A Wetsuit Guide and the Sooruz Range

Choosing which suits to buy is similar to building a quiver up of surfboards or kite kit. You have to take time to figure out when, how and where you're going to be getting wet and build a quiver around that. You don't want to be shivering your entire session, but you also need to be able to move your body when its called upon. In the sports we specialise in, movement is a huge part of performance.

• Whats your budget?
• How much time are you spending doing your sports?
• What sports are you using suits for?
• Are you likely to surf all year round?
• Do you feel the cold especially?

If you're like us - you're in the water once, twice or more a week, month in month out, all year round. And because of this we're willing to invest in multiple suits and accessories that are going to make life easier by keeping us plenty warm each session. With this in mind, the Guru range is generally our favourite. Its the highest performing kit and is therefore at the higher end of the price point, but we feel its worth it for the frequency we use it through the colder months especially.

If however you're less frequent with your water time, you're simply looking for a summer suit for when the waters warmer, or you're looking for a suit for a warm weather holiday - the Fighter and Divine ranges ticks a huge amount of boxes. It might not be quite as orientated towards warmth, but it performs just as well in flexibility. 

Consider which months you're likely to be spending doing your sports - are you really going to be surfing in February when its snowing out? If so - great! But its going to effect the way you purchase wetsuits.  Does your main discipline involve you being submerged in the water waiting for waves or are you stood on top of it mainly with the odd dunking? Is wind the main aim - Because that can throw a whole different spanner in the works.

Thicknesses of suits

The headings below are guidelines and are generally the most popular thicknesses you'll see available from Sooruz and any other range of wetsuit. Everyone feels the cold differently and so this is just opinion!

2mm - Available in shorty's and rarely seen full length suits. Generally only used in the absolute height of the British summertime (if at all), think July/August and perhaps not for sports such as surfing where you're submerged a lot of the time and will cool down quickly.

3/2mm - Available in shorty, Spring suits or full length. A very popular thickness for british summertime - probably most used June - September. Surfing, Kiting, Paddling, a full length 3/2 suit will do it all. 

4/3mm - Full Suits - The shoulder season suit. Think April/May - December. I've used this suit all through summertime a lot and personally think this is the most versatile thickness. Simply flush through with water to cool down in the height of summer - otherwise i use a 2mm shorty for those occasions.

5/4/3mm - Full Suits, Hooded or non-Hooded - Its getting cold now. Think November through to April. A suit with a built in hood will really help if you're planning on ploughing through the harshest months of weather - whereas an added on hood will definitely help if these conditions are less of an aim and you're just trying to prevent some brain freeze on your duck dives.

 6mm Hooded - Full Suit - you're not getting a shorty in a 6mm. If you're wearing these, its cold as hell outside. Think December - April mainly. 6mm sounds thick and restricting, suits this thick never used to exist back in the day as you simply wouldn't be able to move. Nowadays though, with huge leaps in material manufacturing it is entirely possible and doable. I would say 40% of my own Kitesurfing, Winging and Surfing is done in a 6/5/4 hooded suit. I spend 5 months of the year in this suit and wouldn't be without it.

Accessories 

These are massively person preference. Some like some but hate others. Don't take this as gospel, but as opinions we've collected or discovered we like ourselves.

Boots - Generally speaking, boots become a necessity from November through to April time roughly here in the UK. Warmth is the main aim, but protection from rocks and the likes in cold conditions is really useful too. Some live near rocky access beaches and choose to use boots year round to protect their feet. 3mm options exist for a bit of protection while allowing plenty of flexibility still - and with us having a relatively mild winter in 2023/2024, I only used the 3mm Flow boot. The 5mm boot in the Guru range however is far more popular as a warmer and more robust option.

We did an article discussing whether to choose round toe or split toe boots which proved quite popular - its obviously an interesting little topic!

Gloves - generally the most despised wetsuit accessory for most water users. Nobody seems to enjoy wearing gloves - you lose dexterity and everything starts to feel quite alien - paddling, popping up and holding kites/wings/windsurfers. Same with using boots, you lose a connection to the board surface, but it seems to be amplified by wearing gloves and not being able to feel anything through your hands and fingers. However - in the harshest conditions we get thrown, winging in Northerly hail storms in February, or surfing while its zero degrees outside - gloves again become an absolute necessity. 

We have them available in a normal 5 finger option for dexterity in either 3mm or 1.5mm, a Semi-Mitt for extra warmth paddling or open palm mitts to keep the wind off during wind sports.

Hoods or Beanies - A built in hood on a suit can limit the use of that suit to generally only the coldest of conditions. These suits are not so bad to use with the hood rolled down if you have to, but this can sometimes end up with cold water being thrown over your head after being caught in the hood. Enter the add on Hood - to be used in conjunction with your regular 4/3 or 5/4/3 for extra warmth. Can be used to reduce brain freeze during surfing, or to keep the wind chill off your head and ears during wind sports.

 

Sooruz Wetsuit Ranges Explained

Fly - The Base level and most affordable, flat lock stitched suits that will do a great job of keeping occasional water users warm enough. No frills.

Fly + - an introduction of glued blind stitching to the Fly suits makes these a nice improvement to prevent the ingress of water which helps keep you warm. Available in 3/2 and 5/3 full suits. Again aimed towards occasional water users who don't need anything too fancy.

Fighter and Divine - The Mid point in the Sooruz range, and possibly our most popular suits especially for the summer months when ultimate warmth is not an absolute necessity. This range is also probably the most varied in the entire line up - with everything from shorty's and spring suits right up to 5/4/3 hooded full suits. This range see's the use of a 'Thermo loop' liner internally to keep warmth in, which is much lighter than the Guru's Storm Dry lining - making it more nimble and flexible to wear while also being far quicker to dry out, post session.

Sooruz tend to go wild with the designs and colourways on its best selling ranges, which we're big fans of. Both the Fighter and Divines have had some great looking suits in their line ups in current and recent years.

We still see the choice between back zips and chest zips in these ranges. While chest zips might have pipped the post for the best in warmth rating, they can still be more awkward to put on and so Sooruz keep this option in the Divines and Fighters for anyone who still prefers them.

Guru Pro - High Performance. Flexible and warm. The Guru Pros are designed to be the best of the best when it comes to performing at a high level.

For those who are in the water as much as possible, the Guru Pro's offer the best balance of warmth and flexibility and Sooruz use their best materials here before it trickles down through to the cheaper ranges eventually

We wrote a little review on the Guru Pro.

Guru Wind - Windsurfers, Wingers and Kitesurfers, look no further. Gone are the days of Neil Prydes specific smooth skin windsurf suits, thank goodness. But we still get battered by the weather we go out in, something more current is still needed than those old school suits. The main draw here is the anti-tetanus cut on the forearms to reduce fore arm pump while holding on to windsurf booms, wings or kite bars for hours on end. Couple this with calf straps to prevent water firing up the calves and sitting there, as well as a 'Black Diamond' material covering both the back and chest to help prevent wind chill on the torso, makes this the most suited suit for those specific sports outlined initially.

 Check out our separate review on the Guru Wind

Guru+ - The warmest of the warm. The pinnacle of the Sooruz family, designed for the harshest conditions. Available in 5/4/3 Hooded or non Hooded and the ever popular 6/5/4 hooded which we did a review of.

Obviously the thickest suit in the range is going to be the least flexible. But if you can stay warm in the wildest of winters, you can be in the water more - and thats what we're all after, right? Its honestly worth every penny in my eyes, i'll never be without this suit anymore.