Do you find it a bit nippy in the colder months, striding up and down the foreshore?? Hanging around for start sequences?? Especially on the breezy days?

I must admit, in my first winter IOM series, it got seriously cold, and I got seriously cold… then the enjoyment declined. The way to deal with this was shown to me by a great friend at Chipstead RSC. … A battery heated gilet….

I was incredulous at first… but, honestly, it was a total revelation. Amazing. For a start, the battery lasts about four hours, so you get protection for just the right amount of time to cover a radio sailing session.

Although I call it a gilet, you wear it under your top layers, so you want to read all the customer reviews about garment sizing (important). I wear mine on top of a cotton T-shirt, but under everything else.

If you look on Amazon there are simply loads of designs to choose from. They all seem to have heated panels in different places and I especially wanted heated lower back panels. You just choose which suits you best. I think on mine, additionally the user can also select back/front/both for heating zones… and high/medium/low heat as well. Great!

The second revelation was the price. On Amazon it was about £50. Ridiculous! The rechargeable (on USB cable) battery, which is about the size of an iPhone, costs £20 extra. You just pop it in a pocket inside the gilet.

Blimey that’s less than a set of thermals from Musto or Rooster. I’m in the second winter now and it’s still working! I’m wondering about adding a second battery for longer days.

LT at Datchet is also trialling one this winter. Results are good, I believe. I’m surprised that RW (our “Mr Style”) hasn’t got one yet.

Great Christmas present and you get more races in!

These products come and go on Amazon, but this was the search term I used….

Vapesoon Heated Vest Heating Jacket with 3 Adjustable Temperature Electric USB Rechargeable Winter Thermal Vest Warm for Outdoor Camping Riding Hiking (Battery Pack Not Included)