility and comfort perspective.

Our drysuits are breathable, and wetsuits are not. Wetsuits are great at being wet, but if you are out of the water and exposed to wind, they are not so ideal. Even if you stay on your board, and then work up a good sweat you are going to overheat. Take a break and you cool down and you are now wearing a damp sweaty suit.

The Soul and Ignite are also pretty versatile. Our water temps in the NW never get very high... at all. I personally wear a Soul all year round in the ocean, and get to use a 3/2 suit on the lakes we kiteboard in. When it's summer, I wear a pair of shorts and a long sleeve under the suit. In winter I have two full body layers to keep me out there for hours. You just layer up or down depending on the conditions.

Life span... a good wetsuit (generally) will last 1-2 seasons of use before it starts to lose warmth and effectiveness. With care and maintenance (and drysuits do require a bit), our suits can easily last 5+ seasons with many customers still using suits we haven't made in nearly a decade. This means your overall cost of ownership on a drysuit, on a per session basis, should be quite reasonable.

We can understand that drysuits will never be for everyone, and that's ok

What I would say though, is if you are remotely interested in the idea or concept, make a point of trying one. I was personally very skeptical of suits for all of the reasons mentioned here and more. When I began working with Ocean Rodeo I had to at least try a suit, and as soon as I did I went from healthy skeptic to complete advocate. For what it is worth, I put 50+ days a year on my suit.

Sorry we have not been more active on the boards, but it's good to see some healthy discussion. Please let us know if you have any questions, always happy to help.

Ned
Ocean Rodeo

[surfcowboy]

I'm glad when a female paddler wants to find out about winter sup gear, she can get to see that pic.  Trying not being a jerk but can we keep that sort of stuff over on maxim.com where it belongs?

There are already few enough women in this sport.

New policy, for every one of these I see I will post a guy in a thong. Now, let's see what I can find.

Admin, feel free to remove my speedo pics, right after you remove that other one.