There's all sorts of cool stuff at DEMA and one of the products that was hard to miss were the Fluro Hood Day-Glo orange, fluorescent and reflective hoods! They were so bright that you practically needed to put on sunglasses when you walked by the booth. But that's exactly the point.
Designed by a Kiwi diver, the purpose of these hoods is to be seen. The sea is a big place and even modest waves can make a surfacing diver practically invisible. Everyone is careful, but each year there are far too many reports of divers who were left behind by their boat. No one leaves anyone behind on purpose, but things happen. And anyone who's ever dived in the ocean knows that even the slightest current may make swimming to a boat impossible.
The Fluro Hoods make a diver dramatically more visible. They are made of standard neoprene inside and day-glow orange and yellow outside. On top of the head is a strip of reflective material. All seams are glued and blind-stitched. The hoods come as classic wetsuit hoods (US$59.95), 5mm dry/semi-dry hoods (US$59.95), and 2mm beanies (US$29.95). All come in small, medium, large and x-large.
We had a chance to test the hood during a recent dive trip at Roatan, Honduras. While at 78-80 degrees the water was hardly cold, wearing the Fluro Hood beanie felt good during our fairly long dives. The 5-panel design made for an excellent fit with zero air-trapping. Visibility varied from great to pretty mediocre for a Caribbean location, and here the very bright hood came in handy even underwater. It was almost impossible to lose a buddy wearing the Fluro Hood. It's like following someone who wears those bright-yellow fins.
Go get a Fluro Hood!
Hopefully you never find yourself lost at sea. But if you do, anything that makes you more visible can safe your life.
So where can you get Fluro Hood products? There are retailers that stock Fluro Hood products but you can also buy directly from their website: www.flurohood.com.
