I really love my new ACR C-Light.  I headed out for…aw heck…why not just watch the video?

It was my first time going to SUP at night whilst under a moon.  I was really surprised to find white caps and rollers.  I sure wish the video had captured the moon better.  It was huge in the sky but small on the camera.  I spent a long time out there after the camera went down.  Just about my favorite thing to do on a SUP is something you can’t do in a kayak or a canoe.  I like to just lay down and take a nap.  Yes…I had my lights on.  But it was great, just having the rollers crash into and against the board…drifting, watching the moon.  No one else around.  Had the whole place to myself.  All the night critters and the sounds they made crashing through whenever the wind died down.  This is why I love running Amigos Drysuit Repair.  I love it that my customer’s use the gear I fix, for things like this.  To get away from the things of man, to find some momentary respite among wild places.  To do this safely, in certain conditions, we definitely need gear that works well and keeps us dry and safe.  I was totally dry in my Kokatat GFE.

ACR C-Light Gear Review

The light I chose for my front was the ACR C-Light.  It is pictured above, attached to my Kokatat PFD. You can read more specs on it at the ACR SITE.  Even though I am a vendor for ACR, I had not yet tried this light until my Dad got me one as a gift.   They run about $11.00.  I felt at first that the light would be too dim.  I am used to ultra bright LED’s blazing forth.  But I have to say that this light is ideal for being seen by other boats.  I don’t really wear it to see my way forward at all.  Just to be seen by others.  It is unobtrusive.  Totally bombproof (I dropped it on the pavement).  Definitely watertight.   I have used it often recently as I just really enjoy night paddling.  But this video represents the first time I could “see” what it looked like from hundreds of feet away.  Basically, I look like a mast with a light on it.  I thread it through my PFD shoulder strap.  When you fall into the water it creates a huge halo around you, illuminating everything.  This is not a selling point, just something I mention for fun.  But if you have fears of giant underwater creatures being attracted to the light….it isn’t fun…but no grown man has silly fears like that…

What I wore

A lot of folks just wonder what to pack on a trip like this.  The air temp was around 65.  Wind was blowing directly on shore in between a 3 and 4 on the Beaufort Scale.  I wore my Kokatat GFE drysuit, as pictured in the video.  Underneath was just a pair of shorts and a wicking technical t-shirt.  I was plenty warm, even with the wind.  I was in the water for at least 10 minutes over the course of the 1.5 hours.  When I got back to the car I was completely bone dry.  I wore no hat or gloves.

]]> http://www.drysuit-repair.com/wp/2012/05/night-sup-videoacr-light-reviewtrip-report/feed/ 0 http://www.drysuit-repair.com/wp/2012/05/ask-the-expert-cold-water-paddling-gear-and-women/ http://www.drysuit-repair.com/wp/2012/05/ask-the-expert-cold-water-paddling-gear-and-women/#comments Fri, 04 May 2012 16:04:51 +0000 Amigos http://www.drysuit-repair.com/wp/?p=594 EXPERT: Camille Warren

Bio: Though she has been playing in water since she was 9 months old, she did not begin paddling until, with her children, she took a tandem whitewater canoeing class through the Chapel Hill YMCA when they were in junior high.  She is now passing on her love of paddling to her grandchildren. 

I first pondered that question over 20 years ago during my whitewater paddling days when I wanted to extend my paddling season into colder weather and water. As I considered what to buy I envisioned being stopped on a small rock outcropping by a river with a bunch of fellow paddlers, mostly guys, limited space with little or no privacy, and an excruciatingly full bladder that wasn’t going to wait until we reached the takeout. I am not overly modest, but I just couldn’t see myself peeling my drysuit and other layers down to my thighs so I could “go”.  In addition there is the problem of getting chilled.  One gets hot and sweaty inside a drysuit. Peeling off protective layers, especially when windy, could result in significant cooling.

My solution at that time was neoprene wetsuit pants with no bib (i.e.only to the waist, and not a farmer Jane) and a dry top with thermal layering underneath. At least with that combination I could pull down the pants and would only have to bare my behind. With everyone looking the other way, my behind facing the opposite direction, and with a skirt to hide behind having to “go” became doable, if not exactly private.

Fast forward to 15 years later. I sign up for some classes that will result in extended periods of time in the water practicing rescues, etc. I decided the wet suit pants – dry top combo would not be enough and I would need a drysuit. I was delighted to find drysuits made specifically for women and that I could even get an extra XL short. Even better, they make them with back relief zippers. That should make having to “go” simple.  I merrily traipse off to my class with my new drysuit thinking I am all set.  I couldn’t find an XL short union suit so I decided to use thermal tops and bottoms I already had.

Then comes the first day I use the suit  and have to “go”.  I sneak off behind some trees.  Getting the zipper unzipped by myself was next to impossible and reaching through the unzipped relief opening from behind and then up inside the drysuit to pull down the thermal pants wasn’t much easier.  But at least now I could finally “go”.  After that I was not able to get  the thermal pants all the way back up in the front and the top all the way down and properly situated leaving the layers in the wrong place and bunched up uncomfortably.  I was unable to pull the zipper back up and had to call one of the women in the group to come zip it up for me.  The bunched up layers were so uncomfortable so I ended up going further back behind more trees, opening the entry zipper and pulling my head and arms out so I could get the top and bottom layers back in place.  Of course then I had to get back in the suit and zip it back up.  It would have been easier to have done that in the first place.  Clearly two piece layering does not work well if you plan to use a drysuit with a drop seat relief zipper.  I also learned that keeping the zippers lubricated and freely moving is essential. Needless to say, I rarely used the drysuit, sticking to my tried and true wet suit pants – dry top combo for all but the most frigid situations.

Fortunately union suits have come a long way as well. The new hi tech fabrics are very warm, light weight, soft and comfortable on the skin, and stretchy so they mold to the body and move with you without bunching up or binding. I recently bought a union suit with a drop seat to wear under my drysuit which has a back relief zipper.  It definitely works much better than the two piece layering. But having a one piece thermal layer with a drop seat does not mean that your troubles are over.

The relief zipper drop seat opening looks HUGE.  In practice however, it doesn’t feel very big at all. Until you try it you don’t realize that the circumference of your folded body, torso flattened against thighs, is what has to fit through the relief zipper opening if you are to get your behind far enough out of the suit to “go” without wetting yourself or the inside of the drysuit.  Once you have your behind far enough out to “go” without wetting everything your chest is trapped against your thighs by the limited size of the opening and you can’t straighten back up until you are all the way back inside the suit. It is a bit tricky to do.  Practice this in the privacy of your own home before you try to do it on a trip lest you require a rescue to get back in your suit and unfold.

Some women opt for getting a front relief zipper and using an F.U.D. (female urinary device). There are several brands out there. As with the back relief zippers, this is not always as simple as it would seem. If you don’t have the thing positioned just right or the rate of flow into the upper part of the device exceeds the rate of flow from the outlet tube, overflow will occur wetting the inside of whatever you have on. Practice using it in the shower to figure out the placement that is going to work for you.  Wait until you really really really have to “go” so you can get practice urgently placing the device in the proper position, and to discover whether high flow rates will result in overflow. When shopping for an F.U.D. look for one with a larger capacity funnel.

Some women have made their own funnels from generally available plastic funnels one can find in a variety of stores.  Choose one made of soft flexible plastic.  Many of these plastics can be heated in boiling water, molded into the desired configuration while hot which is retained when cooled.  The plastic can also be trimmed to a shape that fits better. Plastic tubing for the end of the funnel can be obtained from a hardware store and cut to any length you desire.

Relief zippers, drop seats and funnels.  So there you have it. All you ever wanted to know about drysuits and what you do when you have to “go”. What a relief.

You will not find this SAR suit listed in any catalog and it isn’t for sale anywhere on the internet or through any other retailer.  David Pease, pictured in all of these photos is the Captain of the REDS TEAM in Garner, NC.   He was my Captain when I was on that team and is a consummate rescue professional.  David is also a frequent contributor to Carolina Fire/Rescue/EMS Journal on Technical Rescue related articles.  He was having some troubles with trying out suits from other manufacturers when I suggested he give the SAR suit a go.

I am totally psyched to be offering this high grade workhorse of a suit to SWR/SAR teams.  Whether you are an ACA Whitewater Safety Instructor throwing lines for a SWR class or a Fire Department based team with a Zodiac on the trailer…you will want to have these reliable suits on hand.

This suit is SOLID and sells at a base price of $900.  Here are the highlights that come STANDARD:

• Made with Military Grade Gore-Tex membrane fabric
• zippered shoulder pockets
• expanding self draining thigh pockets
• SOLAS reflective tape in all the right high vis places
• latex neck and wrist gaskets
• Gore-Tex Socks
• Relief Zipper
• Hi visibility black/yellow color scheme
• Each suit custom built per measurements
• Lifetime Warranty
• “Burp” valve on sleeve

Optional Items available are:

• Custom embroidery for Team/Crew names
• Custom stitching for Team or Crew Patches
• Military Solid Black color scheme

Please contact me for ordering the SAR suit.

When I look at the suits and find something obviously funny looking or see a suit with lots of wear and tear, I do recommend leak testing.  9 times out of 10 though, the order forms in the box, filled out by the R&S personnel, does NOT have the Leak Test box checked and no request is made.   It has always been a gray area that I have not been comfortable with.  And I have resisted making it a policy that all suits must be leak tested no matter how new they look.

Today, I had a conversation with an R&S guy from a station I have worked with for years.  He had an order placed in the last few weeks and two of the suits that I did not recommend leak testing, did leak when his station swim tested them.  I am crediting him for the other work I did on the suits, as those suits now are most likely in need of replacement.  But the call really got me thinking about leak testing and my policy around it.

In my opinion, stations really should be swim testing suits before they even send them in…stations should be telling me which suits leak, after all, they are the ones that use them and know them the best.  AND though I recommend swim testing suits before sending them to me (it is in mentioned in my video), I know that many stations don’t do this…so if I am providing the highest level of service possible I simply must change my policy.  That way everyone is covered.   The bottomline is that we all need to know that a suit is going to be dry when next used.  That, in the end, is what the whole thing is about…safe equipment keeping people alive, in extreme conditions.

So, from here on out if you are an SK or R&S officer at a USCG Station, Cutter or otherwise…all suits sent in must be evaluated through a Leak Test.  It is mandatory.  Suits must be tested, no matter how new they look.

Many thanks to the patient R&S guy who called me today and helped me make the shift to this  policy change.  It will be good for everyone.

Thanks for your business and I look forward to more leak testing!

I sold the Ronin Pro specifically to a gentleman who is getting into whitewater with his SUP.  He isn’t doing class 3 or anything…but the water is still moving.  This means that when he falls off the board…the board keeps moving faster than he can swim.  Lashing yourself to any boat in any river current is an abominable idea.   We do so only when we must, and even then it isn’t without risk.  Yet, for SUP…you really can literally lose your boat quickly in current.  It reframes leashing and lashing and I think that PFD’s like the Ronin Pro and Guide are good solutions.

Why are leashing systems dangerous?  If you are are anchored to a rope (your ankle or waist leash), that is anchored to something upstream of you (your pinned or trapped SUP) and your body is not in the ideal position (dangling by your ankle or waist strap in moving water), you can become easily submerged.  That is what we call “a jobstopper”.

I used to guide on the Nantahala in NC and posted my feet in the shin deep water for many rope throwing fests at the Falls.  When the swimmers caught the rope, they were “supposed” to roll onto their backs, and hold the rope across their chest with both hands.  This ideally caused them to plane across the surface and drift to the side.  Their backs would be facing upstream.  This would work about half the time.  Usually the panicking swimmer would face you, hands under the water and the face would soon follow as they bounced up and down taking mouthfuls of water rather gracelessly.  It is all about body positioning.

Leashing yourself to your SUP isn’t about towing or rescuing others…it is about not losing your boat and being able to self rescue IF you find yourself needing to cut the leash loose.

A solution I like (as of today) is to get a Rescue PFD, such as the Ronin Pro or the Guide.  They both have the built in Quick Release Chest Harness w/ O-ring and therefore are tether ready.  This is like a truck having a tow hitch on it.  Mind you that for SUP, you will still have to find the “trailer” to put on this hitch.  If you got into trouble the attachment point would be located on your back, the ideal position for planing and not submerging.  The rip away cord is a big red ball just to the left of center on the front of PFD.  I really think that this is the safest and most solid way to stay connected to your board and to self rescue in river running applications.  Kokatat has been making Rescue PFD’s with this tear away buckle system for years for whitewater instructors, sea kayakers and the like to perform tows and rescue’s.  You should see it sometime in action…fancy stuff.  I think that it could really become a solid workhorse for SUP’ers to have a decently safe solution for riverrunning.

And a word of safety: PLEASE MAKE SURE TO HAVE AN ACA WHITEWATER INSTRUCTOR OR THE LIKE TEACH YOU HOW TO USE IT PROPERLY!!

Let me know if you want one!  Also, if anyone out there has a favorite leash system to attach a SUP to the Guide harnesses…let me know and I will gladly review it.

thanks and be safe out there, Charlie @ Amigos

Here is another view, with the suit turned inside out, again, with my lovely foot for scale, to illustrate just how small the hole was…

Let’s face it folks…this is one tiny hole…so what I want to illustrate here is for the good of all drysuit wearing people everywhere.  Due to this small break in the fabric, the wearer shared this story with me via email….

“That hole prevented me from bring the sailboat to the upright position.  We went over and I moved around the stern to the centerboard and positioned myself for recovery. I knew there was a problem (49 degree water running down one leg is a clue here).  My clock was ticking.  The weight of the water prevented me from reaching the gunnel on my first attempt at recovery and the boat skudded away from me.  I could not catch up with it at that point. 

My young crew was fine.  His suit did the job it was designed to perform.  I sent him to shore (less than fifty yards).  I followed slowly. 

The pfd saved my life!  The suit was pulling me down.  With every stroke, I ingested  cold sea water.  The police boat reached me at minute 21.  I was so close to the beach, I could have saved myself (that is always my plan).  It took three crew to haul my sorry butt into the boat looking like the michelin man.

I suffered moderate hypothermia (96 degrees).  They thawed me out in the ER.  Nobody died and nobody went to prison! 

This happened in late April in 20 mph winds and an air temperature of 55 degrees.”

This story just really reminds me to remind everyone again…that drysuits literally are life saving suits.  To avoid what this customer went through, I would recommend the following:

• Inspect your drysuit for holes before and after each outing.  You never know what may make a hole in a drysuit,  or when it may happen…INSPECT.  Divide your suit up into panels.  Every suit is divided already by stitch lines.  Just give it a good once over, methodically panel by panel.  Should take you no more than 5 minutes.
• Look at your gaskets and inspect them as well.  You can follow my video for how to do so.

Obviously, the man was a sailor.  A lot of my customers are frostbiters and college/high school sailors and coaches.  Water temp of 55 degrees and 20 mph winds does sound like a tough combination.  But imagine if this guy had been in whitewater, in a keeper hole, with an opening in his suit like that.  It wouldn’t have mattered how good the PFD was…his head would have gone underwater in no time and stayed under permanently.  While working on the rivers and paddling I have seen people go under for up to 20 full seconds (unplanned-squirt boaters not included) in keepers and that was with no water filling up their suit.

I leak test suits for $20 a pop.  Pretty inexpensive way to know if your suit is leaking.  Also, when I leak test suits, I put water in them…they become so heavy that I cannot lift them and can barely move them…try swimming to an eddy with that kind of weight.  So…please be safe out there.  Also, if you know of anyone that has had a close call due to similar circumstances I would love to hear about, blog about it, for the betterment and education of all of us who depend upon drysuits for comfort and safety while we are doing what we love, in the water.

Rules: Drytops and Drysuits only…no neoprene, or wetsuits.

Results: The top 30 photos will go in a “Whitewater Rogue’s of Antiquity” gallery on my FB.

What you Win:  The number one photo gets free drysuit repair voucher for $100 worth.

When:  This contest runs for two weeks, ending at high noon on July 24th.  Have fun with it, and anyone can participate.

Oh yeah…call me up and buy a Kokatat or send me your stuff to fix…it’s too quiet around here.

He had owned his Kokatat GFER for many years and recently sent it in to me because of some leaking issues he was having, along with some gasket replacement.  I did our standard free visual inspection and discovered that the suit was having some delamination issues.  I sent the suit to Kokatat for warranty evaluation and they decided that the suit needed to be replaced per their warranty on Gore-Tex items.  So, the customer is now in line to receive a new GFER replacement suit…pretty cool huh?

As consumers, we need to realize how rare this is in the marketplace.  It does not mean Kokatat gives away free suits.  It means that customer service isn’t dead.  It also means that they actually do what they say they will do,.  This is exactly why I only sell Kokatat suits.

Even before I began selling Kokatat, I would always tell my customers to make sure that they bought one from someone, somewhere.  Because the money you spend on a drysuit isn’t chump change.  Put it in perspective…if you are a kayaker…it is as expensive as buying a boat.   Thus many paddlers and boaters seek to spend as little as possible when buying one, perhaps shying away from Kokatat’s higher price points.

But we need to consider what it is that we are buying when getting a drysuit.  Because when you buy a drysuit, you are also buying a warranty.  So make sure that your hard earned money is going into a suit that is made by folks who know exactly what they are doing…and who will stand behind their product during those rare cases when the warranty comes due.

Do not forget that a drysuit is more than just a recreational fashion accessory.  Okay okay…so it matches your boat and your PFD…I get it.  Mine does too!  But when you land in that sub 50 degree water and take a nice long swim, your “suit” has a new name.  It suddenly becomes, “life saving device” OR “deadly hypothermia protective outfit”…something fancy like that.  Folks on Swiftwater Rescue Teams know that drysuits are “PPE” (Personal Protective Equipment) and they treat it as such and do not wince at pricetags when buying a suit for rescue swimming.  I say all this because let’s face it, Kokatat has the most expensive suits on the market.  And I say, with their craftsmanship, customer service and warranty…let’s face it….it pays to buy a Kokatat.  Just ask the happy customer I mentioned earlier.

Granted they are not the only company that stands behind their warranty…NRS does as well…but what can I say…I just like how Kokatat rolls….ouch..what a terrible kayaking pun.  Below is a shiny pic of Kokatat’s GFER, for sale right here at Amigos…