Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view
The Crux drysuit by Idaho based NRS is a front entry drysuit meaning that using the zip is far easier to do by yourself compared to a zip positioned on the rear of a suit.
This review looks at the new Mens NRS Crux. Thankfully for the female paddling population NRS also have a womens version with a drop seat for comfort breaks.
Continue readingNatty Cordon takes a look at the new Kokatat Idol drysuit/drytop.
Is it really possible to kill two birds with one stone? Well Kokatat have finally achieved it! Thanks to their innovative waist entry system, the new Kokatat Idol drysuit can be split in half and used as a dry cag for the summer months!
Having faced some fairly intense scepticism, with even my closest friends believing that I would drown, I have gathered a few FAQs which I will now attempt to answer:
What’s the waist entry system all about?
In stark contrast to the traditional front or rear entry drysuits, the Kokatat Idol has a flexible plastic zip which runs around the waist, separating the trousers from the top.
I bought myself an IR (Immersion Research) Arch Rival drysuit for a trip to South America, and it got some pretty heavy use over the 6 months I was there as it’s not always as warm as it looks!
It’s had some long multi-days and endless hikes through forests full of spikes, been in strong sunlight pretty much the entire time and all the abuse you’d expect from a long paddling trip. I’d guess I used it around 3-4 times a week (as my cag had no neck seal) and the river water is usually really cold!
I have now been using a Peak UK Custom drysuit for about 6 months on rivers and for playboating and I have been very pleased with it. Not only is the drysuit really good quality but the ability to have your own customised design incorporated really well into it makes for a winning combination.
One of the key features about this drysuit is that it is made out of their X3 material not the X4 that some of Peak’s other kit is made out of. Now this comes with a selection of pros and cons that will depend really on what the individual paddler would want from their suit. Trying on the Peak whitewater one piece in the shop, the X4 material felt quite heavy to wear although I don’t imagine this would greatly affect movement on the water too much. The custom suit with the X3 however feels much lighter.
A great little edit from Kokatat that will be useful to any paddler who owns a dry suit.
Kokatat dry suit care and maintenance. For more information go to kokatat.com/customer-service. Continue reading
Chris Gragtmans gives us a run down of the new Immersion Research (2015) Arch Rival Drysuit. It’s also worth keeping an eye out for the new 9ft boat from Dagger currently named the Phantom.
The new IR website is looking rather good. As is their new range of gear. Looking forward to having a chance to test some of the gear out.
Sweet Protection showcased the new Intergalactic Dry Suit at this year’s (2014) OR show. Last year Unsponsored tried out a final pre-production model.
Sweet have been in the whitewater game for years but the Sweet Intergalactic marks their first and long awaited move into the dry suit arena. The Sweet Intergalactic is built from Gore-Tex Pro material and is backed onto a fabric that is both supple and tough. The Gore-Tex used is the 3 – layer Performance variety that is designed for extreme and extended use. I have a number of bits of kit, including a Sweet Shadrach made out of the same material and although it feels quite soft I know that it will take a beating and come back for more.
Bomber Gear’s new Palguin series is constructed from Neoshell by Polartec.
From Polartec:
Waterproof technology has remained about the same since the very first hard shell. Breathability is achieved through diffusion: moisture and heat create enough pressure that moisture vapor finally passes through the fabric. Soft shells trade waterproofness for greater breathability by making use of convection: a constant exchange of air allows more moisture vapor to escape. Continue reading
Another great run down from the guys at Rapid Media. This time a look at Bomber gear’s new dry suit and in particular their use of the neoshell material from Polartec. I used Bomber gear kit many years ago and loved it so am looking forward to trying this new bit of kit out later in the year.
Immersion Research have a number of new products and colour ways for the 2015 season. Here are a few shots showing some of the new kit on show at the Outdoor Retailer show. Continue reading
Nick Pearce gives us his views on the Kokatat Meridian Drysuit (Goretex).
So, for the last 6 months I have been using the very well tried-and-tested Kokatat GoreTeX Meridian drysuit. Before this suit I used an array of dry suits from the likes of Palm and Level 6.
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