Saturday, December 1, 2007

Weekend Fun

Looking back at my truck. We drive on the beach here.

The wife looking for a wave. Kokatat Gore-Tex Drysuit is the yellow and blue mystery uniform.

Heading out at sunrise. Burrrr
First session of the season with booties, gloves, and hood. Didn't go so well. Booties and deck pads don't mix. Stumbled like a clown and couldn't surf worth a hoot. Finally tossed the booties and had a good time. Booties and a bare deck would probably work fine, but with a deck pad, forget about it. You have no chance of shuffling the feet. The gloves I wore were a little slick on the paddle shaft, so I waxed the palms and then they were great.
-
This was my second session with my new 8" Wingnut (narrow base, fat tip) fin in the Angulo. I really like this fin. It loosened up the board and gave it more speed down the line. The fin supplied with the board was a classic surf shape, wide base, swept 9 1/2".



4 comments:

srfnff said...

Hey NC,
Were you in a dry suit too or wetsuit? Would love to see a pic of the fin you used. I've got a 9" Harbour HP that I'm dieing to try but not until we get a big nearshore storm (maybe this week)to tear out and move the carpet-thick kelp that has been plaguing my favorite spots.

I too would much prefer bare feet to booties but when it gets too cold it's on with the booties. I haven't had any issues yet. When it's 42 degrees with an offshore wind I'm in 5-4-3, hood and booties. I just broke out the 2 mil gloves for those dawn patrol sessions.

NC Paddle Surfer said...

I wore a Kokatat drysuit too. I stopped using thick wetsuits a few years ago. I prefer the increased mobility and comfort of a loose fitting Gore-Tex suit. I look like a kook to other surfers, but so be it. Acutally there is a company trying to change the trend. Ocean Rodeo is marketing a surf specific drysuit. It is basically a loose suit with an stretchy stocking you pull over the outside to squeeze out the air and keep it out.

srfnff said...

Thanks NC,
The fin is similar to my Harbour, but the Harbour is more swept back. I'll post a pic on my blog in the next couple days just for comparisons sake.

Re the dry suit thanks for the info re Rodeo. What is the water temp you wear your dry suit in? Air temp? What do you wear under the suit? Your comments are good info.

NC Paddle Surfer said...

I wear the drysuit when the water or air hit 60. How cold you can go with a drysuit is unlimited. They are much warmer than a wetsuit. Most locals don't use a drysuit until Winter reaches its peak at 50/50 water/air. But those guys don't have Gore-Tex suits. The non Gore-Tex drysuits are steam baths, super hot and sweaty.

I wear board shorts and a shirt on warm days, and light weight polypro on colder, then mid weight polypro when it gets very cold.