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Wetsuit visibility vs. Drysuit gaskets.
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chas5131



Joined: 01 Jul 2002
Posts: 58
Location: Summit County, Colorado

PostPosted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 8:28 pm    Post subject: Wetsuit visibility vs. Drysuit gaskets. Reply with quote

A black wetsuit makes one look like shark food and has very low visibility .

Kokatat does not warranty its bright drysuits for windsurfing. I suppose because of gaskets tearing in high speed falls.

The O'Neill drysuit I tried was like wearing a heavy plastic bag. They do not breathe.

Now what?
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braden



Joined: 12 Jun 1987
Posts: 73
Location: Providence RI

PostPosted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 10:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My Kokatat has held up well. It developed a leak in the body after 5 years and they replaced it at no charge. The new one is 5 years old and leaks slowly now but is much dryer than a wetsuit. I don't jump, I just sail back and forth. I fall in, sometimes at high speed, but it doesn't seem to bother the gaskets.

On the other side, if you are concerned about wetsuit visibility, you could glue brightly colored sequins to it. I don't know how the sharks would react. (I can guess how your sailing peers would react.) Seriously, you could wear one of those orange fluorescent safety vests over it.
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chas5131



Joined: 01 Jul 2002
Posts: 58
Location: Summit County, Colorado

PostPosted: Tue Oct 08, 2013 10:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I like the sequins idea.
May I could simply pull a sequined vest and banana hammock over the suit.
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cgoudie1



Joined: 10 Apr 2006
Posts: 2597
Location: Killer Sturgeon Cove

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 10:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Where did you get your sequined banana hammock?

-Craig

chas5131 wrote:
I like the sequins idea.
May I could simply pull a sequined vest and banana hammock over the suit.
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chas5131



Joined: 01 Jul 2002
Posts: 58
Location: Summit County, Colorado

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 10:41 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Got a custom fit in a booth at a Pride parade.
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spennie



Joined: 13 Oct 1995
Posts: 975
Location: Thousand Oaks, CA

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 11:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

OH GOD PLEASE NO PHOTOS!!!!!
_________________
Spennie the Wind Junkie
www.WindJunkie.net
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cgoudie1



Joined: 10 Apr 2006
Posts: 2597
Location: Killer Sturgeon Cove

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 1:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So after spending some time thrashing about at Kanaha, in a wetsuit
(yes I am a wuss when it comes to cold), and wondering about the landlord, I'm really wondering about shark perception. Do they see
colors, and if so which colors (color frequencies are shifted
by water depth and clarity). Or, do they see gray scale patterns, and if so,
what patterns (or colors) piss them off, or make them hungry.

Since seals are mostly black and a tasty shark food source, black seems
a poor choice, but how about an Orca patterned suit? That might give whitey some pause.

Should be easy enough to study, and I feel a patent coming on for "shark repellant" wetsuits.

-Craig
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isobars



Joined: 12 Dec 1999
Posts: 20935

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

To cut a few pages to one sentence, Goretex dry suits get mostly phenomenal reviews. The seals aren't the leak problem; their disclaimer is due to a harness impacting moisture permeability where it contacts the suit, after years of heavy use. Buy a Kokotat (with REI's 20% off coupon, I suggest), put it on, burp it, and sail one reach. If you then tell us if you've ever experienced comparable freedom of motion or lightness of being in any kind of fullsuit, you'll be in a small minority of new K owners. It really is like sailing in pajamas, except that you stay dry and you stay warm all day even standing around on a chilly shore. Maintain it properly, save it for colder sailing, and it will serve you well for years.

Otherwise, wear a bright rash guard over your dark, dreary, boring, heavy, clammy, leaky neoprene suit and put on insulated coveralls when on shore in chilly weather.
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dllee



Joined: 03 Jul 2009
Posts: 5328
Location: East Bay

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Black wetsuit......low visibility to the sharks looking for you.
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whitevan01



Joined: 29 Jun 2007
Posts: 607

PostPosted: Wed Oct 09, 2013 5:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

from the NY Times (2005):

"The most popular myth? That sharks are attracted to swimmers who wear bright colors. R. Aidan Martin, the director of the ReefQuest Center for Shark Research in British Columbia, said this particular rumor stemmed from studies years ago that followed groups of navy divers wearing standard dark uniforms. Those who stood out because they also wore a pair of bright flippers, for example, were more likely to be attacked.

But the reason has to do with contrast, not bright colors. Like any predator, sharks look for prey with any features that separate them from the pack, a possible sign that the animal has an injury or abnormality that makes it more vulnerable. "Sharks are very good at detecting these slight differences," Mr. Martin said."
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