Review: Cheatin The Chill-Paddle Gear You Need
Some of you are aware I’ve caught the Greenland bug! Over this winter I’ve been throwing my lightweight Greenland style kayak over the shoulder and down my low bank to workout most evenings on the water. It’s been great to go with minimal gear, a snack bar and water, and spend an hr or so on Henderson Inlet. The silent sound of a skin on frame, cutting thru the water is delightful, and adds to the beauty of being out on the water in the evening hrs. I have found my balance and paddle strokes are being refined, and crossover well to give me even better stability and maneuverability in my European NDK vessel. So you can teach an old dog new tricks! This blog I’m going to touch upon some great clothing companies I have recently purchased gear from to compliment my Greenland journey, and that has kept me warm on my workout nights, thru wind, rain and snow!
Reed's Chillcheater Tuiliq Keeping Me Toasty Warm. Photograph by Jason Goldstein
Yes Greenland kayaks have smaller cockpits! So I needed a new Tuiliq – Geeenland lingo for spray skirt and spray top and skull cap combined. Reed Chill Cheater reednorthamerica.com Tuiliq is a must have piece of clothing, whether you’re going Greenland or not! Several fellow South Sound Kayak club members gave it high praise, and I must say they are spot on. If you’re looking for a lightweight but also warm piece of clothing with built in Tuiliq, then you gotta have this. The UK company now has a USA rep, Chris Mitchell, who processes your order. It does take about 4-5 weeks to get your custom sized Tuiliq BUT its well worth the wait, and mine was sized to perfection. I give this 4 stars out of five!! It’s a little spendy but well worth saving up for. The hood and spray skirt fit like a glove. I’m tempted to order another one for my NDK larger cockpit kayak!! For warmer months I also opted to get just an Akuilisaq – Greenland lingo for spray skirt, and I found a small east coast company called Bugheads. I got the feeling Bugheads is a small business, but they got my order and sizing without any fuss, and the product fit perfectly. 3 stars out of five is my rating, it is expensive but proudly made in America! You can make your own Akuilisaq for easily half the price but I suspect bugheads product may last a little longer, than just a glued homemade version.
Got A Case Of The Sniffles? Level Six Mitts Have The Answer. Photograph by Jason Goldstein
Keep your feet and hands warm! It’s a scientific fact that you loose a ton of body heat directly thru your head, so insulate it. Reed Chill cheaters built in hood is almost too warm, but addresses this concern. What a lot of people don’t know is our feet and hands have a lot of very small blood vessels, and hypothermia studies have revealed that they too allow an efficient medium for heat loss! My EMT studies come in handy every now and then: one such study tested body re-warming of hypothermic patients via heat packs held in the hands verse heat packs placed at the groin and under the arms (where larger arterial vessels lie). The hands re-warmed the hypothermic patients just as efficiently as re-warming at groin and under the arms. So if you can keep your hands and feet warm, you can keep your core temperate warm or prevent it from dropping. Warm hands and feet also psychologically makes one feel warmer. With this in mind I found two great products, thanks to my paddle buddy Steve! Level six is a Canadian company specializing in cold water apparel. Its gets pretty cold up North so no doubt their products are field tested in extreme temps. We found their mitts to be great!! As avid photographers we need to be able to take pictures without having to de-glove, and Level six mitts still allow dexterity, plus warmth! 5 stars out of five! as they are not over priced, and have a bonus feature – when your nose is a little runny simply wipe them on the built-in nose cloth, see photo – love it!
Keen Payette Watershoes. Photograph by Jason Goldstein
Keen footwear are famous for durability for rock climbing so naturally they used this knowledge to create the ultimate neoprene watershoe the Payette -a rugged and also comfortable neoprene bootie. Always buy at least one size bigger than your normal shoe size so you can cram your warm wooly socks, or gortex drysuit booties into them without cutting off your circulation. I let Steve field test his Keens for a good season before purchasing mine – and man I wished I hadn’t waited they are a great water shoe. 4 stars out of five, as my only complaint is it take’s a little while to get them on. The mud in Henderson Inlet has known to swallow and keep footwear, but NOT my Keens, they don’t slip off!!
My only other clothing words of wisdom are to reiterate an earlier blog post raving about Palms gortex drysuit. I have their Sidewinder Bibs and practically live in them when I’m paddling. They augment my Chill cheater Tuiliq very well, and I find I hardly use my full length drysuit anymore. So go out and spend some stimulus money these items are a cut above the rest
