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From: Paul <quale_at_ix.netcom.com>
subject: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2000 18:55:52 -0800
Awhile back there was discussion about different methods to keep the drysuit
dry.  Dry after bladder elimination, that is.

Before I ask my question, please skip to the next message for subject matter
unrelated to the bathroom (one should hope).  My question isn't as bad as
watching a National Geographic special of the African desert where they show
the mother washing the baby in fresh cow urine.

Anyway, I didn't like the idea of fiddling with those appliances or
attempting unzip maneuvers on the high seas.  Still, I need the cold water
protection which only a drysuit gives, or so the argument goes.  (I haven't
tried one yet).

Even if I eliminate immediately prior to settling into the cockpit, as soon
as my hands dip into the cold ocean, I feel the urge.  To add to the flow
woes, I seem to constantly suck on my convenient hydration system.  So, it's
not more than an hour into the voyage before I just let 'er, er him,
nonchalantly drain.  Result: a warm wetsuit.  No biggie, paddle on.

Here's my theory how it will work while wearing a drysuit.  First, I'm not
going to do anything different than what I do in the wetsuit--no bags, adult
diapers, or unzipping.  Just pee away into my polypro tights! I figure the
goretex will help evaporate most moisture.  What moisture remains will,
through capillary action, dissipate into the rest of the tights.  Zip out of
the suit at the end of the journey, say, 30 minutes from the last episode,
and nothing embarrassingly detectable.

Can anybody confirm my theories or am I in danger of freezing with this
method?  If I can rent a drysuit or if someone on the list is willing to
loan theirs out to me to test these ideas, please write.  I promise not to
crap into it!

Thanks,
Name withheld for obvious reasons.

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From: <volinjo_at_juno.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2000 22:52:33 -0500
LOAN YOU A DRYSUIT???!!!  ARE YOU KIDDING???!!!

On Sun, 20 Feb 2000 18:55:52 -0800 "Paul" <quale_at_ix.netcom.com> writes:
> Awhile back there was discussion about different methods to keep the 
> drysuit
> dry.  Dry after bladder elimination, that is.
> 
> Before I ask my question, please skip to the next message for 
> subject matter
> unrelated to the bathroom (one should hope).  My question isn't as 
> bad as
> watching a National Geographic special of the African desert where 
> they show
> the mother washing the baby in fresh cow urine.
> 
> Anyway, I didn't like the idea of fiddling with those appliances or
> attempting unzip maneuvers on the high seas.  Still, I need the cold 
> water
> protection which only a drysuit gives, or so the argument goes.  (I 
> haven't
> tried one yet).
> 
> Even if I eliminate immediately prior to settling into the cockpit, 
> as soon
> as my hands dip into the cold ocean, I feel the urge.  To add to the 
> flow
> woes, I seem to constantly suck on my convenient hydration system.  
> So, it's
> not more than an hour into the voyage before I just let 'er, er him,
> nonchalantly drain.  Result: a warm wetsuit.  No biggie, paddle on.
> 
> Here's my theory how it will work while wearing a drysuit.  First, 
> I'm not
> going to do anything different than what I do in the wetsuit--no 
> bags, adult
> diapers, or unzipping.  Just pee away into my polypro tights! I 
> figure the
> goretex will help evaporate most moisture.  What moisture remains 
> will,
> through capillary action, dissipate into the rest of the tights.  
> Zip out of
> the suit at the end of the journey, say, 30 minutes from the last 
> episode,
> and nothing embarrassingly detectable.
> 
> Can anybody confirm my theories or am I in danger of freezing with 
> this
> method?  If I can rent a drysuit or if someone on the list is 
> willing to
> loan theirs out to me to test these ideas, please write.  I promise 
> not to
> crap into it!
> 
> Thanks,
> Name withheld for obvious reasons.
> 
>
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From: <Bhansen97_at_aol.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 11:45:48 EST
Paul - <<....about different methods to keep the drysuit
dry.  Dry after bladder elimination, that is....>>

I'm sorta hoping that you were joking, at least in part. But....

See the video  "Aquatic Man" distributed by John Heath (1142 Thornton Rd 
Houston TX 77018 - others on thsi list will have his e-mail and URL 
addresses). It's a great video showing some of the techniques used by John 
Petersen, 1997 (?) Greenland National Kayaking Champion. As it applies to 
your question - Mr. Petersen demonstrates an inuit technique for resolving 
your problem. Place paddle across rear deck, fix in place with hand, then 
foot, **stand up**, and let go! 

[And aside from that, this is just a superb video for anyone who's interested 
in sea kayaking. Mr Heath also distributes "Rolling with Maligiaq" which I 
haven't seen yet, but which is reportedly also excellent.]

Oh, and if you do rent a drysuit, please tell me about it. I'll rent whatever 
*wet*suits that outfitter has, instead.

Bill Hansen
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From: Steve Cramer <cramer_at_coe.uga.edu>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 12:30:04 -0500
Bhansen97_at_aol.com wrote:

> Oh, and if you do rent a drysuit, please tell me about it. I'll rent whatever
> *wet*suits that outfitter has, instead.

There was a story that came out of the filming of "The River Wild" in
Montana. The actors, all effete Hollywood types, of course, were
complaining about what a hassle it was to have to pee, since they were
wearing wetsuits under their clothes (so as to look like they weren't
wearing wetsuits, donchasee?).

Anyway, one of the raft wranglers told them, "Just pee in the wetsuit,
like we do." Suddenly, it became very important for each actor to have
his own personal wetsuit.

Steve
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From: Philip Torrens <skerries_at_hotmail.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 09:10:40 PST
>From: "Paul" <quale_at_ix.netcom.com>
>Anyway, I didn't like the idea of fiddling with those appliances or
>attempting unzip maneuvers on the high seas.  Still, I need the cold water
>protection which only a drysuit gives, or so the argument goes.  (I haven't
>tried one yet).
>Here's my theory how it will work while wearing a drysuit.  First, I'm not
>going to do anything different than what I do in the wetsuit--no bags, 
>adult
>diapers, or unzipping.  Just pee away into my polypro tights! I figure the
>goretex will help evaporate most moisture.  What moisture remains will,
>through capillary action, dissipate into the rest of the tights.  Zip out 
>of
>the suit at the end of the journey, say, 30 minutes from the last episode,
>and nothing embarrassingly detectable.
>
>Can anybody confirm my theories or am I in danger of freezing with this
>method?  Thanks,
>Name withheld for obvious reasons.

I can't tell you about the theory of the liquid from the urine breathing 
through the Gore-Tex (I never felt inclined to try it with my Gore-Tex suit, 
since it has a relief zip). I know that the salt in salt water can impair 
the breathability of Gore-Tex (it is restored once you wash it in fresh 
water) and I expect the salts in urine might have a similar effect. However, 
even if the liquid would evapourate, until it did, it would seriously 
compromise the insulation value of the suit if you swam.

A neoprene drysuit provides some insulation even when wet. A couple of 
summers ago I did a longer tour with a couple of friends. The male of this 
couple is propably one of the kayakers I respect most for his paddling and 
wilderness skills. He had equipped himself and his partner with neoprene 
drysuits they had picked up cheap at a windsurfing shop's rental sell-off. 
(Such an arrangement would have been far too warm for me, but I have a 
certain amount of built-in insulation (read "fat")). They paddled all day in 
these suits, widdling as they went and just rinsing out the suits in fresh 
or salt water at the end of the day. Note, however, that I always banished 
them to the far end of the beach until they had washed, and that they always 
unzipped one another -  I wanted no part of it!

Philip Torrens
N49°16' W123°06'


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From: Wendy Ogaki <wendy_ogaki_at_hotmail.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 09:58:16 PST
Hi, I'm pretty new to the list serve and this is my first post.  I've found 
a number of posts very helpful, and this one caught my eye.

I've bought myself a gortex drysuit (latex booties & relief zip).  I guess 
the relief zip was not meant to be unisex but I thought I might be able to 
set up some type of contraption to make this work without wetting myself 
inside the suit.  On the market, there's something called "Freshette" which 
I think would be hard to use at the best of times while wearing regular 
clothes -- a funnel and tube would work much better.  Problem with a funnel 
in this case, the zip's too high up.

Ladies, any suggestions?




----Original Message Follows----
From: "Paul" <quale_at_ix.netcom.com>
To: "PaddleWise Members" <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net>
Subject: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2000 18:55:52 -0800

Awhile back there was discussion about different methods to keep the drysuit
dry.  Dry after bladder elimination, that is.

Before I ask my question, please skip to the next message for subject matter
unrelated to the bathroom (one should hope).  My question isn't as bad as
watching a National Geographic special of the African desert where they show
the mother washing the baby in fresh cow urine.

Anyway, I didn't like the idea of fiddling with those appliances or
attempting unzip maneuvers on the high seas.  Still, I need the cold water
protection which only a drysuit gives, or so the argument goes.  (I haven't
tried one yet).

Even if I eliminate immediately prior to settling into the cockpit, as soon
as my hands dip into the cold ocean, I feel the urge.  To add to the flow
woes, I seem to constantly suck on my convenient hydration system.  So, it's
not more than an hour into the voyage before I just let 'er, er him,
nonchalantly drain.  Result: a warm wetsuit.  No biggie, paddle on.

Here's my theory how it will work while wearing a drysuit.  First, I'm not
going to do anything different than what I do in the wetsuit--no bags, adult
diapers, or unzipping.  Just pee away into my polypro tights! I figure the
goretex will help evaporate most moisture.  What moisture remains will,
through capillary action, dissipate into the rest of the tights.  Zip out of
the suit at the end of the journey, say, 30 minutes from the last episode,
and nothing embarrassingly detectable.

Can anybody confirm my theories or am I in danger of freezing with this
method?  If I can rent a drysuit or if someone on the list is willing to
loan theirs out to me to test these ideas, please write.  I promise not to
crap into it!

Thanks,
Name withheld for obvious reasons.

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From: Andree Hurley <ahurley_at_viewit.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 13:50:49 -0500 (EST)
Peeing is always a big topic on the trips I've led and the courses I've
taught. I always tell kids that whom ever drinks the most gets a gold star
because their tendency is to withhold liquids so they don't have to stop,
or being embarassed by having to pee. Drinking a lot and stopping a lot is
a good thing unless you are on a super long crossing and just can't.
Sometimes if you can't stop you can have someone hold your boat for you
while you pee - into a container, or even over the side (taking local
conditions into account of course - don't want to get hypothermic or
otherwise immersed in stormy seas.)

Whenever I can I just wear a two-piece outfit just because it does make
peeing so much easier. On solo trips I've been unable to find a place to
get out and have gotten creative - like one leg out, one leg in....etc.

Related to women's topics, I've put the outlines from the 
West Coast Sea Kayak symposium on onwatersports.com - click on the link to
women. We did brainstorming/breakout groups so the outlines are
created by the groups and what topics they thought were important.

There are also some chat venues for women. It's new so hasn't had much
traffic yet....


Andree Hurley  - ICQ# 27469637
ACA certified Instructor Trainer Coastal Kayaking 
Kayak Instruction Excellence (KIX) - http://www.onwatersports.com


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From: Nick Von Robison <n.v.rob_at_deltanet.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Wet My Suit
Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2000 13:36:03 -0800
> Peeing is always a big topic on the trips I've led ....into a container.

Once had a tripmate who found some cool jellyfish floating around and he scooped
some up into his plastic jug bailer to admire.  Later, he whizzed into the
bailer and some of the jellyfish's stinging tentacles were still in the bailer.
Need I say more? -- mixing jellyfish with your jolly release.....

-Nick





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From: Jerry Hawkins <jhawkins_at_cisco.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Sweat My Suit
Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2000 08:37:24 -0800
At 01:50 PM 02/21/2000 -0500, Andree Hurley wrote:
>Peeing is always a big topic on the trips I've led...

Actually, the trick is to paddle hard and sweat so profusely that even after drinking 2 - 20 oz. Diet Cokes and 2 - 20 oz. Aquafinas you still don't have to urinate even 4 hours later.  That's my way, your mileage may vary.

jerry.


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From: Kirk Olsen <kolsen_at_imagelan.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Sweat My Suit
Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2000 16:28:30 -0500 (EST)
On Tue, 22 Feb 2000, Jerry Hawkins wrote:

> At 01:50 PM 02/21/2000 -0500, Andree Hurley wrote:
> >Peeing is always a big topic on the trips I've led...
> 
> Actually, the trick is to paddle hard and sweat so profusely that even 
> after drinking 2 - 20 oz. Diet Cokes and 2 - 20 oz. Aquafinas you still 
> don't have to urinate even 4 hours later.  That's my way, your mileage 
> may vary. 

Having blacked out from dehydration a couple of times, I would much rather
need to pee.  Blacking out during the paddle stroke and coming to during
the recovery is an experience worth skipping.  I was in a canoe race both 
times, I hope to avoid blacking out double blading, not enough recovery time
to come to....

kirk
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From: Shawn W. Baker <baker_at_montana.com>
subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Sweat My Suit
Date: Wed, 23 Feb 2000 07:45:42 -0700
At 01:50 PM 02/21/2000 -0500, Andree Hurley wrote:
>Peeing is always a big topic on the trips I've led...

Jerry Hawkins said:
> Actually, the trick is to paddle hard and sweat so profusely that 
> even after drinking 2 - 20 oz. Diet Cokes and 2 - 20 oz. Aquafinas 
> you still don't have to urinate even 4 hours later.  That's my way, 
> your mileage may vary.

Then you're still dehydrating yourself; IMHO if you're not peeing, or
not peeing clear urine, you're not drinking enough.  I am surprised, 
though, that drinking the Diet Coke doesn't make you pee more.  Caffeine
is a diuretic, so you must really be exerting to not pee for 4 hours.

Shawn

-- 
Shawn W. Baker          0                                    46°53'N
© 1999            ____©/______                              114°06'W
~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\  ,/      /~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^
baker_at_montana.com    0        http://www.missoulaconcrete.com/shawn/
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