FASHION : Surfers Ride the Waves in Style

While everybody else wears neon to the beach this summer, most pro surfers say the look is too mainstream for their taste. They only allow for it in contests, where it gives them greater visibility than the classic, all-black suits they still prefer.

That explains why there were so many flourescent-tipped wet suits at the Op Pro Surfing Championship at Huntington Beach last week.

As for the shape of the suits, they were anything but the traditional long-john style with full-length sleeves and legs that hamper mobility. Those who opted for wet suits at all chose the lightest-weight versions, with knee-length legs and short sleeves, or no sleeves.

A number of the pros have given up wet suits altogether, at least for the hot summer months. They competed wearing shorts and tops made of a Lycra-and-Neoprene blend, in styles that could pass for cyclists’ wear.

Ocean Pacific’s Hydro-Light label is one version of the look. The clothes hug the body so well, surfers say wearing them is like swimming naked.

Along with fluorescent color, colored zinc oxide sun block for the nose is on the out list this summer.

But the biggest fashion error of them all, says Todd Chesser, a pro surfer from Hawaii, is not peeling your wet suit off as soon as you get out of the water. “Wearing it too long is like coming to the beach in your business suit,” he laughs. “It just isn’t done.”