I have done the EC now twice. Finished the first year. Crashed and burned the 2nd. For those first two years I went with foul weather gear, two piece dry pants & jacket, and even fishing waders. Both years I started the race by wading into the water. The waders worked for keeping me dry but didn’t breath well. I quickly sweated them up. On the 2nd start the dry pants turned out to be worthless and I was immediately wet. Starting the EC wet is never fun so I have been on the hunt for a quality drysuit. I have done some research, read old WaterTribe forum posts, & monitored ebay. I finally got serious about a month ago and bought a Kokatat T3 large semi-dry suit new. The material reminded me of the waders. The fit was just a hair too big as well. The most annoying part being a loose neoprene neck gasket. I probably could have lived with the T3 material but the size wasn’t going to work. I returned the drysuit and since they didn’t have a medium I went back on the search. About a week later this Kokatat military issue drysuit went up for sale on ebay. It was a medium which was a slight gamble because I didn’t know if it really fit. I made my first bid with 15 sec left and won.
The big features for me are the color and the six cargo pockets. Olive green makes it good for many outdoor activities. Especially duck hunting. The pockets are awesome.There are one on each upper arm and two on each leg. In my opinion a feature lacking in the retail Kokatat drysuit line. I am also very happy with the quality and condition of the suit. I had time to try it on today but not wet test it. The gaskets seem to be ok but I may send it out to have everything checked by a shop or the manufacture. Time will tell. As far as the fit goes…….. Once its on, it seems perfect. Getting it on is a little bit of work. I can now tell you that 5’11” is the top of the range for a Kokatat medium. Don’t want to be over 175 either. lol
UPDATE: After watching this video, http://www.drysuit-repair.com/wp/how-to-inspect-gaskets/, I have mailed mine to Amigos for inspection and possibly repair. I have a feeling that after the repair bill the savings on a used drysuit is not that great. (Still very happy with the color and cargo pockets)