I've been watching as the EPIRBs keep getting more sophisticated and
smaller. Now I see "personal" EPIRBs offered. These are small enough to
wear on your life vest. Since I kayak and sail small boats in the waters
off Oahu, I was thinking it might not be a bad idea to get one. Does anyone
have any experience with them?


kula

Kula wrote:
I've been watching as the EPIRBs keep getting more sophisticated and
smaller. Now I see "personal" EPIRBs offered. These are small enough to
wear on your life vest. Since I kayak and sail small boats in the waters
off Oahu, I was thinking it might not be a bad idea to get one. Does anyone
have any experience with them?


kula



I don't have experience with them but I've looked into buying one for
kayaking and carrying with my when I fly. I am also a private pilot.
My understanding is that EPIRBs aren't acted upon immediately because of
the numerous false alarms. People turning them on by accident, hard
landings, etc. If they have a persistant signal they start
investigating. In the best case it is unlikely you will have any
response for a few hours, often times much longer.

What I opted for in the end was to try and get immediate help. I bought
a Yaesu VXA-700 (now VXA-710) dual band radio. The radio covers
aviation and 2m HAM bands. The radio is submersible to 3ft. I keep it
dry but it is nice to know if it takes a dunk it will be okay. The
aviation band is good because all commercial and most GA aircraft
monitor 121.5 for emergencies. It is likely that you will be able to
reach an aircraft almost immediately and they can start getting help to
you right away. Using the 2m Ham band only requires that you pass a 35
question multiple choice test that you can study for in a few days/weeks
depending upon your knowledge. What is good about this is you can use
if for radio communication between friends on kayaks or shore, etc. You
may have coverage where there is no cell service. Repeaters are often
placed on mountain tops to give great range. I regularly hit repeaters
over 50 miles away. For real old school, before cell phones, some
repeaters have auto-patch and you can call a telephone using your radio.
It is still simplex but you could call your spouse's cell phone and
say, "I just capsized and lost my kayac. I'm floating out here, would
you make sure somebody comes looking for me." My wife would laugh, say
good luck, and go shopping. If you have a GPS for finding fishing
spots, etc, you can give your exact location. Here are repeaters near
you:
http://www.qsl.net/earc/repeaters.html There may be more.

Here is what I carry in/on my vest when kayaking/boating. Stuff I just
want to have if everything goes to hell and I find myself floating with
nothing else:

Storm Whistle: http://www.stormwhistles.com/storminfo.html
Signal Mirror: http://www.bestglide.com/Star_Flash_Info.html
2 Emergency Water: http://www.aaoobfoods.com/images/Mayday/WA44.jpg
sunscreen, any small tube.

Always handy in a small bag a

My VXA-700 radio
Bottle of water
fishing line and small hooks
knife
hat

Then there is everything else I just throw in that day. What do others
carry? I've never really analyzed what I do.