ItsBruce
Contributor
I forgot how much I enjoy this thread. Thanks all.
Close call in the dressing room
- Thread starter boulderjohn
- Start date
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Missdirected
Contributor
OMG, I have just caught up on the new posts. Man do I love this thread.
Blowin' Bubbles
Contributor
Wow... I just found this thread and it is amazing. I was having a bad day, but not anymore, never again. I don't know what's worse, a rather large man fitting into a small woman's wetsuit or putting on the suit with the legs where the arms should be. It's really rather unnerving that so many divers both seasoned and novice have such problems with wetsuits. I myself have a few embarassing stories like the rest of you have and as a result, I suffer from WSA, Wet Suit Anxiety. So far I don't think any treatments have been found, other than diving only in the tropics and forever divorcing the wetsuit/drysuit. Seriously, the thought of taking off, putting on, even looking at a hooded vest, and taking off a tight wetsuit after a long day of diving is so daunting that it deserves its own theme song. Something along the lines of the Jaws music would do.
You all want to know what my weekend entertainment will be? I have been staring at my 5mm for a month knowing I need to put it on and dive in 2 months. Everytime I look at it I break out in a cold sweat from WS anxiety. I have actually forced myself to lose 2 kilos to help me out in this.... Saturday I will fill up the bathtub with cold water and put on the 5mm and sit in it! Wish me luck!
Blowin' Bubbles
Contributor
Good luck trying on the 5mm Seanpaul. I know what you mean... I keep mine shoved away in the back of my closet so I don't have to look at it. The 3mm is okay but my 5mm is a partial dry, and enough said. The neck seal on that thing kills me, especially when you're just sitting there sweating like crazy before you get in the water and you've got this too tight wetsuit on, not fun.
DixieDolphin
Contributor
Ah, wetsuit embarassment.
My tale isn't quite as traumatic, but I'll tell it nevertheless!
Back in 2003, I worked as a photographer for Discovery Cove (Sea World's swim-with-the-dolphins park in Orlando). Quite a lot of the day consisted of standing either in the stingray pool (77 degree water) or the lazy river (80 degree water) with a camera. Sounds like fun, right? Until winter hits!
Well, they issue us some nice little 3/2 wetsuits to keep us warm in that water all day while photographing British tourists (who we all thought were crazy for coming to a water park in the middle of December.
)
Since we were a rather new department, though, and really just an offshoot branch of Merchandise, they neglected to provide us with a changing area to switch from fishy-smelling wetsuit to our prim & proper uniforms. Sure, changing out of a wetsuit is hard enough... but imagine doing it behind the building in the middle of an access road on a windy 45F day!
I'll never forget standing out behind that building, hopping up and down on one foot, trying desperately to get my other foot unstuck from the wetsuit.. clad only in my bathing suit.. yanking on the wetsuit with one hand and trying to direct the warm water hose onto myself to keep from freezing in the cold air with the other... when a golfcart full of park execs drove by, gaping wide-eyed at the spectacle.
And that was BEFORE I got dive certified! Needless to say, when I bought my first wetsuit upon getting certified, I was a regular pro at changing in and out of it.
My tale isn't quite as traumatic, but I'll tell it nevertheless!
Back in 2003, I worked as a photographer for Discovery Cove (Sea World's swim-with-the-dolphins park in Orlando). Quite a lot of the day consisted of standing either in the stingray pool (77 degree water) or the lazy river (80 degree water) with a camera. Sounds like fun, right? Until winter hits!
Well, they issue us some nice little 3/2 wetsuits to keep us warm in that water all day while photographing British tourists (who we all thought were crazy for coming to a water park in the middle of December.
)Since we were a rather new department, though, and really just an offshoot branch of Merchandise, they neglected to provide us with a changing area to switch from fishy-smelling wetsuit to our prim & proper uniforms. Sure, changing out of a wetsuit is hard enough... but imagine doing it behind the building in the middle of an access road on a windy 45F day!
I'll never forget standing out behind that building, hopping up and down on one foot, trying desperately to get my other foot unstuck from the wetsuit.. clad only in my bathing suit.. yanking on the wetsuit with one hand and trying to direct the warm water hose onto myself to keep from freezing in the cold air with the other... when a golfcart full of park execs drove by, gaping wide-eyed at the spectacle.
And that was BEFORE I got dive certified! Needless to say, when I bought my first wetsuit upon getting certified, I was a regular pro at changing in and out of it.
OMG! First of all, I too have been laughing hysterically while reading this thread!
Unfortunately... or fortunately for all of you, I too have had some fairly recent episodes with trying on dive gear....
Lemme see... My very considerate boyfriend took me shopping at his lds to get me the gear to begin my diving experiences.... He thought that I may get cold while diving in our lovely fridgid Michigan lakes. So he suggests a semi dry... I had already tried on a few other 7m suits and with minor struggles was able to get them on and off in the dressing room ok. So I didnt think anything different about trying this one on.
Got it on without much problem... so as have several others on this thread... but couldn't zip the darned thing due to the lack of movement I had in the thing... couldn't much move my arms at all.. ok it is supposed to be snug right? So out I walk and ask for assistance for the zip up and such. OMG what a mistake! I felt like I had just put on a suit of boa constrictors! it was so terribly awful.. But of course there I am in the bf's lds and was the first time I had met any of these fine people... so I just sucked it up and decided that I would just deal with it at the moment.
Then he starts adjusting the neck.... the seal finally in place, I felt like I was being choked to death... still i said nothing... Now the shop employee and the bf start chatting and talking about the benefits of this type of suit... all i could keep thinking about were my accidental death benefits... and if stranglation by a wet suit was covered in the policy. Finally they are done discussing this lovely suit.... He unzips it part way and off i go to get out of this ungodly torture device.
I attempt to reach my arm back to find the zipper. Yeah ok this isn't happening. ok try stretching my arms forward and try to shift the suit a bit so I can try again... um... nope. I try to get my arms back again to reach the zipper... I am in the dressing room looking like a dog chasing his tail trying to reach the zipper... around and around I go.. nope still aint happening. By this point I have been in the dressing room far to long to go back out and ask for help... I should have this thing almost off by now! Finally at the mercy of god i grow freddy cruoger arms or by some other miracle I reach the zipper. Phew! the rest should now be easy... uh yeah right. Ok... I can atleast breathe now.
Time to take an arm out of this contraption. I try to pull off one shoulder from the front. I cant get enough material in my hand to do any good. So I begin moving my shoulders back and forth (frontwards and then back). Looking like a flapping chicken I manage to finally get the thing to loosen up grab enough material to pull the shoulder off. Cool. now i can get the top half off. Now the rest should be easy right? Not a chance. I manage to roll the thing down my bodice and down to my rear side. gets stuck at my butt. Arms are now exhausted by the workout I had just been through and starting to feel like jello. Cannot get them back to push suit down..So I try from the front.. Finally with much effort i do manage to get the thing to move and almost out of the suit... but then gets stuck at my ankles... oh god! I step on the suit and attempt to pull my feet out of the thing.... Almost fall. I catch myslef on the wall. Time to try another strategy. Ok let me lift one leg, grab ahold of the suit leg and try to pull on it that way... Now i am jumping around on one foot while pulling the other leg upward... yeah not getting it off that way either... Finally i sit on the floor and pray very intently as I tug as hard as I can... Pop! the suction breaks and off it goes... I hit my head on the chair behind me. A similar struggle with the second leg and I am free!
I make it back into normal clothes and walk out... calmly and as if nothing had happened in there, tell them.... "I don't think that is the suit for me".
Now the bf hands me a hooded vest... Yet another near death experience begins... And all the pretty shades of blue and red I must have turned getting that thing off.
I now own a Henderson hyperflex suit and SEPERATE hood.
-Tricia
Unfortunately... or fortunately for all of you, I too have had some fairly recent episodes with trying on dive gear....
Lemme see... My very considerate boyfriend took me shopping at his lds to get me the gear to begin my diving experiences.... He thought that I may get cold while diving in our lovely fridgid Michigan lakes. So he suggests a semi dry... I had already tried on a few other 7m suits and with minor struggles was able to get them on and off in the dressing room ok. So I didnt think anything different about trying this one on.
Got it on without much problem... so as have several others on this thread... but couldn't zip the darned thing due to the lack of movement I had in the thing... couldn't much move my arms at all.. ok it is supposed to be snug right? So out I walk and ask for assistance for the zip up and such. OMG what a mistake! I felt like I had just put on a suit of boa constrictors! it was so terribly awful.. But of course there I am in the bf's lds and was the first time I had met any of these fine people... so I just sucked it up and decided that I would just deal with it at the moment.
Then he starts adjusting the neck.... the seal finally in place, I felt like I was being choked to death... still i said nothing... Now the shop employee and the bf start chatting and talking about the benefits of this type of suit... all i could keep thinking about were my accidental death benefits... and if stranglation by a wet suit was covered in the policy. Finally they are done discussing this lovely suit.... He unzips it part way and off i go to get out of this ungodly torture device.
I attempt to reach my arm back to find the zipper. Yeah ok this isn't happening. ok try stretching my arms forward and try to shift the suit a bit so I can try again... um... nope. I try to get my arms back again to reach the zipper... I am in the dressing room looking like a dog chasing his tail trying to reach the zipper... around and around I go.. nope still aint happening. By this point I have been in the dressing room far to long to go back out and ask for help... I should have this thing almost off by now! Finally at the mercy of god i grow freddy cruoger arms or by some other miracle I reach the zipper. Phew! the rest should now be easy... uh yeah right. Ok... I can atleast breathe now.
Time to take an arm out of this contraption. I try to pull off one shoulder from the front. I cant get enough material in my hand to do any good. So I begin moving my shoulders back and forth (frontwards and then back). Looking like a flapping chicken I manage to finally get the thing to loosen up grab enough material to pull the shoulder off. Cool. now i can get the top half off. Now the rest should be easy right? Not a chance. I manage to roll the thing down my bodice and down to my rear side. gets stuck at my butt. Arms are now exhausted by the workout I had just been through and starting to feel like jello. Cannot get them back to push suit down..So I try from the front.. Finally with much effort i do manage to get the thing to move and almost out of the suit... but then gets stuck at my ankles... oh god! I step on the suit and attempt to pull my feet out of the thing.... Almost fall. I catch myslef on the wall. Time to try another strategy. Ok let me lift one leg, grab ahold of the suit leg and try to pull on it that way... Now i am jumping around on one foot while pulling the other leg upward... yeah not getting it off that way either... Finally i sit on the floor and pray very intently as I tug as hard as I can... Pop! the suction breaks and off it goes... I hit my head on the chair behind me. A similar struggle with the second leg and I am free!
I make it back into normal clothes and walk out... calmly and as if nothing had happened in there, tell them.... "I don't think that is the suit for me".
Now the bf hands me a hooded vest... Yet another near death experience begins... And all the pretty shades of blue and red I must have turned getting that thing off.
I now own a Henderson hyperflex suit and SEPERATE hood.
-Tricia
almitywife
Vegemite Mod
so this morning we were at Bare Island gearing up and i was having issues pulling my wetsuit up
my feet were stuck halfway thru the legs and no matter what i did i couldnt get the suit on properly
after taking my legs out of the suit i looked inside the suit, all was good and tried it again. put my foot into my suit and tried to put it on again and again my feet got stuck and wouldnt go all the way thru
so took my foot out again and had a look... hubby looks at me and says "honey, you have to take the crocs off first"
my feet were stuck halfway thru the legs and no matter what i did i couldnt get the suit on properly
after taking my legs out of the suit i looked inside the suit, all was good and tried it again. put my foot into my suit and tried to put it on again and again my feet got stuck and wouldnt go all the way thru
so took my foot out again and had a look... hubby looks at me and says "honey, you have to take the crocs off first"
so this morning we were at Bare Island gearing up and i was having issues pulling my wetsuit up
my feet were stuck halfway thru the legs and no matter what i did i couldnt get the suit on properly
after taking my legs out of the suit i looked inside the suit, all was good and tried it again. put my foot into my suit and tried to put it on again and again my feet got stuck and wouldnt go all the way thru
so took my foot out again and had a look... hubby looks at me and says "honey, you have to take the crocs off first"
hmm ... you DO like your crocs dont you. If you do insist on diving in them I would suggest that you would need to put some more lead on your weight belt though as they would be quite bouyant
BTW ... love this thread
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