When it comes to surfing, very few in the world have faced the whole gamut of experiences the sport has to offer. Kelly Slater is unquestionably high up on that list of few surfers. Some consider him the GOAT of surfing, while others have different choices. But with Slater’s experience of more than 3 decades, and with all his achievements, it would be difficult to argue if there is a better candidate than him with a wide array of knowledge on the ins and outs of surfing.

This is why WIRED recently roped him in for an interview to answer questions about surfing from Twitter. A small snippet from that interview was also shared on Twitter by WIRED’s official handle. In it, Slater tackles a particularly technical question about “wetsuits”. Here’s what he said.

Kelly Slater shares his technical knowledge about wetsuits

“How do wetsuits work? Does your whole body stay dry or what? Does it get a little bit wet? I need a scientist”, was one of the fan questions directed at Slater. Wetsuits are one of the common equipment-cum-garment that long-time surfers must have to put on. It provides thermal protection even in extremely chilly waters. But here’s what Slater replied.

He said, “Basically it just keeps the water between the wetsuit and your body warm… or you can just pee in it and that makes you warm”. The latter part seems like an easier hack and a good enough alternative option. While Slater didn’t verify how much of it he truly meant, the factual basis here is that urine is generally warm and might help regulate the body heat in extremely cold and freezing waters.

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However, certain factions of surfers have also dismissed the notion that urinating might help keep the body warm. This is because once the heat escapes from urine, the body will rapidly get cold after remaining warm for a while. This might also cause hypothermia. But Slater went into a little bit further detailing the advantages of wetsuits.

Gloves, Helmets, and many more

He said, “You can actually last a really long time. The wetsuits are really good now and the materials are good”, praising the improvement in the quality of wetsuits. Slater also revealed that the extent of cold water in which people can surf now is astonishing. People regularly surf now in wintertime in almost freezing waters.

Besides functional wetsuits, Slater also weighed in on webbed gloves and uncool helmets among others in the video. On the work front, Kelly Slater has announced he will compete at the Paris Olympics 2024. But that will be his last, after which he will retire.

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