re: [Paddlewise] sea socks

Excuse me, Tom.  That is sea SUCK.

It is a large bag shaped like a low-cut stocking that inserts in the cockpit 
of your kayak to form a barrier between you and the inside of the kayak.  It 
seals over the coaming under the spray skirt and extends forward under the 
foredeck with your legs inside.

I call them Sea Sucks because of my experience with one.  

Pushed by the manufacturer of my kayak as an alternative to ugly deck 
hatches, it was purported to allow loading the boat through the cockpit.  
After filling the boat with your gear, you install the sea sock and climb in. 
 The suck is coated nylon, like a spray skirt and should seal out the water.

My experience:
It sags and clings clammily to your legs.
It scrunches up and is hard to get into.
The coating wears off in a few minutes of use --allowing water to pass 
through into the boat.
There is enough flow resistance to keep the water in the boat from coming 
back through the sea suck to be pumped out of the cockpit.

I also worry about the sock pulling off of the coaming and making a mess in 
case of a wet exit --although that Murphey's Law prospect did not happen to 
me.

Various fixes to my complaints are possible.  One is to place a foam bulkhead 
inside the sea suck to prop it up off of your legs.  It might also be really 
tightly installed (say with a stiff drawstring) to make certain (that the 
spray skirt releases without pulling the sock off of the coaming).

The problem of coating wear-off might be reduced with higher quality 
materials.

My sock is in the care of my son, who uses it as a second line of defense in 
rough conditions; or does he?

bob phillips
SE MI,
Where my cockpit hatches seal tightly and open with a satisfying whoosh of 
air after a day on the water.
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