2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

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Ron
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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by Ron » Thu Oct 17, 2013 10:54 am

Used to kite the east coast and the UK in the winter with a 6/5 so 4/3 wetsuit with hood/booties/gloves take me through the winter in norcal. You guys have it mild over here so invest in a thicker wetsuit if needed but I think a drysuit is a little too much for here especially given the inconvenience.

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Re: Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by kitenaked » Thu Oct 17, 2013 9:23 pm

Col.kiteman wrote:I know its a little cheesy, but why not layer up. I have a 5/3 hurley freedom. I had a 45 minute swim in after a self rescue last january. Water temp: 46 degrees. I started to get damn cold; felt like begining stages of hypothermia. But with all of that said, i think id much rather throw my 2 mm top over that suit, or pick up a 6/5/4, over investing all of that money on a drysuit. Its all fun and games untill youre out there and faced with either a long swim or a wardrobe malfunction. I have to agree with nck rider on this topic for sure; a leaky drysuit or a long swim would be pretty damn dangerous. In a sport with so many what ifs, thats a question that is worth bringing up.. If its cold enough where you need a drysuit to get your fix, maybe you should reconsider your lattidude.........move south! Just my .02 as well. Btw, i have zero experience with drysuits so take it for what its worth.
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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by dwaynej » Fri Oct 18, 2013 11:25 pm

Scuba diving is my other hobby and I have two drysuits in the garage. One of the suits is a Whites Fusion and its very light weight and quite comfortable to wear... Pictures of people doing the splits in them. Its a waterproof baggy suit with a second form fitting lycra (or equivalent) suit on the outside... The lycra keeps the suit tight against your body. Plenty of room to layer up as needed.

http://whitesdiving.com/sport-diving/fu ... t-drysuit/

The heavy boots are not permanent and light weight neoprene socks or boots can be used instead. The valves can be removed and replaced with blanks so I'm thinking it might be worth trying.

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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by Col.kiteman » Sun Oct 20, 2013 8:43 am

For sure chris! Much credit and love to you! Saved my ass that day......and even had a beer waiting for me when i got to shore

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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by orsales » Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:03 am

dwaynej wrote:Scuba diving is my other hobby and I have two drysuits in the garage. One of the suits is a Whites Fusion and its very light weight and quite comfortable to wear... Pictures of people doing the splits in them. Its a waterproof baggy suit with a second form fitting lycra (or equivalent) suit on the outside... The lycra keeps the suit tight against your body. Plenty of room to layer up as needed.

http://whitesdiving.com/sport-diving/fu ... t-drysuit/

The heavy boots are not permanent and light weight neoprene socks or boots can be used instead. The valves can be removed and replaced with blanks so I'm thinking it might be worth trying.
fwiw - the White's Fusion suit is exactly our Surf Dry suit that we have sold for the last 7 years (minus the valves and slightly different skin). White's and Ocean Rodeo were once the same company but we split off from them in 2009 as they were sold to Aqua Lung. Currently we only have limited sizes of S and M left however (on sale! lol). There will be a new version of the Surf Dry released shortly, we had hoped for this fall but the re-design process is taking longer than anticipated.
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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by funmilton » Mon Oct 21, 2013 11:04 am

I got my Ocean Rodeo Soul Dry Suit a few weeks ago, last year they sold out in early winter for medium, and all black suits seem to go quick. My first impression is that it is very well build, I would highly recommend company. I also bought a harness from them 5+ years ago, it held up fine, their product seems to be over-built for the northern climates. Nice Canadians, great customer service.
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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by Captain John » Thu Oct 24, 2013 11:36 pm

I have a OR SurfDry suit. This is the suit that looks like a standard wetsuit that is tight fitting, keeping you hydro dynamic in the water. I like to be able to swim fairly streamline and I surf, so this one sounded good to me. After the chilly last few days, I decided to wear it today, for the first time in about a year. It was a pleasant warm up from the 5/4, 6/4 I wear normally. Wetsuits are more convenient, as they easier and quicker to put on... and there are fewer pieces to keep track of. Wearing the Surf Dry today reminded me of the extra warmth I was missing from wetsuits. Evaporative cooling plays a huge role with these windsports and a drysuit makes sense if you're the body type that gets colds easily.

There's pros and cons to both sides, but a drysuit definitely deserves consideration for us wind people living in norcal.
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Re: 2013/2014 Drysuit Discussion

Post by dwaynej » Fri Oct 25, 2013 3:55 pm

orsales wrote:
fwiw - the White's Fusion suit is exactly our Surf Dry suit that we have sold for the last 7 years (minus the valves and slightly different skin). White's and Ocean Rodeo were once the same company but we split off from them in 2009 as they were sold to Aqua Lung. Currently we only have limited sizes of S and M left however (on sale! lol). There will be a new version of the Surf Dry released shortly, we had hoped for this fall but the re-design process is taking longer than anticipated.
Very good to know!

For whats it worth, I have a latex allergy and need silicone seals. Hoping you can do replaceable silicone seals in your products?

By the by - What is the actual fabric/material you use for the waterproof layer?

Dwayne


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