Cold Weather Sessions 

Winter is Coming !
Cold weather season is here and whether you are windsurfing, kiting or standup paddleboarding, the Winter sessions can be just as good, or sometimes even better than the warmer ones. Winter brings extremes in weather. Stronger winds, bigger waves and less crowds, making it the season of choice for those looking for consistent conditions in the high quality range.

When you look at people who enjoy and excel at being in the water in the Winter, you begin to notice three things that they all have in common. And no, one of them is not that they are insane ! Winter sessions require three equal parts of positive attitude, preparation, and the proper equipment to be out on the water when the temperatures plummet. Here is a breakdown of these three key ways to get ready for Winter 2008/2009:


Positive Attitude
Let’s face it, if you’re not stoked about getting in the water in the Winter, then it’s not going to happen. The windsurfers, kiters and paddleboarders that hit it all Winter excrete stoke about the upcoming Winter season. They LIVE for the best conditions with the thinnest crowds, making it a feeding frenzy on some of the best waves and strongest winds they find all year. Many of them even gear up specifically for the Winter season with Winter wetsuits, gloves, boots, hoods and boards with more float to compensate for all the added weight of the suit.

On the flip side are the “fair weather sailors”, who only go when it is above 50 or even 60 degrees. The biggest difference here is all MENTAL. The Winter sessions are good ones and the seasoned paddlers and sailors know it and prepare for it. They are ready and STOKED to get some of the best of the best sessions. They phase out the cold in their heads, while the fair weather crew just gets phased themselves. Where would you rather be? In the water or watching TV?

TOTAL STOKE for the session goes a long way here. If you doubt this, just ask yourself where you were last Saturday when it was 34 degrees and the lefts were overhead and tubing. Everyone in the water was hooting at the top of their lungs, staying in the water for over 4 hours. I don’t think anyone had nearly as much fun surfing their couch that day!
Lesson one : It’s all in your head, time to get pumped !


Preparation and Getaway Plan
The second part of cold weather sessions is the proper prep and getaway plan. Sounds funny but it’s true, you need to nail both in order to drive away satisfied with the day. The first part of prep is making sure your wetsuit is dry and warm, not a frozen block of ice in your trunk. Getting suited up inside your house where it is warm, sure beats doing the same in a parking lot freezing your head off. If you don’t live near the water, try finding a heated public restroom, restaurant, gas station or wherever you can to get into your suit inside where it is warm. On your way to your public heated location, place your wetsuit, gloves and boots on the floor under the car heater on the way to the beach. Getting into your suit in a warm enclosed space will trap warm air inside the suit and also stop your body from getting cold right out of the blocks. You’ll also enter the water warm and flexible rather than cold and stiff.

Your getaway plan is just as important. Remember that your fingers may not work as well cold as they do warm, so don’t hide your keys in a place you can’t get to them with stiff hands. Plan your session, monitor your condition (how you are feeling Tired? Warm/Col/ ect. Calculate derigging time into your session. I get dry & warm first de-rig, pack up second. So dry Towels are critical to keep sand out of the car. A lot of guys carry hot water in insulated containers and dump it over themselves to wash off and get changed into their clothes. This too helps to and keeps the saltwater & sand out of your car. Loose fitting, WARM clothes (I love my UGG boots maybe not fashionable but they are warm & dry) make the transition from wet and cold to dry and warm in your HEATED car fast ! The bottom line is that you want to beeline as fast as you can from the water to a super heated space. Seems simple, but you would be amazed how many people I find shivering in the parking lot halfway there……


Equipment
The last “secret” to staying warm in the Winter are your wetsuits, gloves and boots. Forget about convincing yourself that your 3mm fullsuit is as warm as a 4mm, 5mm or 6mm fullsuit. It isn’t ! And now that the new wetsuits are so much lighter and so much more flexible, there is no reason not to be fully gunned and laughing in a 4mm, 5mm or 6mm suit.

The latest time tested secret that was just “revealed” to the public last year was owning two wetsuits in the cold water category, so that you always have a warm and dry suit to get into for your 2nd session. All within a month, Surfer Magazine, Surfing Magazine and Surfer’s Journal all claimed this to be the best way to improve your Winter surfing. You might think this for the rich and famous only, but let me tell you how many people do it and how many 2nd sessions become reality rather than just a fantasy. Whether it is September, November or February, nothing beats putting on a dry, warm wetsuit after a lunch break in the sun. Compare that to trying to sand slide your way into a frozen ice block and you’ll begin to understand what we are talking about !

Being in the water in the Winter is all about covering everything. For most Winter sessions good hoods are key since that is where you lose the majority of your body heat. Good gloves and good boots round out the program and these have also come a long way – both lighter and more flexible. New gloves are watertight and make paddling or holding onto a kite bar or paddle a whole lot easier. New boots are warmer and have a more tactile grip with your board. Gloves and boots are not a place to save money because both will drastically reduce your performance level and also your temperature!


See you on the Water!