Wintermission: Flex Is Hands Down The Most Desirable Asset In A Wetsuit

O’Neill’s elastic skin was unanimously the lightest and most flexible suit in our assortment, it just might have been the suit with the highest performance factor we’d ever wrapped our salty mitts around.

Jamming the HyperFreak into our bulging travel bag at the airport was a breeze. It scrunched nicely into any remaining space left by the nine other suits bundled inside.

Mr Crews was first to unravel it on the other side. The deserted back beach we’d visited the day before now had a more pronounced wind running across it, and Mitch took took the opportunity to seek out any above the lip opportunities.

Mr Crews spins in a high performance skin.

“I know for sure I’ve never worn a wetsuit with this material,” said Mitch, effortlessly extending the length of the suit’s arm two-fold. “I’m excited for the fact that it’s extremely stretchy.”

The morning was ugly, the wind merciless. However, Mitch was full of beans, getting busy while his comrades – disenchanted with the ruffled faces – wore frowns and prematurely returned to shore. 

During his relatively short stint in O’Neill, Crewsey was his most productive.

It mightn’t hold up in arctic conditions, but who really wants to surf if it’s that cold anyway?

Benny Reed, our musically inclined wildcard, wore the suit on the very last session of the trip. It was sunny and punchy, warmer than the other days. 

During that session, his consistency for ‘makes’ also notably improved. He popped his array of skate-inspired big-spins, shove-its and tail slides, riding out of a handful before joining the rest of the crew in front of an esky and burning driftwood.

You can shop O’Neill’s HyperFreak 3/2 here, or see more suits from our Tasmanian field study here.