Blog

Sports clothes are designed to be comfortable. Like, when you come back from work you take your fancy business suit off and just put on a track suit. In a split second the freedom runs thru your veins. Your body has just been liberated and you can now enjoy the rest of the day on the sofa watching some sports channel. It’s good that there’s no law about wearing a track suit and actually doing sports. Let the guys on TV run around and sweat. You can feel Olympic just by lying on the sofa.

Some sports clothes are not just comfortable but also incredibly sexy. We all agree that girls from beach volleyball team look super cool in their sportswear. However, there are sports clothes that don’t look all that chic. If that same volleyball girl wears a full scuba diving outfit she looks… well, yeah.

Sorry to break your heart, but when it comes to good looks, kayaking equipment is more on the scuba diving part of the scale. You will not look elegant wearing all that neoprene. Luckily everyone else will look the same. And luckily you won’t have to buy any of that stuff. You will get it here at our sports center. Although there are still a few things you need to bring with you.

In this blog we will explain in detail

• • list of the things you need to bring with you
  • list of the equipment you will get at our sports center
  • list of the things you can take if you wish or have to
  • list of the things that you don’t need
  • what you should bring with you in case of bad weather

On the day of your kayak course just put on whatever clothes and shoes you feel comfortable in. During your kayak course you will leave your clothes, shoes and towels in our bus to make sure they stay dry. And don’t worry about the shoes. For kayaking we will give you neoprene shoes.

There’s just 4 things you need to bring with you if you booked kayak course.

• • • swimsuits/bikini

You will wear your swim suits under the neoprene. You can also wear shorts, however, they need to be tight enough to fit under the neoprene. If you forgot your swimsuits, that’s fine. You might as well wear underwear just make sure it’s synthetic and not cotton. Cotton gets cold when it’s wet.

• • • towel

You will need a towel because you will be wet after the kayak course. The sizes and colours are completely up to you.

• • • extra pair of underwear

When you finish your kayak course your swim suits will be wet and you will need something to change. You can also have extra swim suits instead of underwear.

• • • ponytail elastics for long hair

Think about a beautiful mermaid under the sea. Her hair gently floating in the water making her face appear even more beautiful, soft and delicate. Whenever she turns her head her hair follow her perfectly.

Well, I don’t know how mermaids manage to do it, but it’s a scientific fact that normal humans are not born with those powers. So, if your kayak will flip and you will find yourself under the water, strands of your hair will be all over your face. To avoid this unpleasant experience pull your hair away from the face and secure them at the back of your head with elastic.

Just put all those things in a bag. You will leave that bag in our van.

Your kayak course will start at our sports center in Bovec. In our gear room your kayak instructor will give you all the equipment you need for safety and comfort. He will also show you how to handle the equipment.

• • • neoprene suit/long john

It’s a 3 mm thick sleeveless suit meant to protect your body and legs from cold water.

• • • helmet

We all know what helmets are for. And we all hate wearing them. Still, kayaking is one of the sports activities that might crack your head. And if you plan to continue your head cracking lifestyle for the next few decades you must wear a helmet. Simple as that.

• • • spray skirt

When it comes to awkward equipment, spray skirt wins them all. If you don’t know what is spray skirt, no worries – most of the people don’t. I couldn’t find any better definition, so I’m just gonna steal it from Wikipedia. According to Wiki spray skirt, also known as a spray deck, is a flexible waterproof cover for a boat with holes for the passengers’ waists. Spray decks are used to prevent water from entering the boat while allowing passengers to paddle or row.

In reality spray skirt looks like a skirt (right, Einstein!) that resembles an ugly black neoprene ballet tutu. But, it’s gonna keep all that water from flooding your boat. So yes, you need it.

• • • neoprene shoes

For kayak course don’t need any special shoes or socks. You will wear neoprene shoes on barefoot.

• • • life jacket

Kayaks have this nasty habit of flipping. They just love to turn around. So when it comes to kayaking life jacket is your best buddy. It will help you float on the river also if you decide to take a jump from one of the rocks you will meet along the way.

• • • splash jacket

It’s optional, but we recommend you take it for protection from cold water and sun.

• • • vision glasses

We recommend you use contact lenses. However, if contacts are not an option and you cannot go without glasses, then of course bring them with you. Use a stripe because you don’t want to lose or break them.

• • • contact lenses

From our experiences it’s better if you use contacts than glasses when joining a kayak course.

• • • medicine

Our guides take first aid kit on the Soča river with them for the case of emergency. But if you need special medicine you can of course take it with you. Your guide will have it in his waterproof box. But please consult with our office staff about any medical condition that might affect your kayak course.

• • • sunscreen

In the warm summer months the sun gets strong and there’s not much shade on the Soča river. Therefore, it might be smart if you put some sunscreen on your face to protect your skin from UV rays. At our sports center you will be given an option to take splash jacket. It’s not just to protect you from cold water but also from strong sun. So if your skin is pale take splash jacket as well.

• • • sports camera

Your guide will have his GoPro camera on the Soča river and he will take photos and videos of every day of your kayak course. All the photos and videos will be send on your email within 24 hours for free. You can still take your camera with you, but it has to be waterproof and you must have helmet mount. Selfie sticks, hand mounts or helmet stripes are not allowed for safety reasons.

• • • water

Soča river is awesome because of its colours and because you can still drink its waters. To keep it that way, we avoid taking any extra plastic that might end up as garbage polluting it.

• • • sunglasses

If there are medical reasons for taking sunglasses you can take them. Otherwise, we don’t recommend taking anything that you might lose.

• • • mobile phone

There are several reasons for not taking your mobile phone with you. Neoprene suits and life jackets are without pockets so there’s nowhere to keep it safe. You can’t hold it in your hand because you need to paddle. We take care of the photos and there’s no WiFi on the river anyway. Besides, you might break it or lose it.

• • • food

Kayak course takes 3 hours on the river. Together with driving to the starting point and back, changing from your clothes to the equipment and safety talk it takes about 4 hours. Just have a good breakfast before you come and you will survive.

Slovenia is one of the countries where weather changes a lot. That’s why our weather forecasters have better salaries than the ones on the Canary Islands. Their weather never changes, so I don’t understand why the weather man is even there. “It’s gonna be hot and sunny for the next 5.478 days. See you in 2033! Thanks for watching.”

So, if the weather report for the days of your kayak course looks a bit disorganized, hit the refresh button and hope for a different result. If you get the same result, wear a long sleeve synthetic shirt under your neoprene suit. It will help keeping you warm. But, it has to be synthetic. Cotton on the contrary is gonna make you feel even colder.

So, let’s sum it all up before you hit that lovely “book now” button. There are only 4 things you really need for kayak course

• swimsuit / bikini
• towel
• extra underwear
• ponytail elastics if you have long hair

If perhaps we forgot to list something you might need or wish to bring anyway, just mention it in the “special notes” section of the booking form and we’ll let you know if it’s possible.