Cold Water/Drysuits

Water temp has droppped to the low 60s. I am going to try the new drtsuit this weekend. Do I need drysuit boots/socks. Is there such a thing.
I have seen drysuit socks on the web. Anybody use reccommend them. Also what about gloves. I cannot bring myself to wear a neopreme hood. Any suggestions?

The bindings do help keep your feet warm. I have used some 'waterproof' socks...ones used hunting. They help keep ya warm, but I did get water in them.

As for the hood...don't fall.

jj, i surf in the wintertime in the ocean and use boots (or booties as the surfers call them). they are 7mm thick and i would imagine you would have to adjust your bindings a little to fit in them. they are available at any surf shop.they will keep your feet warm for about 3-4 hours at about 45 degree water temp.

i find it weird how this sport still uses drysuits rather then wetsuits, but perhaps it has to do with the wind factor while riding on a wakeboard. my wintersuit for example takes in water and keeps me warm for hours. who knows...

Get 2mm neo diving gloves. They are like $10 on ebay. Definately make your cold weather riding much more enjoyable. Hood is overrated, get a haircut instead.

water temp has dropped to low 60s... I wish the water temp was in the 60s, I dont own a drysuit, we're usually out when its 50-55

I don't think a hood is overrated.. I think the head is the most important part of your body to keep it warm.

I ran a full length wetsuit for a couple of years but when I first tried a baggy drysuit, there was no going back. Compared to a skin-tight wetsuit, a dry suit is WAY more maneuverable and easier to throw tricks in. Oh, and they're warmer too. I'd imagine that's the reason most riders opt for the drysuit over a wetsuit.

Oh, and a hood can definitely help. I wear a neo headband in the springtime when it's DEATHLY cold water, but otherwise I go w/out. I pretty much don't wear anything on my feet since it's pretty much impossible to get anything under my bindings. As long as you keep your feet out of the water, you shouldn't be too bad.



(Message edited by superairdawg on October 18, 2004)

Here is how we roll it.


Yes, a swim cap. The dry suit booties work but you need a lot of lube. I just like to keep a pair of slippers ready for when I'm done.

Joe H,

Mobility depends on the wetsuit. If you get a good one made entirely of the "high-tech" superstretch neoprene, it doesn't limit you at all. Actually, the site for the wetsuit I have has a guy doing yoga in some of the pictures.

david bogart,

I think the move toward drysuits has more to do with boating than riding. I used a 4/3 full suit in 55-degree water over the winter here and it was VERY comfortable. I did, however, get pretty cold in the boat sometimes, sitting there in the wind, if the air was below...say...55. The dry suit people had no such problem.

Re: gloves,

Just get whatever is cheap and comfortable. It's not as much about insulation as much as it is just keeping the wind off your fingers. I got some paddling gloves at REI.

Re: boots,

The coldest water I've ridden in is about 52-degrees. You don't need booties for that at all. Any problem at that temperature is all mental. I'm sure it would also be fine for another 10-degrees or so but I'm not sure after that. if the air temperature is low, I would recommend having booties or a towel to wrap around your feet when you're riding in the boat.

A hot shower makes the world of difference on you feet. When I get out of the water, I warm them up with the shower and put on a pair of thick wool socks. Then i'm golden.

Salmon Tacos, the difference is when you're surfing you're always in the water and active. I use a 3/2 wetsuit in water temps down to the mid 40s and am fine...as long as I'm not riding around in the boat after my run. If I can get indoors and dried off right away a wetsuit is perfect. If I'm going to be riding around in the boat while other people ride a drysuit is the way to go. I agree, wetsuits are far more comfortable than drysuits.

Water was 55 on Saturday. We use drysuits, and no booties, just the bindings. It's only the toes that get cold, until you take the board off, then it's killer until you can get back in the boat and the shower going. We use skiing gloves and the helmet helps keep the head warm.

up here in canada we are still going water is about 55 we just use shorty wetsuits no boots no legs no heads we just use the hot shower before and after its a great feature for boarding in the cold

i ride all year long in the delta which is generally mid 50s, but dipped into the 40s for a bit. ive never worn booties, and basically my run ends because my hands and feet get numb. not a problem though because im usually tired by then anyways. i ride in a drysuit as well.

if you visit the oneill site they have a bunch of booties that are as thin as 2mm for $15. im not sure how they would fit in a pair of bindings, but i plan on visiting the oneill surf shop in santa cruz soon so i can get a pair for when i wakeskate.

we find that its too hard to get bindings on with booties, so if you have room for it in the boat, a cooler that you can put hot water from the shower in also works for cold feet

Reading about dry suits and wet suits makes me shiver. You guys need to get one of these:


Power plants do a great job of heating the water. The water around this plant stays above sixty degrees through the winter. All you need is a skin to stay warm when you are out of the water.

Whit,

A skin? In January? ...when the average high is 49?

You're tougher than I am if you like to ride around in the boat all day in 27-49 degree air, all wet, with just a skin!

i personally find that a baggy nylon drysuit is far more comfortable than a wetsuit. wetsuits make my joints feel like they all have neoprene braces on them, and restrict my movement. Drysuits are also easily adabtable to water/air temperature conditions. you can layer up with fleece and sweats when it gets real cold or just wear trunks under it when it is marginal.

To add to the list, a good drysuit made for barefooting is super slick on the water, making tumble turns effortless.

As a dry suit has no thermal qualities at all and warmth is entirely dependant on clothing worn beneath it, what is the point of wearing trunks under a dry suit?
You may as well just opt for the trunks.

I've got a dry suit and sometimes if the weather is on the chilly side I'll wear it. But for the most part I wear SkiWarm Prodigy 1mm skin. The Prodigy has a shiny black surface that helps to block the wind. The key for me has been to have a bunch of skins and try to begin each run with a dock start. Not re-wearing a wet skin and put on sweats in the boat is normally enough on 55+ days. Wouldn't be possible without the warm water though. Because the water is warmer than the air your feet don't really get cold. Ears and hands get the coldest, but you can warm the hands temporarily by sticking them in the water.

Do you guys remain in your drysuit between runs? The main reason I said the heck with the dry suit was because of the time involved getting in and out of suit. Heck spent more time dressing then riding! But if your water temps are below fifty--I don't see anyway around a drysuit. Forty-five degrees is the coldest I've ever ridden and those falls sucked!! Feels like sticking your head into a cooler of ice water. My hat is off to you guys that can handle those temperatures.

Whit,

A new skin for each set? That's CRA-Z, man. I just ordered a dry suit and I'm guessing I'll probably leave it on between sets except that I'll pull my head out of the tourniquet neck.

43-degree water is no problem with a good wetsuit. It's the wind that will get you, IMO.

Dave Burns,

You might want a dry suit with almost nothing underneath if say...the air is 55 and the water is 65. At that point, you might not want to be riding around in the boat, all wet, but you might not need any warmth while riding.

Whit's back!!!

Will we be seeing the return of Bunnie as well?

Sorry for the hijack, just haven't seen Whit on here in ages.

We ride year round up here in Seattle. The coldest temps we've ridden in were 27 air, and 32 water. I use the Bare dry suit and some diving gloves. I don't wear anything on my head other than my helmet, and I've never been able to stand to have anything on my feet while riding, so I go with bare feet.

Salmon

That’s a reasonable enough explanation, it’s just that the concept of the water being warmer than the air is totally alien to me so that never crossed my mind.

dave, also, when it is borderline, the drysuit blocks the wind, so the water is not directly evaporating off of your skin, hence you are in fact warmer.

Howdy Cliff--always been lurking. Running www.endofropegang.com for the Carolina riders keeps me posting local most the time.

Dave, that picture in the ice flow made my nuts suck into my belly!! Brrrr.... You guys stuck in the northern realm need to move south!

Dave, that picture gave me a chill! I don't know if I could ride in that.

I keep my drysuit on between runs. My neck seal isn't too tight so that doesn't bother me. It keeps the wind off me in the boat too, then all I need is a hat and I'm good.

stupid ques.?
How much clothes do you guys wear under the drysuit or dress like if going snowboarding?

i have ridden in 32 deg water with a tshirt, an 'old navy' performance fleece, and some columbia fleece pants. all of the parts under the drysuit were warm. that is my typical cold water setup.

if warmer, then I might just wear a tshirt and a long sleeve shirt. I figure I wear my drysuit till the water is 65 or so, just because I'd rather be comfy when riding rather than chilly.

Any colder and Timmys gonna need skates

Water was 57, air was 60- we rode w/ t shirts and shorts under the drysuits. No problems at all. Was an odd feeling getting back into the boat dry.
Well my head was wt, ni=ot a complete day of riding if I do not try to land face first.

What about BRAIN FREEZE!!!