While the surf media has their eyes trained on the sunny, warm waters of Hawaii, dedicated surfers in the North East are busy chipping the ice off their windshields and scraping the frost off their 5/4mm fullsuits. For this week’s installment, we’re paying homage to those of you who won’t be spending December in boardshorts. To help keep you warm, we’ve consulted with New York’s own Balaram Stack to gain some insight into staving off frostbite this winter.
Put Your Suit On Before You Leave Your House. It’s almost like an adventure getting all of your gear on and jumping in the snow and then jumping in the ocean. I love it. It’s crazy to think that we do it for fun. When I can, I’ll put my suit on at my house before I even get to the beach; it can be pretty brutal not surfing near home and changing in the snow. It’s also a good idea to invest in a few different suits. Two to three suits are pretty much necessary. Putting on a wet wetsuit in the snow is no fun.
Keep Moving. When you first hit the water you’ll feel the cold air on your face but the real shock of the temperature comes on the first duck-dive. You’ll feel a really sharp brain freeze right ###### of your forehead. If you have to duck-dive more than three times in a row, you’ll feel like you’re gonna throw up from the cold. The trick is to start moving and get a couple waves right off the bat so you can get your blood flowing.
