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skirt suspenders

Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
142
Went for a short paddle a few days ago and i forgot to put the suspenders/shoulder straps of my skirt on, didnt seem like a big deal untill i went to get out of my kayak at the end of my paddle. The suspenders snagged on the kayak as i was getting out, as it was a calm sandy beach and i was in no rush it was not much of a problem. Not sure how great it would have been in rough seas, or while trying to do a wet exit. Just some thing to think about.
 
I started off with a Seals skirt that had suspenders (which I quickly gave up on when I found it didn't give me a good seal at the cockpit on my boat) and after the first couple of times with it I took the suspenders off and left them at home. It didn't feel very comfortable anyway.

I really like my Glacier Trek skirt http://snapdragondesign.com/products-page/. No suspenders to wrestle with and you can adjust the tightness of the tunnel to where it will stay put with a wide, comfortable velcro "waist". The lack of suspenders also means that you can tuck it up into the "double skirt" that some dry jackets and suits have.
 
Good point. I'm not a fan of suspenders either.

When I have used suspenders on a skirt I find they fall down over my shoulders while I paddle, and are uncomfortable.

These days I simply own a 'fitted' skirt with no suspenders.
 
IMHO unless you're touring in warm flat water, suspenders are an evil,evil thing. For one,they don't let you(properly) use a drytop/suit with a overskirt/double tunnel, two, there's always a risk of getting tangled in the damn things. Three, if you got suspenders, your skirt is usually no good for real rough water use.
 
I seem to be the contrarian on this site. I use a Seals Extreme Tour with suspenders. Yes, I don't get to take advantage of the tunnel on my Kokatat dry suit, but beyond that it has worked fine for me.

I bought my first Seals because there marketing is excellent. That little book that lists every boat and what size to use makes it so easy to pick out the skirt. Not quite as easy with the other manufacturers to figure out which skirt to get. And only if the skirt fit, but it has for me on all the boats I have used it with so far.

I have stayed with them (now on my third skirt) because they have worked for me. The Kokatat dry suit is a relatively new dry suit for me, and the Palm I used before didn't have a tunnel overlap, so perhaps my next skirt will be suspender-less.
 
I just bought a skirt with suspenders, the only one they had in 1.7. I am new to kayaking so I dont think I'll be in white water real soon but you never know these things, many things in life are a surprise.
Good point about getting hung up on exit, I was thinking of not using the suspenders and leaving them home completely. At least for now.
Tsunami.
 
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