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Kayak / Dictionary / Spray Skirt |
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Spray Skirt Other wise know as: Skirt, Kilt "I got a hole in my spray skirt and had to pull over to empty out after every rapid because I was getting so much water in my boat." The spray skirt is the essential piece of gear that links you to your kayak. It is the piece of material, most commonly neoprene, that hangs down from around your waist (like a skirt) and has a thick rubber material that runs along the outside edge (called the "rand"). The idea is to use the rand to create a seal around the cockpit of your kayak. If done correctly, a good spray skit keeps water from entering the kayak when you are paddling or rolling and keeps you dry and happy. Another essential piece to the spray skirt is the grab loop. This is your lifeline if you can’t roll for whatever reason. When your upside down, or ready to get out of the kayak, you just pull your grab loop back towards you to break the seal around the rim of the cockpit releasing you from the boat. One of the biggest mistakes kayakers make is letting the grab loop get tucked into the cockpit. This creates a major safety hazard, as it is nearly impossible to find and pull the grab loop while upside down with water rushing around your head. Before you leave the shore it is always good to visually check to make sure you grab loop is showing, just in case. When purchasing your spray skirt you must pay attention to two things. First your waist size which is typically extra small, small, medium, large and extra large. The second measurement to pay attention is for the size of the kayak’s cockpit. Spray skirts come in a variety of sizes to fit the different sized cockpits that are commonly found on whitewater kayaks. This is called the keyhole size. The most common size is a medium keyhole. Large keyhole spray skirts are more popular for wider boats designed for bigger paddlers. Small keyhole spray skirts typically fit narrower and smaller kayaks such as kids or women’s boats. The cockpit on Necky and Riot whitewater kayaks typically fit best with a small keyhole spray skirt. Spray skirts are typically made from neoprene, the same material that is found in wet suits. When neoprene is stretched tight it is easily cut or ripped so the outermost edges of a spray skirt, where it surrounds the cockpit, is a common place to find a hole. These holes are easily created with a careless smack of a kayak paddle. Because of this most spray skirt manufactures coat the edges with extra neoprene, a latex plastic or even kevalar. This usually increases the cost of the spray skirt but keeps it functional for a much loner time. Spray skirts designed for creek boating sometimes have a
metal band that bridges the cockpit about halfway between you and the
front of the cockpit. This metal band is called an Implosion Bar. It helps
keep the spray skirt from imploding after a sudden build up of water pressure
such as during impact from running a waterfall. Depending on how cold the water is and what kind of top you have you usually put your spray skirt as close to your body as possible. However, if you have a dry top that has a tunnel then the best way to gear up is to put your dry top on first. Then, you step into your spray skirt on and pull it up as high as possible between the inner liner of the dry top tunnel and the outer layer. Having an extra spray skirt in your gear bag is a nice thing to have, even if it is only your old one. It is all too common for a paddling buddy to forget theirs, and with out a spray skirt they are not going kayaking, so even one that leaks is better then nothing. Related Terms:
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