The PaddlerUK magazine March 2015 issue 1 | Page 26

ThePaddlerUK 26

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Yak Riwaka dry top
Chinook Dry Trousers
Hallertau PFD
http://www.crewsaver.co.uk/YAK
Phil Carr on Unsponsored

Yak are the paddling side of the Crewsaver company. In the past Yak
have catered for the middle to lower end of the market with some
fantastic kit for centre and club use. Although functional and
hardwearing they didn’t have the same appeal as some of the more
well known brands. Over the last few months I have been testing a few
pieces of Yak gear including the Riwaka dry top, Chinook dry trousers
and Hallertau PFD.
Yak Riwaka dry top

The Yak Riwaka in a very loud green has arrived at
Unsponsored HQ. Now this is the third bit of gear
from Yak that has landed here at the HQ in as many
weeks and once again Yak have made a really good
impression (I need to find out who is designing this
stuff) – here’s why.
The Riwaka is a fully featured dry top that
appears to be made out of a fabric that
should stand the test of time. It feels tough
without being too rigid. The cut has been
designed for paddling and has clearly
been tailored well. I have the large size
and it fits me without any form of
restriction or discomfort whilst at the
same time it doesn’t have an excess
amount of material flapping around.
Darts in the rear of the jacket allow greater
freedom of movement.They also hide some
reflective detailing. I am sure that it has some
performance advantage but I would prefer
them not to be included within the design.
The fabric is both waterproof and
breathable as you would expect in a dry
top that has a RRP of £200 (can be found
for less online).There has been some careful
consideration given to how the jacket is
pieced together and where/how the separate
elements come together. The taping within the
jacket looks good and has been well executed.

Now the colour won’t be everyone’s cup of tea
but I do really like it. I have several bits of gear in
GREEN but this has to be one of the brightest. The
contrasting blue logos and detail works well and
matches the new Yak PFD perfectly (as you would
expect).
The top comes with both latex neck and wrist seals
with additional adjustable wrist seals and a neoprene
neck seal. The neck seal is pretty damn good. It’s
formed by a cone and then joined to an additional
band of neoprene at the top. The seal on my 15.5”
neck is snug but comfortable and creates a really
good seal. It’s a small design feature that I really like.

w

01642 520234
01642 520234

The waist has the usual
Velcro adjustment and
deep inner tunnel.
Matching it up with a
spray deck is very
straight forward and
initial impressions of the
seal created is good.
The Riwaka has a
couple of small pockets,
one on the chest and
another on the arm.
Useful for storage gear
that is OK to get wet.
My car keys in an
Aloksak dry pouch
fitted nicely inside each
of the pockets.
So initial impressions
are very good.The fit
and feel of the dry top
really puts it up there
with some of the best
offerings out there. A
couple of nice little
touches help it stand out.
After a few months of very regular use the Riwaka is
still as bright as ever and still performing well. Even
after a couple of nasty portages late last year, the
fabric is still holding up really well and the DWR
treatment is still in place.

Yak Chinook Dry Trousers

The Chinooks come in a very subtle yet practical grey
colour. – this is the only colour option. Both the outer
waist and outer ankle seals have Velcro adjustment.
whilst the Knees and bum are re-enforced with a 500d
Cordura type material.
The inner waist band is
taller than the outer and
includes a deep elastic
section with a series of
silicon rubber strips, that
should help keep
everything in place. This
twin waist arrangement
should allow the
Chinook pants to be
paired with any twin
waist dry top to create a
pretty good two piece
system. I have used the
Chinooks with Yak’s
Riwaka and Sweet’s
Supernova dry tops
without out any issue. In
fact the seal between
tops and the Chinooks
was very impressive
even whilst swimming.