Canoeing, Kayaking and SUP boarding are different types of physical activity to those that people may be used to, because in a kayak or canoe you tend to sit and on a SUP you tend to stand most of the time, this lack of movement prevents you maintaining a core body temperature that you might otherwise achieve playing football or tennis. Falling in to the lake or capsizing your craft, will certainly further reduce your bodies core temperature, though there are ways we can dress you, that keeps you sufficiently warm during normal activity and allows you to continue to participate following an unexpected swim.
At the start of the season from April through to the end of May, the lake is slowly warning each day following the winter season when the lake may have frozen over, making a swim in the lake an unpleasant experience for most except those suitably kitted out.
Our core staple for keeping your warm is the Wetsuit. Wetsuits come in a variety of sizes allowing us to kit out almost any shape and size of paddler. If you have your own wetsuit please bring it with you, though ideally you want a wetsuit with short arms or sleeveless as these lend themselves better to paddlesports where you need good shoulder mobility, a wetsuit that is too restrictive in the shoulder will hinder your ability to sustain paddling for very long.
Other things you can being with you are loads of changes or warm clothing, but specific types of clothing that keep you warm even when they are soaking wet, such examples include polyester thermals and long sleeves loose fitting tops. Avoid clothing made from cotton like T-Shirts and hoodies and jogging bottoms that just heavy when wet, also avoid jeans, chinos etc and instead go for poly tracksuit pants.
Cotton based products only serve to wick away valuable heat from your body when they get wet.
If attending a course, you can help by ensuring your young person (or adult) attends equipped with multiple changes of spare clothing that should include:
- Shorts or a swimming costume to be worn under the wetsuit.
- Long sleeved thermal or polyester top (anything made from polyester yarns)
- Wetsuit socks inside old trainers or wetsuit shoes.
- A warm hat.
We had previously dissuaded young people under the age of 13 from attending courses before the end of May but since acquiring a stock of wetsuits and waterproof tops, we are now able to offer activities for earlier in the season.
