What to wear guide - various watersports
Contents:
1) Safety first!
Whether you are dinghy sailing or cruising or other watersports you will need a lifejacket or buoyancy aid.
Why do I need a lifejacket or buoyancy aid?
Although you may be a good swimmer, the water round the British coast and Estuaries can be very cold and there is often a very strong under-current.
This will all effect your ability to swim and to get yourself back to your vessel - whether it be a yacht, a motor-boat, jet ski or windsurf-board.
What is the difference?
A Lifejacket will support you completely whilst in the water with a collar that will keep your face out of the water. A Buoyancy aid is an aid to swimming and will give you some buoyancy to assist you in the water.
so which one do I need - Lifejacket or Buoyancy aid?
This will depend upon the type of watersports you are doing and whether or not you can swim. Young children and adults that cannot swim must wear a Lifejacket.
Buoyancy aids are generally worn for jet-skiing and waterskiing (ski style has lots of buckles for secure fit), canoeing (high cut for ease of movement), windsurfing and other active watersports. Lifejackets are often worn on motorised boats. If in doubt seek advice from your sailing club.
Lifejackets for children:
We advise that children (especially young children) wear a Lifejacket with permanent buoyancy. This is as opposed to the type that is inflatable (either manually inflated by pulling a cord, or automatically inflated as you hit the water).
Not just on the boat - small children should also wear their lifejackets near the water on jetties, slipways and towpaths. Wherever there is a chance that they could fall in!
Never get a lifejacket or buoyancy aid too large for a child!
Never be tempted to buy a lifejacket or buoyancy aid for a child that is too large and you think they will grow into. If a lifejacket or buoyancy aid is too large and your child falls into the water, as they hit the water it will rise up. A loose fitting lifejacket or buoyancy aid could rise up over their head and also trap the arms. In this case the child would not be even able to try and swim.
Always buy a correctly fitting lifejacket or buoyancy aid!
We sell the following buoyancy aids suitable for a variety of watersports:
See individual buoyancy aid descriptions in the on-line shop to determine suitability for your watersport.
- Helly Hansen Sport II buoyancy aid
- Helly Hansen Rider vest buoyancy aid
- Helly Hansen Watersport vest (jet skiing, waterskiing, other watersports)
- CSR Ski 50N buoyancy aid (jet skiing and waterskiing)
- Crewsaver Max (high cut) buoyancy aid
- Crewsaver DB60 - lightweight buoyancy aid
click here to view buoyancy aids in the on-line shop.
Lifejackets:
Lifejackets with permanent buoyancy for children:
- For babies - Crewsaver Euro 100N or Spiral 100N
- For children - Crewsaver Euro 100N or Spiral 100N
- For junior - Crewsaver Euro 100N or Spiral 100N
Inflatable lifejackets for adults:
- XM Yachting Quickfit 150N Lifejacket, manual and automatic versions with or without harness
- Baltic Winner 150N Lifejacket, manual and automatic versions with or without harness
Lifejackets with permanent buoyancy - Helly Hansen in shop or to order
Click here to view childrens and adults Lifejackets in the on-line shop
2) Keeping warm and dry:
We sell a range of clothing suitable for many watersports. Of course the time of year and weather conditions will affect your clothing choices as well as the type of watersport you are doing. All important too - footwear and gloves are detailed in sections 3 and 4.
Some of the types of clothing are listed below are suitable for a variety of watersports and beach wear:
- Rash vests for wearing under wet-suits, are quick drying, block out UV rays and prevent outer clothes rubbing. These also look great just worn on their own when on the water or on the beach.
- Swim wear / trunks - look great on and around the water. Great casual wear styles from Helly Hansen.
- Light weight water-proofs and cags from Crewsaver, White Rock, Helly Hansen and Musto are suitable for a variety of watersports and casual wear.
- Wetsuits from O'Neill and Crewsaver.
How a wetsuit works:
Wetsuits are designed to trap a small amount of water between the neoprene of the wetsuit and your skin. Your body temperature warms this layer of water up and it has an insulating effect. If the wetsuit is too loose, cold water will seep in and keep replacing the nicely warmed up insulating layer, so when choosing your wetsuit you need to make sure it is fairly tight - but not so tight it is uncomforatable.
Casual wear
Our casual ranges include, light-weight fleeces, casual trousers (zip off style convertible to shorts), quick drying t-shirts and casual collared shirts. All viewable in the shop.
To view some of our casual and technical wear range - see the Watersports section of our on-line shop - click here. More casual wear is available to view in the shop.
3) Footwear
You will need footwear you can get wet, that has a good grip, that isn't too cumbersome and will keep you warm enough for the weather conditions.
Deck shoes - great for larger boat sailing, narrow boats, motor boats and around the water. Classic styles (leather or canvas) or trainer style race shoe - quick drying and great grip.
Neoprene boots - suitable for a variety of watersports. Used by wind-surfers, jet skiers, in canoes etc. Very versatile these act in the same way as a wetsuit. When they get wet the water will warm up and keep your feet insulated.
Long or short sailing boots - choose boots designed for sailing, rather than agricultural wellies. These have marine soles, drawstrings to keep water out, broad for easy removal if heavy in water. Great for launching and recovery.
Footwear suitable for a variety of watersports:
These range from the basic canvas 'plimsole style' deck shoe and classic leather styles to Musto trainer style deck and race shoes.
Neoprene footwear - click here
From the simple neoprene shoe to more substantial neoprene boots with thicker soles.
Long and short sailing boots
4) Accessories
Gloves
Gloves for handling rope, especially with wet hands. They are used for protection, better grip and to keep your hands warm. We sell short fingered and three fingered styles. Also the neoprene FLX gloves from O'Neill suit a variety of watersports.
Click here to view our gloves on line.
Hat
Various hat styles - warm woolly hat for cold weather or a hat with a shade that can clip on to your clothing for hot weather, so you don't lose it in the wind!
See our hat's on-line - click here.
Wet glasses
Sunglasses designed for use on the water have frames that let water flow out, hydrophobic lenses that bead away water, head band so they don't fall off and other sports features.
See our Dirty Dog wet glasses - click here.
We also sell head bands separately for keeping glasses on when active.
Dry cases for your mobiles phone
Its always a good idea to protect your mobile in a watertight container in case of it getting wet. We sell the Musto Micro Comms Case, Comms Case and Crewsaver's Dry Case. These float too!
Click here to find dry cases on-line.
Bags
Don't forget you'll need a carry bag to get all this gear to the water and take the wet stuff home. Have a look at the Musto Carryall bag or the Crewsaver Bute Drybag. View our luggage on line - click here.
Taking your dog on the water?
and don't forget if you’re taking your pet on or near the water, their safety should be just as important as yours.
To view our pet buoyancy aids - click here.