Over the years, I’ve become an expert in cold-water surfing. Not necessarily the actual riding of boards in cold surf, but protecting myself against the elements and cold water.
I’ve had mild hypothermia several times, chattering like a skeleton, unable to feel my hands, the early signs of hallucinations setting in (which was the only cool part). One interesting thing about hypothermia? Even hours after you’ve recovered, you’ll still find it hard to feel your extremities. All of them. It’s like your torso is separated from the rest of the body.
So I take pride in solid, cold-weather gear. Because once you have that dialed, there is nothing that can replace good, empty waves—the emptiness usually a result of burly weather, big tide swings and radical rip currents that keep fair-weather souls at bay (the northern Oregon coast is my go-to these days).
That’s why the Ti Alpha 454 Hooded Wetsuit is dope. And its steep price ($695) is worth it. You won’t just stay warm. You’ll sweat, which IMHO, is key to surfing well in the cold. Plus if your core stays warm enough, you’re often able to lose the floppy gloves, or sometimes, even the thick 4 mill booties if water temperatures reach the upper 50s.
A slight caveat, I’ve used Isurus wetsuits before and am a fan. The company originally made suits for triathletes and the surf suits feature compression panels that actually form fit to your body and literally take several sessions to break in to your curves. They claim it increases blood flow. Which makes it warmer. I can’t confirm that. But I definitely think it has merit. No joke, depending on where you’re using the suit (cooler or warmer water), you can actually use a thinner Isurus wetty than you’re accustomed to because of how warm they are.
The suit is layered in five materials—the compression “jersey” (a textile material from polyester and nylon that ups elasticity and decreases water absorption), titanium alloy, closed cell rubber, titanium alloy again and more compression (see photo).
This sounds like a lot of stuff. But it all comes together in a really flexible package that I regularly spent (spend) the entire day in: catching waves, eating lunch, pushing groms into waves, more surf, hiking back to the car through the woods.
And one thing that sounds small, but seriously works, is the Nano Skin on the hood and back that absorbs any sunshine you may be lucky enough to get while surfing in the winter, creating a greenhouse affect on your head and back. The hood is also fleece-lined, which is unbelievably awesome if you’ve spent any time in the frigid ocean (if you know, you know).
Wetsuit companies are being pushed to make environmentally-friendly products these days. Isurus addresses that by using Yamamoto neoprene, which isn’t constructed from petroleum but utilizes limestone instead. This isn’t new in the industry and there’s debate on just how environmentally-friendly the mining is but it definitely beats petroleum-produced products. Looking at this suit in a vacuum, the material works extremely well.
One other thing to be wary of on the Ti Alpha, is the wear on the chest zipper. Its placement requires that you stretch the top panel down to meet the zipper instead of starting from the inside fold. I could see that wearing down. On the other side, I used a 4/3 suit from Isurus for years and it wore extremely well.
In all, the Ti Alpha is worthy. And extremely warm. Which, if you’re trying to ride the big empty in less-than-favorable weather, is key.
Editor’s note: In the Northern Hemisphere, fall is officially upon us. We took it upon ourselves to review a handful of new offerings for those looking to invest in rubber. Check out other installments in our informal winter wetsuit buyer’s guide.
