New Kokatat Drysuit and Other Thoughts on Gear

So I bought this used dry suit:
http://bodyboatblade.com/shop/gore-tex-front-entry-dry-suit-drop-seat-women

Not sure if that link will keep working once they sell the medium suit that is still available. So here's a link to the suit on the Kokatat site:

http://kokatat.com/products/dry-suits/gore-texr-front-entry-dry-suit-with-drop-seat-women.html

It is red and black. Not my favorite colors but I really appreciate the design of this suit. The Gore Tex is more supple than my Kokatat paddlers suit which is made with an in-house fabric called Tropos. My new suit has the metal zippers and latex neck. It is water-tight, and faired quite well during my trip to Southport last week. Yes, I went in the drink with it, and yes, it kept the water out.

I was not convinced at all that I would like the rear end zipper. Basically, I was worried that it would add bulk between myself and the seat stabilizers on my boats. So far, though, it does not seem to cause me any problems. And I do like being able to use a restroom without taking everything off.

But in adding a new suit to my gear, my "coach" Brian suggested that my Astral Sea Wolf PFD was "a bit much." So, following his suggestion I switched to a solid Astral vest that was the first vest I ever purchased:
link to similar vest

I gave it a re-visit but I am just not comfortable in it. In watching video Marc shot of a recent 12 mile trip I could tell I was not rotating my torso as I normally do. I think the issue is something in the one piece design. I have a really short torso, something like 14 inches from the notch above my sternum to my crotch. The Astral Norge being all one piece from the top to the bottom is too restrictive to my really short torso.

Of all the PFDs I have owned the first one that really worked for me was the Astral Bella.

Here one can really see how short this vest is in comparison to the red Norge vest. Astral calls this design "freestyle tectonic panels." Basically, the top and bottom front pieces move independently. The Bella is their low-end vest without the rescue features. Because I know how well this design works for me I choose the Sea Wolf when I wanted to step up into a rescue style vest. I have worn the Sea Wolf non-stop since I purchased it about a year ago.

Well, in this one case I think I am going to back-track from Brian's suggestion and return to my Sea Wolf. I miss it. Period.

But one thing I am going to do is remove the tow-harness from it. Both Brian and Dale Williams said that the tow harness feature on the Sea Wolf is too high around my middle. It actually rides around my rib cage. Dale explained that having the harness as high as my vest could potentially throw me off balance. He wanted to see my harness down around my hips. When I switched to an independant tow kit I was able to hang the harness MUCH lower on my body.

The Lorax built out my NRS tow harness with a 35 foot floating line with a 30 inch bungee and a big paddle-biner as well as a much shorter (12 foot) static "cow-tail" line with a second 'biner. I like this set up. It is low on my body, essentially riding on my spray deck behind me without interfering with my paddle-strokes. And it can not get any lower on my body, down where I am the most centered.

Win.

Being grateful for what we have should be an every day thing. But here in the States we have a special day to be thankful, so Happy Thanksgiving, and be safe.