Reliable clothing for motorboaters in every layer
On a boat, layers are the answer
A summer day of motorboating often starts on the jetty in warm weather: you carry the bags aboard, take off the cover, cast off and refuel. Once the boat gets up on the plane, the wind chill cools you and a summer day can feel almost like autumn. At the helm you sit or stand still, and a passenger in the bow or on the back seat moves even less. The trip back in the evening is often chillier than the trip out, and in spring and autumn the cold comes from both the air and the water.
That's why this page brings together a ready-made kit that works: one go-to garment for each layer. With these clothes you'll get it right, whether you're taking an open boat from the cottage to an island or spending the whole weekend on a cabin cruiser. You don't need to compare dozens of options or guess whether the garments work together. Here is a set in which each layer is designed to work with the next.
One go-to garment for each layer
The Zero Layer moves sweat away from your skin, the Base Layer evens out warmth in a cool breeze, the Mid Layer adds insulation for time at the helm and the Shell Layer protects you from wind, spray and sudden showers. Merino and Airbase take care of moisture and warmth, so you can focus on the boating and the views.
Four layers, one set that works
Layering is the answer to dressing for motorboating. We chose one go-to garment for each layer that works at both extremes of a day on the boat: in cool wind chill and bad weather, and in warm moments on the jetty. Together, they make up the Svala AIR System™: layers that each do their own job. You don't always need every layer. On a warm day a light layer is enough, and for a cool wind, a long run or rain you bring them all.
Zero Layer – Next-to-skin performance
On the water, the weather can change without warning: first the sun is out and a moment later a storm blows in. You can work up a sweat loading the boat and doing jobs on the jetty before the engine is even running.
A versatile Airbase mesh set that moves moisture away from your skin is a safe choice for boaters. The loops of the 120 g/m² 3D mesh knit breathe and trap air, forming a thin layer next to your skin: it cools you when you're moving and holds in warmth when you're still. Airbase is 100% polypropylene, which absorbs no moisture at all but moves sweat away from your skin to the next layer.
Airbase is thin and stretchy, so it fits under your boating gear without restricting movement. The silver-ion treatment keeps the set fresh, so you can go boating for several days in the same garment, simply airing it in between.
Men's Original Airbase 120 mesh set
Women's Original Airbase 120 mesh set
“Airbase always comes along, even out on a chilly sea.”
Base Layer – Temperature regulation
In an open boat, the chop throws spray in your face, down your collar and into your lap, and damp clothing cools quickly in the wind. The cold usually creeps into your thighs and chest first, and on the way back as the sun goes down you feel it all over.
Over Airbase goes a merino layer. Merino regulates temperature in both directions, so it doesn't feel stifling when you're moving and keeps you from getting cold when the wind cools you underway. Merino also insulates when it's damp from sweat or spray, which is crucial on the water, where the weather changes quickly.
Merino Extreme's double-layer construction combines the insulation of merino wool with the moisture transport of a technical material, so it keeps you warm while still breathing, and you don't feel stifled.
Men's Merino Extreme 200 base layer set
Women's Merino Extreme 200 base layer set
Mid Layer – Thermal insulation
When the wind picks up or the day turns to evening, a temperature-regulating layer isn't always enough. Over the merino goes an insulating Mid Layer that keeps the warmth in when you switch between busy jobs and sitting still. If you spend the night on a cabin cruiser, the morning is often damp and cool, and you need extra insulation. That's when you need one more layer over the merino set, under your boating jacket.
The terry structure of the Nordic Terry Wool knit works especially well here. It has a smooth outer face and looped yarn on the inside. The loops trap air and move moisture away from your skin, so the layer insulates and keeps you warm even when you sit still for a long time, and doesn't turn clammy in damp sea air. On a boat this matters, because moisture comes both from your skin and from the air around you.
On a calm summer evening, the wool layer can also be your outermost layer on an island or the aft deck, as it breathes better than a shell.
Men's Nordic Terry Wool 400 zip-neck mid-layer set
Women's Nordic Terry Wool 400 mid-layer jacket
Shell Layer – Weather protection
In an open boat, the outermost layer takes the wind chill, spray and showers. The shell has to block the wind and keep moisture out, but it also has to breathe. Choose a shell loose enough for Airbase, Merino Extreme and, if needed, a Mid Layer to fit comfortably underneath, leaving insulating air between the layers.
Boaters solve the shell question in different ways. Some use a dedicated boating or flotation jacket, others a good-quality shell jacket over their layers. In the wheelhouse of a cabin cruiser you don't need a shell while underway, but on deck, on the jetty and on the island it's basic kit.
Svala's own Shell Layer, the Ventile 200, is a membrane-free jacket made from very tightly woven long-staple cotton. When it gets wet, the fibres swell and the weave tightens, so the fabric repels light rain and showers and breathes without a membrane. It protects you from the wind, so it works as a shell in an open boat in calm, dry weather, as well as on the jetty, on the island and on the aft deck. In heavy chop with constant spray and in heavy rain, a waterproof boating jacket or flotation suit is more practical.
Men's Ventile 200 jacket
Women's Ventile 200 jacket
You do not need everything at once – start here
The system works best when you put on layers according to the wind and the length of your day on the water, but you don't need to buy everything at once or replace your boating gear. AIR System™ also works with the clothes you already have. If you're starting from scratch, start with the layers next to your skin: they're the most important part of the whole system. The surest foundation for boaters is Airbase mesh knit next to your skin with merino over it. On top of these, add a warming Mid Layer and a shell to suit the weather.
If you already have one layer sorted, just get what's missing:
- Already have a merino wool base layer? Complete it with Airbase: wear the mesh layer next to your skin under the merino, so you stay dry when you're moving and don't get cold when you're sitting still.
- Next-to-skin and warming layers sorted? For cool mornings and evenings, add the Nordic Terry Wool 400 mid-layer set, which you can keep on while you potter about on board.
- Already have a light rain jacket or boating jacket? There's no need to replace it. Make sure it breathes and that the other layers fit loosely underneath.
This way, you can build a system that works at your own pace. Although we put these layers together for motorboating, they won't just sit in your wardrobe: the same layers work for other time on the water and outdoors too, and change seasons with you.
Four layers, one effective system
Layer: Zero Layer - next-to-skin performance
