Ah, the old pfd debate! I'm afraid that I have to disagree with all the rest
of you. Pfd's cannot be compared to automobile seatbelts or motorcycle helmets.
Both the seatbelts and motorcycle helmets have been proven to reduce the
severity of injuries and save lives. There is no such evidence regarding pfd's
in sea kayaks (important point here, I am talking about sea kayaking).
The Coast Guard's statistics simply reflect the percentages of people who
participate in recreational boating that do and do not wear lifejackets. If you
look at it from a different perspective, like whitewater boating statistics,
you will see that the overwhelming majority of whitewater boating fatalities
were in fact wearing pfd's! Are we then to assume that when participating in
whitewater boating one will be safer without a pfd on? I mean, just look at the
statistics! Very few whitewater fatalities were found without a pfd on! Of
course not! Most people who do whitewater boating always wear a pfd, so it is
only natural that the majority of fatalities associated with that activity will
have on pfd's.
I'll bet that every person reading this has gone out boating, fishing,
sightseeing, whatever, any number of times while not wearing a life jacket. The
simple fact of the matter is that probably at least 85% of those people who
enjoy recreational boating are not wearing a lifejacket. So once again it is
only natural that the fatalities should reflect that. What I find much more
interesting is that 15% of the fatalities were in fact wearing their
lifejackets and they died anyway.
If you look a little deeper into the issue then it becomes obvious that
experience, or rather lack thereof, plays a much greater roll in the fatalities
then does equipment. The overwhelming majority of what are classified as sea
kayaking fatalities are associated with people who have very little, if any at
all, training or experience. These are precisely the kinds of people who will
be inclined to paddle a rec boat and attempt to stand up in it, or paddle solo
into hazardous conditions. These people are an accident looking for a place to
happen and the fact that they finally got their wish while in a sea kayak is
more coincident then any statement about the dangers of the sport. While these
are the people who would most benefit from wearing a pfd, they are also,
unfortunately, the one's who are least likely to do so.
As for making the wearing of a pfd in a sea kayak a law --- I really hope
not. If you really want to save lives then I believe mandatory instruction and
certification would probably be much more effective, even though I am against
that as well. When reviewing the sea kayaking related fatalities, once you
discard the novices, then you see that what's left is a pretty even split
between those who are found with their pfd's on, and those who are found to be
not wearing one. So like I said at the beginning, I can see no actual evidence
to suggest that pfd's are particularly effective as a safety device in your
typical sea kayaking scenario. I am not trying to say that they do not have
their place, but I see them to be no more or less important then any other
piece of rescue and safety gear. Any piece of safety and rescue gear can save a
life in the right scenario. But I believe it should be left up to the
individual to choose how and when to apply it.

Scott
So.Cal.