Looking for a wetsuit or Skins for flat water paddling over the cooler months of Sydney winter. Any recommendations ? Nothing too heavy just to knock the chill out.

i'm looking for light wetsuit long pants for dw ing. i tried a 2mm streamer yesterday. while the legs/bum was good, the top half was too hot.

on our colder days skins don't seem to do much.

an ideas
cheers

I wear 0.5mm Radiator pants in winter with skins underneath.



You do sweat under them but not too bad with skins on as well.
www.radiator.net/

The other thing to look at is product like the sharkskin http://www.sharkskin.com.au/catalogue/product.php/1/8

Fleece lined breathable but warm if you fall in, may be too hot in Qld, I've got a long sleeved top in similar fabric and haven't been able to make a whole run without getting too hot!


Been looking longingly at one of these, Kokotat light weight goretex paddling drysuit, shipped from US works out to be about $700 though! Guess thats not much more than a top of the line wetsuit....but not that much less than a return flight to Maui

problem with dry suits is you can still get hot in them.

I'm in Melb but FWIW I've been happy in a Probe "neo-fleece" top. 0.5mm neo with a light fleece lining and water shedding lycra outside, lycra gussets under the pits. Warm but not too warm, not restrictive for paddling, keeps the wind off if (when!) I go for a swim. Skins & boardies downstairs and 3mm booties do the job for me, even in single-digit air temps.

Entry level option (for pure flat water - assuming you are not going to fall in!) is Kathmandu thermals, and if on sale, they are pretty cheap.

But the stuff above are all technically better options, but more $$$.

Scotty88 said...

Looking for a wetsuit or Skins for flat water paddling over the cooler months of Sydney winter. Any recommendations ? Nothing too heavy just to knock the chill out.

Scotty,
just got an ORCA Equip westsuit last night for Vuelta Cycles in Melbourne. It is a steamer triathlon wetsuit -with stretch panels under the arms and 1 or 2 mm on the arms and shoulders, but 4 or 5mm around the torso. I haven't had it in the water yet but I will let you know how I go.
Otherwise I use an O'Neill 2mm Vest, O'Neill split toe booties and Under Armour compression (long sleeve top and bottom). In Canberra last year we wore windstopper vests as well (they still work even if wet).

MrMyagi said...

Scotty88 said...

Looking for a wetsuit or Skins for flat water paddling over the cooler months of Sydney winter. Any recommendations ? Nothing too heavy just to knock the chill out.

Scotty,
just got an ORCA Equip westsuit last night for Vuelta Cycles in Melbourne. It is a steamer triathlon wetsuit -with stretch panels under the arms and 1 or 2 mm on the arms and shoulders, but 4 or 5mm around the torso. I haven't had it in the water yet but I will let you know how I go.
Otherwise I use an O'Neill 2mm Vest, O'Neill split toe booties and Under Armour compression (long sleeve top and bottom). In Canberra last year we wore windstopper vests as well (they still work even if wet).

Hey Mr Myagi,
Let us know how the Orca goes. It looks the goods. How much did it cost ?
I don't feel the cold that much so I'm probably looking at a Sharkskin (or similar) chest vest with long sleeve rashy over the top. Sharkskin shorts with boardies over the top for the pockets mainly. This is for flat water paddling only. The surf would be a different story.