This Exciting New Dry Suit Will Get You Paddling Year-Round
Extend Your Paddling Season With Mustang Survival’s Quadra Dry Suit
When is paddling season? September? Sure. October? Gettin’ scary out there. November and December? This is when most paddlers stow their PFDs and water shoes in Rubbermaid totes and hang their stand-up paddleboards, kayaks or canoes from dusty garage rafters.
That’s because getting wet when it’s cold really isn’t fun. And while moody winter waves, empty waterways and the thrill of exploring a typically out-of-season environment can entice—it’s hardly worth the hypothermia.
Enter the dry suit. Stepping it up beyond a spray skirt or clammy neoprene, these professional-grade onesies have long been favoured by guides and Arctic/Antarctic expeditioners. Fully waterproof and water-tight to keep your body dry even during full submersions, they allow wearers to layer up underneath as conditions require and brave virtually any marine environment with confidence. But is there a use-case for recreational SUP’ers and weekend warrior kayakers?
Mustang Survival says there is. Based in Burnaby, British Columbia, Mustang Survival has been a world leader in marine safety gear and apparel since 1967, even building life-preservers for astronauts and apparel for the Canadian Armed Forces. And this year, they’ve unveiled their best-value dry suit—the Quadra Dry Suit. Targeted at recreationalists looking to extend their paddling season, this minimalist suit offers pro-level protection at a price yet unseen in this category.
“Dry Suits often come with a hefty price tag, and understandably so as a lot of engineering and materials go into a specialized garment that keeps you completely dry,” says Anja Mueller, Head of Marketing at Mustang Survival. “With the Quadra, we offer people new to cold water marine activities the same quality materials at a budget-friendlier price.”
The spec sheet is impressive. Built of three-layer Marine Spec BP fabric (same as their other dry suits) with trimmable soft latex neck and cuffs, the Quadra is designed to keep water where it belongs—outside. The adjustable waist belt allows for a snug cinch on an otherwise relaxed and roomy fit; the hardy 500D Cordura panels deflect abrasions with ease. Of course, the YKK AQUASEAL zipper is fully waterproof and the collar and cuff designs are crafted with repair and maintenance in mind—meaning you can expect many, many years of wear with this dry suit.
But how does it wear in real-world paddling conditions? We couldn’t wait for the weather to turn to find out.
The Test
It’s as if nature knows August has ended. The moment the calendar flips to September, water temperatures drop and the coastal wind changes from refreshing to biting. Such is the cool day I donned the Quadra Dry Suit—clear, with near endless visibility, and only a slight breeze of eight kilometres per hour from the west. But as any stand-up paddler knows, it’s the water temperatures that really matter. In this case, they were in the teens at the shoreline, but they’d be dipping closer to single digits as I crossed Baynes Sound, paddling towards Denman Island from the eastern shoreline of central Vancouver Island.
Firstly, the Quadra stows and packs easily—a 25-litre daypack can hold it with ease with room for accessories like a water bottle, a PFD (Mustang Survival’s Essentialist Belt Pack fits the bill for SUP’ers) and more.
And the suit is very easy to get into—the torso-zipper opens wide and the latex neck and cuffs are supple, skin-soft and the watertight seals do not feel like they’re strangling you or cutting the blood flow to your digits. (A welcome surprise.) My size 12 feet slipped into the formed footwells easily and I paired the suit with my water-shoes of choice (Crocs). Footwear is required for this suit—the BP fabric is tough, but don’t grind it into rocky shorelines unnecessarily. I’ve worn half a dozen different dry suits over the years and this was the simplest to get into, bar none.
For insulation, I chose midweight polypropylene base layers and skipped gloves, as the weather conditions didn’t require them—though one more month into the season and something like these would be essential too.
Weighing a svelte 1,220 grams, the suit does not burden with bulk. Since my craft of choice is an 11-foot paddleboard, low weight is essential as the dynamic moves required to stay upright mean added mass is quite unwelcome. It wore like a pair of cozy pajamas.
In fact, it was all too easy to don the Quadra and paddle around, basically forgetting I was wearing the thing. Not really a test! So, in about 20 fathoms of cool West Coast seawater, I dismounted my board for a float. And float I did!
The immediate aspect I noticed was the watertight—nay, airtight—nature of the suit, which effectively created a personal flotation device. What little interior airspace there was puffed up around my chest and floated me with ease. You’d still want to wear a proper PFD—but the “air flotation” is a fringe benefit.
The salt-chuck was chilly—the sensation of which almost fooled me into thinking I had a leak at first. But try as I might, I could not get water to ingress either the hardy BP fabric or the snug cuffs and neck. I just bobbed about like a cork, my paddleboard following me around via the ankle leash like an anxious puppy.
After about 10 minutes in the water, I was satisfied (and still comfortable). I climbed back aboard, the Quadra shed water like a duck’s back and I continued my paddle. Within a few minutes, the suit was dry and again flowed loose around my body.
Add a layer of fleece underneath, I could easily do this in October. Add gloves, a toque and some better insulation (like the Kazan Dry Suit Liner)? November or December SUP or kayak trips are on the menu. My dad, 80 years young and an avid paddler, was so impressed with the test that he asked to borrow it for his autumn-season kayaking: “Just for a bit,” I reluctantly agreed.
As long as you have open water—whether that’s a cool West Coast sea, one of the Big Lakes or even the icy East—don the Quadra and you’re only limited by the swell size and your paddling skillset. Truly, it adds the ultimate confirmation of Alfred Wainwright’s famous quote: “There’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.”
So when is paddling season? September, October, November, December… January… If you can stay dry, you can stay warm: Which means that with the Quadra Dry Suit—paddling season is when you make it.
(Oh, and at the time of publishing, my dad has still not returned the suit. I have high hopes for spring.)
Mustang Survival Quadra Dry Suit Product Availability & Pricing:
Men’s: Ocean Blue/Admiral Grey & Red/Admiral Grey; sizes small to 2XL.
Women’s: Bluefin Blue/Admiral Grey; sizes X-small to X-large.
Retail Price: $999.99 (CAD)
For More Info: MEN’S / WOMEN’S
This article was sponsored by Mustang Survival
This article was sponsored by Mustang Survival. Founded in 1967, their mission is to create marine apparel and safety products to inspire a love of the water and protect the lives of those who live beyond land. For more information about the Quadra Dry Suit, and to explore Mustang Survival’s full range of products, visit mustangsurvival.ca.
