PRODUCT SYNOPSIS: WavzCap is a new entry into the watersports head wear line-up, and has a few unique qualities that make it one to watch as it progresses and grows into the market. The line-up of hats come in a variety of colored neoprene material, making it resistant to bacterial and microbial growth … a definite plus for something constantly soaked in the ocean! (official website here)

Like an eager pack of product testers, these experienced (and some nearly new) watermen and women had questions about the WavzCaap at first … curious to find out about the brightly colored caps. Once settled in their curiosity, the morning crew took liberal turns trying out the WavzCap, trading it back and forth like a new toy out in the early dawn lineup, and they certainly did not hold back on the comments and suggestions!

COMFORT and FIT: The overwhelming consensus amongst the unofficial testers was the comfort and softness of the WavzCap for the wearer. Made completely of neoprene, the WavzCap rated high on the comfort scale, as compared to other hats and caps that our testers have worn in the past. Being tested by a crew of surf veterans, the WavzCap received bonus points for the flexible visor, which allowed it to bend and flex with the wind and onslaught of whitewash … all the while serving as an effective foil to redirect water away from the face as it splashes through the surfer during paddles out. Rated positive for comfort and fit 9/10.

SECURE and STEADY: This is where the largest disagreement occurred with our impromptu testers, with some rating the cap as easily removed by errant waves or larger duck dives, and most agreeing that the fit is fine, and that the only area of improvement would be to create a more secure and snug fastening system. Once again, the variations in the opinion could very much be a result of the varying head sizes and surfing styles … but the overall need for a more secure and adjustable fastening system was across the board. During smaller waves (waist to chest high), the WavzCap performed adequately in the face of the North Shore’s waves … but the single Velcro fastener proved to be a little unsteady for larger waves. The primary suggestion was a move towards a “V” style strap that goes on either side of each ear and then fastens at the bottom near the chin. DESIGN NOTE: We contacted the designer of WavzCap, and the quick release strap was conceived as such in order to avoid having a possible choking hazard – in the form of a lariat around the neck – during a wipe out or an errant wave. Rated as needing improvement 7/10.

OVERALL USAGE: Another notable feature of the cap is that it actually floats in water for a period of time, allowing the wearer to retrieve it if it comes off or gets washed away from the head. This feature is a great one to have since the WavzCap designer wanted to ensure that the cap can be retrieved after it comes off! (The COLORS also allow you to easily see the cap even in rough whitewater or dark waters)

Lighter, softer, and more flexible than most made-for-water-use hats, the WavzCap is excellent for non-critical water activities such as Stand Up Paddleboarding, Kayaking, and light to moderate wave heights for activities such as surfing and body boarding. The “made-to-release” design of the chin strap makes the WavzCap a hassle to retrieve during large waves or multiple set waves … so make sure you hang on to the cap at those moments!

That being said, don’t let that discourage you from getting the WavzCap for sun protection and cold weather warmth for your head! Rated as Good and Satisfactory 8/10.

OVERALL DESIGN: WavzCap is a great initial entry into the surf hat market, with some minor bugs to work out … such as the chin strap system, and the bulky lip around the brim of the hat where the neoprene is folded over. That being said, it does function rather admirably in the open ocean irrespective of the design mods needed! The colors are bright and vibrant, making it quite easy to retrieve once it slips off your head during a wipe-out … a great feature as compared to some of the camouflage type colors of other water hats.

On the flip side, the fashion mavens and divas out at the line up felt that the visor was a bit too long, and that it could be an inch or two shorter for better field of vision. But this can be easily credited to the hat’s primary purpose: sun protection! Rated as Satisfactory 7/10.

[iJS would like to extend a great 'Mahalo' to the North Shore morning crew for their time and expertise in helping us rank and rate the WavzCap!]

The STUFF: Darkfin gloves are a return to good ol’ American creativity, as envisioned by the folks at Black Lagoon Products. Aimed at watersports enthusiasts of all types, Darkfin gloves are produced for one specific purpose: better, stronger, and faster water propulsion! Darkfins are produced (pardon the pun) by hand through a special dipping process using custom ceramic moulds, and then cured to toughness in large ovens. The process by which the webbing is attached, without the use of glue, is a closely guarded family secret.

Most notably, the flagship product of Black Lagoon is 100% hand made in the United States, and produced all from natural latex rubber. For those watersports enthusiasts that are environmentally conscious, it is important to note that latex is biodegradable, unlike neoprene or silicone. As an example, if a surfer were to lose a glove in the surf, the ocean’s micro organisms and the sun’s UV light would do begin and end the bio-degradation process thing  in approximately 8 to 10 weeks. The gloves would disintegrate, and eventually disappear.

According to Roy McKinney of Black Lagoon Products,  ”That’s the beauty of Natural latex rubber. Silicon and Neoprene are forever man, nothing eats it. Darkfin gloves are very Ocean friendly.”

The SUN and UV RAYS: Darkfin gloves come to you complete with their very own UV bag, to protect it from excessive exposure when not in use.  Granted, one could keep the gloves in a drawer away from direct sunlight as well, but the bag is nice and handy … and it extends the usable life of the gloves in the meantime! Remember that the gloves are eventually disintegrated partly by UV rays, so keeping them protected when not in use is an important point.

The TESTS: iJS staffers have had plenty of hands-on experience with webbed ‘surf gloves’ in the past, and there is no great shortage of gloves out in the surf market – H2O’s webbed gloves, Aqua Sphere’s swim gloves, NRS’s propulsion gloves, IST surf gloves, and Frogger gloves to name a few! And while almost all range in the materials used to form the webbed hand wear, these gloves tend to concentrate around the lycra / neoprene mix. This is where Darkfins stand out: natural latex rubber. To give surfers a visual, think of rubber dish washing gloves (the kinds mom used to use!) hopped up on anabolic steroids, crossed genetically with Man from Atlantis webbing.

Secondly, iJS wanted to test Darkfins against the previous feature failures that resulted in past webbed  gloves being forever shelved or tossed in the ‘reject’ bin. Past complaints from webbed glove users ranged from stiff and inflexible materials resulting in unnatural hand and finger postures, inability to demonstrate finger dexterity while wearing the webbed gloves, bulky materials and padding used to construct the gloves, and the most common complaint – just plain not cool looking enough to wear in the line up.

The DETAILS: The UV bag that contains the Darkfin gloves is sturdy and straight forward to use – a zip lock type zipper with a UV resistant amber tint to the plastic protects the gloves, while a small diagonal opening at the base prevents air from collecting in the bag … acting like a narrow release valve. The instruction sheet is just as straight forward, pointing out some tips for better use and storage. They’re gloves after all, people!

Darkfins feel very much like industrial strength dish washing gloves, and are just as easy to put on. (NOTE: The imprinted letters on the glove’s base almost immediately peel and crackle off as soon as you put the gloves on.) The immediate feeling that we noticed right away was the dexterity and mobility our digits had inside the gloves! Unlike other webbed gloves, and attributed primarily to the latex rubber material, we could tie our surf shorts and bikinis, grab small items such as short snaps and bathing suit hooks with ease, attach and adjust the surfboard leash, and pretty much function with dexterity. This type of dexterity and mobility during pre-surf moments easily translated into the next test.

THE SURF TEST: iJS staffers have had plenty of good and bad experiences with surf gloves in the past, and Darkfins were primarily met with much skepticism. After the first two days of testing, however, the staffers were impressed at the quality and usability of the Darkfin gloves, with major marks being awarded for finger and hand dexterity as well as  natural hand movements. In the water, our testers noted two critical differences between Darkfins and other webbed surf gloves: (1) The Darkfins’ lack of a need for a strap or velcro system makes the glove completely comfortable and flexible, and (2) despite the lack of a fastening system, the gloves were never in danger of slipping off the hands.

The webbing attached to the back of the glove, rather than in-between the fingers or through the entire glove like some other webbed gloves, makes the Darkfins quite effective in providing water propulsion as well as unsurpassed digit dexterity. The soft natural rubber material allowed our testers to maneuver easily, place their hands in their regular positions on the surfboards without feeling hindered, and did not lose the ability to grab the surfboard’s rail or edges during critical movements or during unfortunate wipe outs.

GLOVE DEXTERITY: In simple terms, will it feel like a glove or shackles when we are wearing the Darkfins? Most webbed gloves are quite stiff and cumbersome as a result of the way they are made and the materials used. Unlike other gloves however, Darkfins are superior when it comes to mobility, dexterity, and overall ease of movement. Darkfin gloves are simply excellent when it comes to digit dexterity, the main PLUS being provided the ability to easily open and close your fingers, activating the webbing when needed and being able to paddle normally as usual. Additionally, the cotton flocked surface on the gloves’ palm area provides excellent grip both in and out of the water, allowing surfers to confidently grab waxed and unwaxed areas of their surfboard without fear of slipping.

ALTERNATING THE WEB USE: The tendency for most first time users is to use the Darkfins in full extended mode all the time – with the fingers stretched open to maximize water propulsion. Although a novel idea at first, most beginners will find that this maximum amount of resistance may cause you to tire too quickly! A good method is to paddle as normal – with your fingers cupped together – and then utilize the webbed gloves during paddles where you need maximum propulsion (like when trying to drop in on a mondo wave)  or when you need to burst through larger waves when paddling back out to the line up. Our testers found that the Darkfins were so effective in maximizing water resistance to provide propulsion, that usual sessions were more tiring than before.

AFTER USE: Once the gloves have been used, rinsed, and dried, it is actually much easier to put the gloves on when wet rather than trying to pull them on while dry. Unlike the much maligned dish washing gloves, Darkfins are quite easy to slide on once in the ocean! A good tip is to rinse them out well, let them dry in a cool place, and then loosen the rubber by blowing them up slightly (yes, just like surgical glove balloons!) to let the rubber relax and prevent it from sticking to itself.

THE VERDICT: Hands down, and fingers out, the Darkfin is one of the best webbed gloves that iJS has tested … surpassing our expectations in the categories of flexibility, dexterity, durability, comfort, and overall ease of use and effectiveness. The natural rubber makes the glove feel like a second skin when used in the ocean, a definite separation from other webbed gloves we field tested in past reviews.

The soft nature of the gloves allowed some of our testers to take the gloves off during surf sessions, roll them up, and comfortably stow them inside their surfshort pockets for later use. Although this may not be a must have feature for webbed gloves, it does highlight the ease by which surfers can use or not use the gloves at any given point and time during an active surf session.

iJS recommends Darkfin gloves for any and all surfers looking to increase their paddling training (increased strength training provided by the webbing’s water resistance), for beginners looking to improve their paddling skills and increase their arm and shoulder strength, or for recreational surfers simply looking to catch more waves during sessions. IMPORTANT NOTE: When purchasing your gloves, make sure that you follow the sizing instructions on the Darkfin website in order to have the best usage experience.

The only portion of the Darkfin gloves we did not test was the biodegradability of the natural latex rubber, as our testers were entirely against watching the gloves dissolve opting for extensive surf use instead.

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WIN A SET OF RECYCLED RECORDS surfboard coasters courtesy of OVNY.

We loved these functional and protective coasters made from recycled wetsuits (neoprene), and the safety they provided in protectin our surfboards from stress fractures as well as the unsightly wax residue as a result of board on board contact (ewww!). Win yours today by completing the form below!

We have 3 2 1 more of these OVNY beauties left … and your surfboards are dying for some protection right now!!

See the Recycled Records review posted here and an interview with the man behind OVNY here.

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Enter the Give Away by sending your completed information via the iJS secure form below, just be sure to type “RECYCLED RECORDS Give Away” in the subject box!

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This is where the modern day surf hat comes into the spotlight … used by surfers everywhere as a great source of sun protection, as well as cold weather protection for those die hard surfers who brave frigid waters to get their stoke on. There are distinct lines drawn when it comes to wearing hats in the line up … some absolutely swear by the sun protection and warmth that head wear provides, while others dismiss it as something to be left for the kooks and uncool. No matter on what side you sit on when it comes to the hat versus no hat debate, it is clear that surf hats are here to stay.

A recent entry into the surf hat market are WavzCap, styled as a baseball cap and designed for water wear and surf use. Conceived and developed by Gail Kotowski, an all around water wahine, sea lover,  and surfer, WavzCaps came about as the inevitable answer to the lack of practical head covering in the surf market. Gail expresses the development of WavzCap best on the official website:

I grew up surfing at Nantasket Beach in Hull, Ma. which was fortunate back in the day to have 3 surf shops and several club teams. A 40 year reunion entitled Surf 68 was held in 2008 and many re-connected and started surfing together again. I purchased a new wetsuit and was totally unsatisfied with the head covering selection. Additionally, I noticed that many of my male friends had sparse head coverage and were using a variety of hats for sun protection.

As a quilter, I decided to experiment with a baseball cap made out of neoprene. I subsequently worked with a couple of manufacturers and tweaked my design. Although the primary use is intended for surfers, the cap has its benefits for any water sport as well just to wear in the shower or walking in the rain. The name wavz__cap reflects my love of the sea.

THE TEST: So we took the new WavzCap to the testing grounds in Hawaii’s pounding North Shore winter waves to see it in action. The neoprene make-up of the WavzCap and the sturdy chin strap were the primary test points we wanted to examine, in addition to the overall durability and functionality. Finally, we wanted to see how the WavzCap ranked in terms of fashion and fit with the kanes (males) and wahines (females)  in the line up.

Stay tuned for for the product review and test results coming right up!

Right from the beginning, the feel and texture of the surfboard coasters was quite different from what we had expected. Since these black record-like discs are made from ground up neoprene - picture a cross cutting shredder going to town on your wet suit! – they have a textured feel and weight to them … not smooth and molded like a mouse pad or the rubbery skin of your laptop sleeve.

The coasters are formed using a high heat / compression process, employing an adhesive base to bind the chopped pieces together. Overall the coasters have a heavy feel to them, “masculine and strong” as resident textile expert Kaya puts it. “You can almost see the history of all the wet suits that were recycled back to life, dying to tell stories of surfing days gone by.”

One thing to remember is that the coasters are not molded, so folding one in half like a Frisbee is not something you should do. Much like a pair of thick flip flops (or slippahs in Hawaii), if you bend them enough times, they will start to fold at that spot and eventually break off or flake away. NOTE: We have to admit that this particular aspect was not an officially sanctioned iJS test, but the side tests that resulted in using them as Frisbees after so much prompting acted more like torture tests for the Recycled Records.

Officially though, the surfboard coasters tested quite effectively. We placed the coasters between two longboards initially, a 9’6″ epoxy board and a 9’0″ beater board that we waxed liberally just for this test. Since the two boards were very similar in profile and shape, the coasters needed very little adjustment once we placed them between the two surfboards. With the straps holding the boards together onto the soft rack, we took off for a freeway ride to Oahu’s west coast.

Conversely, another set of boards made their way to the south side, headed to Waikiki for a session of surf and grindz (pronounced food for the non-locals). On this particular trip, we strapped a 5’9″ fish with some heavy rocker on top of a coffee table flat 9’6″ longboard. This setup proved to be the real test for the coasters as their protective job was in question based on the diametrically opposed rocker setup and length of the two boards.

Anyone who has ever placed a heavily rockered shortboard on top of a longboard on a roof rack knows how you immediately get nose and tail squash-action into the bottom of the longboard. AND if you strap the boards down to prevent them from flying off your car, the resulting compression pressure can be bad news for both surfboards. However, the Recycled Records held their end of the deal fairly well, allowing us to elevate the shortboard from the bottom surface of the longboard just enough to avoid any damage.

The first bonus benefit we found with the Recycled Records was that they were perfect anti-cement pads placed under the surfboards while the boards were being waxed. Placed conveniently under the center fin or skeg as well as near the nose, we were able to wax the surfboards without scratching the bottom or fins, even on cement.

AND SO WE SURFED. (This is where no actual product testing happened, just a lot of good surfing that conveniently masqueraded as research). But after the surf sessions, er … research … we were surprised to find some unadvertised uses for the surfboard coasters!

The west side surfers discovered that the coasters worked really well as changing pads (or mats) to stand on while standing on a sand parking lot. Thick enough to lift your feet from the sand and allow you to stay sand-free, the coasters let our staffers keep a good portion of the sand from following them inside the car. The Waikiki surfers used the coasters as nose and tail guards to rest the surfboards on while they slid the surfboards into their cloth socks.

DO THEY WORK THEN? In a nutshell, yes. And then some. Here are the overall observations from the staff:

• Without having to use board bags or socks, the surfboards stay perfectly spaced from each other. [The coasters] provide enough spacing to avoid wax transfers from board to board
• I like the spacing the coasters provide between the boards, it allows air to flow in there and cool the wax rather than melt or get squashed down which requires a surf comb afterwards
• The wax just peels right off the coasters after you use them – easy cleanup!
• Even with board bags, the coasters prevent boards from getting smashed into each other by creating spacing to allow for individual rocker
• You can stack the coasters for better spacing – two in the nose area, one in the tail – you just gotta play with them
• The coasters are thick and strong, with plenty of “shock absorbing” property to protect surfboards
• They coasters prevent more rubber from going back to the land fills, enough said!
• In a pinch, I used the coasters between the roof of my car and my surfboard when I couldn’t find my soft racks …
• Two words people: mouse pad!
• I used them as padding for the tail of the board when I stand em up in the garage, mesh bag and all

We obviously like this new product for the simple fact that it prevents more garbage from getting dumped into the land fills, but it also performs a crucial function in reducing waste in other areas not necessarily attached to the land fills. By using the coasters, we could stop using our beach towels as spacers between the boards thereby reducing the “waxy” build up on the towels themselves. In turn, less laundry loads. We also like that proper spacing and padding prevent unnecessary damage to our surfboards during transit, travel, or storage. Less repair chemicals as well as better longevity for the boards!

Does anyone still make actual records these days? Since the advent of CDs, the vinyl spinner platters were doomed to the kitschy corner of local retro shops, and perhaps dusty milk crate stacks of die-hard disc jockeys. Music may not fade and die, but the respective forms that it takes has left a mountain of debris ranging from eight track tapes to 78 speed records. Similarly, surfing may never fade and disappear into the history books as a fad gone by … but the mountain of rubber and neoprene left behind in the form of wet suits and rash guards could remain in our land fills. Kudos to Michael Briody and OVNY.org for doing something to help mother nature and for creating a useful surf product at the same time.

Making Recycled Records is an ingeniously simple process that benefits the environment as well as surfers – take a large grinder, feed a heap of used wetsuits into it, and put the pieces back together using a lot of heat, pressure, and a little adhesive. The high heat and pressure not only forms the unmistakably recognizable look and feel of OVNY’s Recycled Records, but as an added bonus the baking process also acts as a disinfectant by burning off fabrics and nylon materials. The neoprene itself, a closed cell rubber, repels microbes, oils, and wax by design.

So we sat down with Briody in the heart of Waikiki in Hawaii for a quick chat about all things neoprene and surf:

Thanks for sitting with us. Tell us about your company’s name, OVNY.
It was a nickname I got in college, and it’s one of those words that has no meaning. When I needed a name for the business, [I searched for] what was familiar and the logo, the design, and the name came back … it has a personal meaning and evolved from something familiar. The name Recycled Records is because they’re circular and black,  they look like a record. Music was a big inspiration for me throughout my whole life … I feel like everybody can relate to music, and everybody can relate to [the Recycled Records]. I say peace for your piece (your surfboard)!

So you’re from New Jersey …
I’m originally from Long Island, and then I moved to Jersey full time in 2001 … right after 9/11 went down to take care of [family] . I grew up surfing all my life. My uncle was in the navy and as soon as I was big enough to walk, he had a life vest on me and threw me in the ocean and told me to learn! Get on that board! The best childhood is in the ocean … couldn’t wait until the weather broke to get back into the water, you know?

Tell us about the surf in New Jersey …
Surf in New Jersey? It’s epic to be totally honest with you. We’ve got some really great swells that people are totally shocked about. I was on the North Shore yesterday, and one of our home breaks, Belmar, was the cam of the day on Surfline. That tells you a little something … but we have to wait for the winter. It’s fun, sunny, and warm in the summertime but the waves are small.

What do you see as the mission or vision of OVNY?
My main concern is to keep the neoprene out of the land fills, to help mother nature out so she doesn’t have to break that stuff down, and then invent a product that serves a purpose.  [The recycled records] saves you from a dirty, waxy towel to wash … it saves our boards from stress cracks, it keeps the performance aspect in check. That’s my mission, to keep the land fills free of neoprene and keep surfboards safe during travel.

On the initial website, we couldn’t quite see the details on the Recycled Records as far as construction. Can you tell us about the process of making the “coasters”?
It’s a two step process – there’s a grinder and a mold. We actually use a big grinder, similar to a large paper shredder. You feed in the rubber and it grinds them up into loose flakes and then it’s put back together with heat and pressure and alittle adhesive, like Elmer’s glue based adhesive. After the material is chopped, when it’s rebound and baked in high heat and pressure, it performs like a disinfectant.

[The Process] burns the nylon, that’s why [the records] look so dark. Yeah, basically heat and pressure. The raw nature of the process kills any bacteria holding materials like fabric and nylon. I tried other methods too, initially I thought to cut and glue wetsuits together, but the reasearch process led me to heat, chopping, binding … chopping and heat was the best way to make the neoprene process work. From the get go, I knew cutting and chopping was involved somehow … At the show, we have a full wetsuit going into a meat grinder to give a visual to people as to how it sort of works.

You just takes heaps of wetsuits and throw ‘em in as is?
Yeah, no zippers though … but the disinfecting part, it’s all in the process.

Tell us about the printing process to get the designs on the neoprene.
It’s a regular plastisol ink … to get it to stick to the rubber. Plastic loves plastic, rubber loves rubber, they’re all in the same family… so water-based ink didn’t work on the neoprene. But we outsource all of our printing to a company called “Earth Safe Printing” in New Jersey, and they use all earth friendly processes.

Are you developing other recycled products from the neoprene?

Yeah! I have ideas for some recycled flip flops and personal changing mats for your car.

You’re starting a recycling program to collect used or discarded neoprene involving local surf shops and surf schools as well?

The neoprene recycling program allows surf shops to be proactive in the community and prevent garbage dumps from filling with the rubber. Involving the shops and schools in the recycling program also tells the community that future neoprene items will be recycled rather than disposed of. The shops are keen to it because it’s helping our Earth, it’s helping our environment, it’s keeping our water clean. It’s all relative – the water, the mountains, the Earth … they all coincide.

We’re just trying to do our part to help that cycle. We also joined 1% for the Planet, the program that takes 1% of our sales and directs it towards total environmental protection plan. Besides our immediate hands-on effort with our recycled products, we’re also giving back to other people who are doing good things.

The Recycled Records come in some unique packaging too don’t they?
All the packaging we have is reusable, so that people can keep them and reuse them. The surfboard coasters come in a reusable mesh bag custom made for [OVNY], with a backpack cinch so you can put your sunblock in there, or your booties and gloves … whatever you’re going to use it for. In the end, you just shake the bag and get all the sand out. Waste not want not! Everything needs to be on point with an Earth friendly purpose.

How can people get a hold of your Recycled Records or more information about them?
We sell them on-line and ask your local retailer for them, they’ll be there soon. I have been campaigning local shops, so once our store locator is up on the website, it will be easier for the public to find. We have a couple of stores in the East coast that carry them now, but the website will be the best source for information.

Anything else you want to share?
As a surfer and someone who loves the water so much … someone who appreciates the aesthetic values of life, I took it upon myself to find a way to relieve the burden of recycling wetsuits. Doing something for a fellow surfer, you know?  I feel that if I help one surfer out, that’s cool. But if I help out the whole [surf] community, it’s even better!

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