Winter Sailing? What to Wear with a Drysuit
Stay Warm
Wearing the right kit will allow you to stay warm and comfortable while enjoying your winter sailing.
How much to wear to keep you warm depends on a number of factors;
- How cold it is.
- To what extend you feel the cold (Some people feel the cold more than others).
- How active your sailing is going to be (If you are going to be working hard then you will need less to keep you warm, similar to go for a run or a walk in the winter).
- Whether you are likely to be getting wet (Spray or submersion).
- What the wind strength is (Wind chill can have a big effect on your warmth and comfort).
In the Real World - Only with experience will you understand just how much to wear, but even then you will struggle to get it right. As a general rule it is more sensible to overdo it when it comes to putting on warm clothes. On a cold winters day it is much easier to cool yourself down, whether it be by removing a hat or splashing yourself with the cold water. On the other hand warming yourself up can be somewhat more difficult once you are cold. In these tabs I will offer some advice on staying warm when dressing for winter sailing. If you have any question though please give our sales team a call.
Base Layers
This is where your comfort starts, it is important to wear items that don't retain moisture. This generally means avoiding cotton based fabrics, be careful since if it's cold outside it can be tempting to add an extra layer like a tee-shirt, but if this is cotton based this could actually have a negative effect. If the tee shirt retains your perspiration, then it will cool you, similar to wearing damp clothes.
Trident Junior Base Layers are also available -
Mid Layers
Here at TridentUK we recommend using our Mid-Layer Fleece, which we offer at a special price with all the Drysuits we sell, that is how important we consider this layer.
When it's warmer you will often not bother with the Base Layers and just wear this thermal layer. And in the Summer when it's really warm you can leave this layer in your kit bag and just wear the Base Layers.
Drysuit
The drysuit is the key to the base and mid layers keeping you warm. The drysuit has little thermal properties on its own, but by keeping you and your thermals dry it gives you much more control over your temperature.
Most drysuits have latex socks, this is important because your feet are the first thing that gets wet and cold, so it makes a lot of sense to keep them dry. We only recommend going for ankle seals if your sport requires it.
If you haven't used your suit for a while give it a check over to make sure all the seals are OK, you don't want them failing as you get ready on the coldest day of the season. Click Here for Drysuit Repairs