Racing Line for Christmas please

by Helen Hopcroft on 9 Nov 2007 Christmas is fast approaching and unless you want the usual socks and jocks it’s time to start dropping hints. But if you drop a hint you need to be explicit about it, there’s no point kicking off a month long family guessing game that results in the ‘wrong’ present. We suggest that you load Racing Line’s online marine clothing store webpage onto your partner’s desktop and leave their brochures lying around. Make sure that the brochures are somewhere that they won’t be missed like in the washing machine or on the fridge: it’s the only guarantee of the perfect Christmas pressie.

Racing Line started in 1996 and specialises in comfortable technical clothing for marine sports. Although owner Scott Birdsall originally concentrated on the boating market he now offers many products for powerboaters and paddlers. In fact if you love being on the water there’s a good chance that Racing Line has something that will make your day.

And it’s not just for the guys: Racing Line’s online store has a range of marine gear for women which include both technical clothing and tailored items for once you get back to the club.

When he started his company Birdsall decided that he wanted to operate the business in line with certain key principles. The first was that he would only sell quality gear that he knew worked. The second was that he would support Australian manufacturing whenever possible. And the third was that he wanted to sell clothing that is appropriate for Australian conditions, particularly in relation to protection from the sun.

To Birdsall’s credit after over ten years in the technical clothing market he has stuck to his guns and still produces well made, well designed gear with a commitment to manufacturing here that has become unusual in the clothing industry.

One of his best sellers is Racing Line’s Australian made Crescendo shirt. Rated to 50+ SPF with long sleeves and lycra cuffs for practicality and comfort, the Microtex shirt is designed to wick moisture away from the body, reduce odours and block ultra violet rays. It’s perfect for a hot day on the water and a sensible choice in terms of skin protection. Fortunately they also look good.

Then there are the locally made 100% cotton Avalon shorts which are good for on the boat and just as good for après. The long line shorts are designed to be comfortable, look smart and last well.

‘They’ve got good styling, a good cut and they’re just nice to wear’ commented Birdsall.

Racing Line’s long sleeve UV protection shirts, or ‘rashies’ as they are commonly known, have become something of an icon on Australian waters. The fitted lycra shirts have 50+ UV protection and raglan sleeves for ease of movement (a raglan sleeve extends to the neck in one piece which removes the need for an underarm seam.) A high neck protects against sun damage and they’re flat lock stitched for comfort.
Not surprisingly rashies have become very popular with paddlers. The high degree of repetitive movement associated with paddling means that paddlers are always on the look out for comfortable clothing that doesn’t chafe: designs that don’t have seams in the groin or underarm region and which use comfortable flattened seams in other areas.

‘White is our predominant colour because it’s the coolest colour out on the water. We’ve had rash shirts that people are still wearing that are five or six years old. They’re wearing them all the time so the quality of the fabric and manufacture is really right up there with anything that you’re going to be getting anywhere.’

‘Racing Line is currently sponsoring two of Austalia’s top paddlers: Ken Wallace and David Smith. Wallace has just qualified his K1 for the Beijing Olympics and Smith his K4. Feedback from the two men has been used to develop more Racing Line products for paddlers.
We’ve created some shorts designed for paddling which have a lycra seat and use Microtex in the top of them for better breathing and wickability. There is no centre seam so no chafing, paddlers do a lot of twisting in the seat and it can rub them raw, especially for the marathon paddlers where every race is 20km.’

One of the new items that Racing Line has introduced is a Microtex singlet specifically designed for paddlers.

‘Even Kenny put it on and said this is the best singlet I’ve ever paddled in’ said Birdsall with a smile.


If you’re looking for a good pair of boat shoes for Christmas then you can’t go past Racing Line’s TBS boat shoes. Racing Line announced the Australian release of the shoes at the 2007 Sanctuary Boat Show and Birdsall said that he has been surprised by how quickly stocks have been snapped up. We asked him why he thought that the shoes had been so popular.

‘Just the style, the style and the comfort level. They’re just a great boat shoe with a good grip, very comfortable and they’ve got that real pizzazz in style. They’re great on the boat but also après. You just know when you put them on. You go- yep, these are good, these are worth the money.’

The shoes are designed to be lightweight, stylish and comfortable and are an ideal crossover shoe for boat, club and city.

He is currently retailing the shoes in a number of locations including Digby’s in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast and Valentino’s in Bowral.

Contact details;
Address : 36 Chegwyn St
City : Botany
State : NSW
Postcode : 2019
Country : Australia
Phone : 02 9540 1491
Fax : 02 9540 1496
Email : sales@racingline.com.au

http://www.racingline.com.au