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Critical kayak gear for safety
I'm a recent convert to the occassionally wet world of kayaking. I have
practised wet exits and self rescues, wear a PDF and always carry a paddle float and bail pump. While most of my rough water experience has been coastal and always accompanied by at least one other more experienced paddler I would like to equip myself with additional protection for the days I might venture solo. In the Spring I intend to continue to work on my non existent (as yet) roll and other braces. Here is my thought: a reliable VHF radio, an inexpensive GPS and finally a usable dry suit. I like to paddle mostly the North shore of MA where the water temperature even in summer never gets better than 60. (I think) I own a farmer john 3mm wet suit but not sure if this is enough. Currently I'm looking at a ICOM IC-MIV VHF radio and a Palm dry suit. Anyone out there want to weigh in on my choices or suggest other alternatives. Are the built in neoprene socks advisable? I do insist on a pee zipper being of the prostate challenged generation. Thanks, Gene |
I would suggest rearranging the order of your list.
Get the dry suit first, as it will be the piece you use the most and it's the most critical to your safety. A Farmer John is nowhere near adequate protection for North Shore paddling except in mid summer. Spring is actually the most dangerous time of the year to paddle, IMO, since the warm air lures people into under-dressing, but the water temps are only in the 40's and can incapacitate and kill quickly. I find that I wear a dry suit 7-8 months of the year and it's probably the single best investment I've made in paddling gear. Get a waterproof/breathable suit, as the cheaper coated nylon suits are sweat boxes. Definitely insist on a relief zipper and I suggest that you also get latex or Gore-Tex socks, as they significantly increase comfort. I haven't tried a Palm dry suit (I've owned Kokatat and Stohlquist), but they appear to be well made and I've heard good things about them. Ravenspring (www.ravenspring.com) is another alternative that's very popular around here. Get the VHF next. It's your emergency lifeline to rescue services should you find yourself (or someone else) in a life threatening situation that you can't extricate yourself from. They come in handy for on water communication with other paddlers and larger vessels. It's also great for getting weather information, much better than the cheap weather radios. The M1V is an excellent radio, but I like the M88 better (I own both and have tried several others). There are frequently $50 rebates on the M88, so you can get one for ~$200 if you catch a rebate and a sale. Defender (www.defender.com) has the M1V on sale currently for ~$175. A GPS is strictly optional. I have one, but never use it. A chart and a deck mounted compass is simpler and more reliable. I would NEVER rely on a GPS (or any other battery powered device) as my only means of navigation. I would put this on the bottom of my gear list, after spare clothing, dry bags, spare paddle, tow rig, bivy jacket or sack, hydration pack, first aid kit, emergency hatch covers, etc. You can work on your skills over the winter. The NSPN runs pool sessions at several locations, where you can work on rolling and rescues. We also run workshops on navigation, boat outfitting and other subjects. In the spring, we have a trip leader training program where you can learn about navigation, rescues and group management on the water in real conditions, rather than just in a pool or on a pond. It's a great club. http://www.nspn.org |
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Expand a little on this bivy bag. The bivy bags that I am familar with
are usually made of goretex, and go over one's sleeping bag, or body if you do not have a sleeping bag with you. What you describes sounds very different. Is it just a large orange plastic bag? richard John Fereira wrote: snip A bivy bag may also be useful. It's a large coast guard orange bag that you can climb into if you become separated from your kayak. It can be partially inflated and used for floatation, and used as a signaling device. It can be folded up and put into a pocket on your PFD. |
Kind of beyond what you were asking about but my half dollar
suggestions. Consider the "Safety Blaster Horn". Lung powered, 120dbs, 1 mile range, $10. Do not try it out in enclosed space. I did. Could not hear for 10 mins. Wife and I both carry one on PFD. All plastic, no rust. URL below takes you Fogdog which sells them. Immersion in salt water does not effect it at all - drain for 2 seconds and blow. Used by us any number of times both on land and sea. Great for hiking if separated by terrain. http://www.fogdog.com/product/index....oductId=841305 Also the common garden variety cell phone in waterproof container. Highly recommend AquaPac containers. Bought the ones we have in London years ago but I believe that REI here in states sells them now. Can personally attest to waterproofness in very gnarly Hawaiian waters. We only paddle out if we have them on board. Have one for each of the following; digital camera, cell phone, GPS, VHF and paper nautical charts. May sound like overkill to many but our paddling in Hawaii and other places tends to the extreme side and length. URL for AquaPack below. http://www.aquapac.net/ Last but not least is signaling mirror. Anything that helps the SAR folks pinpoint your location, especially something that requires no batteries, is worth having if it could save your life. Cheap, light, and simple to use. There are endless tirades about which is better, metal or plastic, which will last the longest etal. Just get one and stick in the PFD. If you get caught up in "what type will last the longest," buy a new one every year, they are that cheap. Is your life worth $15 or so? -- Big Island Bob |
On Sun, 19 Dec 2004 22:31:35 GMT, Richard Ferguson
wrote: Expand a little on this bivy bag. The bivy bags that I am familar with are usually made of goretex, and go over one's sleeping bag, or body if you do not have a sleeping bag with you. What you describes sounds very different. Is it just a large orange plastic bag? richard John Fereira wrote: snip A bivy bag may also be useful. It's a large coast guard orange bag that you can climb into if you become separated from your kayak. It can be partially inflated and used for floatation, and used as a signaling device. It can be folded up and put into a pocket on your PFD. You are describing a bivy bag as used in mountaineering. I believe John is referring to some type designed for paddlers. A link to a pic would be useful. Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear) ------------------------------------------------ at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom |
Having a roll is very, very important, especially in cold water. Lot's of
paddling clubs use indoor pools during the winter for instruction. For the warm weather flat water paddler just something fun to learn. For recreational boaters, most of that type of craft won't take a skirt anyway and if they do, they're nylon, 4 feet long and implode upon going over. wrote in message ups.com... I'm a recent convert to the occassionally wet world of kayaking. I have practised wet exits and self rescues, wear a PDF and always carry a paddle float and bail pump. While most of my rough water experience has been coastal and always accompanied by at least one other more experienced paddler I would like to equip myself with additional protection for the days I might venture solo. In the Spring I intend to continue to work on my non existent (as yet) roll and other braces. Here is my thought: a reliable VHF radio, an inexpensive GPS and finally a usable dry suit. I like to paddle mostly the North shore of MA where the water temperature even in summer never gets better than 60. (I think) I own a farmer john 3mm wet suit but not sure if this is enough. Currently I'm looking at a ICOM IC-MIV VHF radio and a Palm dry suit. Anyone out there want to weigh in on my choices or suggest other alternatives. Are the built in neoprene socks advisable? I do insist on a pee zipper being of the prostate challenged generation. Thanks, Gene |
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On 20-Dec-2004, "Patrick, Whit" wrote:
Signal Mirror = AOL CDs... They work really well and are very free! The myth is that CDs work well. They are not that reflective. Better to get a real signal mirror. http://www.seakayakermag.com/2001/01Oct/mirror2.htm Mike |
Gary S. Idontwantspam@net wrote in
: On Sun, 19 Dec 2004 22:31:35 GMT, Richard Ferguson wrote: Expand a little on this bivy bag. The bivy bags that I am familar with are usually made of goretex, and go over one's sleeping bag, or body if you do not have a sleeping bag with you. What you describes sounds very different. Is it just a large orange plastic bag? Yes, it's basically just a large coast guard orange plastic bag. richard John Fereira wrote: snip A bivy bag may also be useful. It's a large coast guard orange bag that you can climb into if you become separated from your kayak. It can be partially inflated and used for floatation, and used as a signaling device. It can be folded up and put into a pocket on your PFD. You are describing a bivy bag as used in mountaineering. I believe John is referring to some type designed for paddlers. They're not really designed for paddling. They're also called "survival bags" A link to a pic would be useful. Here's one (sorry for the wrapping) http://www.planetfear.com/product_de...s_id=579&p_id= 1819 |
Richard Ferguson wrote in
: Expand a little on this bivy bag. The bivy bags that I am familar with are usually made of goretex, and go over one's sleeping bag, or body if you do not have a sleeping bag with you. What you describes sounds very different. Is it just a large orange plastic bag? I forgot to mention in the previous post. The primary advantage of the orange survival bag to the kind of bivy bag you're talking about is that the former is small enough that you can put it in a pocket in your PFD. If you've got a fancy gortex bivy bag it would likely be packed in with your sleeping bag which won't help if you capsize and become separated from your boat. When considering safety gear think of what you would need if you became separated from your boat and carry it in your PFD. |
Bib wrote:
Kind of beyond what you were asking about but my half dollar suggestions. Consider the "Safety Blaster Horn". Lung powered, 120dbs, 1 mile range, $10. Do not try it out in enclosed space. I did. Could not hear for 10 mins. Wife and I both carry one on PFD. All plastic, no rust. URL below takes you Fogdog which sells them. Immersion in salt water does not effect it at all - drain for 2 seconds and blow. Used by us any number of times both on land and sea. Great for hiking if separated by terrain. http://www.fogdog.com/product/index....oductId=841305 I agree. This horn makes whistles seem anemic by comparison. I carry one in my PFD. |
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The link did not take me to the product, only to the homepage, but
looking around a little on the planetfear.com site, I found something called a Survival Bag, available in a couple of sizes. It was orange, but not much info on the website. So is this really just a big orange plastic bag? How small is it folded up? I found something similar at www.campingsurvival.com, for around $3 US, weighs around 9 oz (about 0.25 kg). I carried something similar for years, the only time I used it was when my partner's bivvy bag leaked in rain on the side of Mt. Robson, at a desperate bivy site, and he was astounded that I had a plastic bivvy bag in addition to my Gortex bag, to keep him dry. I guess I am a belt and suspenders guy. I understand the concept of having something attached to your PFD, although I also understand that you can hang so much on your PFD that it becomes a problem in terms of weight and/or bulk. Historically I have made fun of tiny survival kits, usually mocking them by picking up a medium size backpack full of warm clothes, food, and water, and saying something like "Survival Kit my A**. This is my survival kit!" I am not saying that it is not a good thing to have, just that I am not sure that I want to attach more stuff to my PFD. I generally travel with other boats, especially in non-trivial water, so you don't expect to lose more than one boat on a trip. Richard John Fereira wrote: Gary S. Idontwantspam@net wrote in : On Sun, 19 Dec 2004 22:31:35 GMT, Richard Ferguson wrote: Expand a little on this bivy bag. The bivy bags that I am familar with are usually made of goretex, and go over one's sleeping bag, or body if you do not have a sleeping bag with you. What you describes sounds very different. Is it just a large orange plastic bag? Yes, it's basically just a large coast guard orange plastic bag. richard John Fereira wrote: snip A bivy bag may also be useful. It's a large coast guard orange bag that you can climb into if you become separated from your kayak. It can be partially inflated and used for floatation, and used as a signaling device. It can be folded up and put into a pocket on your PFD. You are describing a bivy bag as used in mountaineering. I believe John is referring to some type designed for paddlers. They're not really designed for paddling. They're also called "survival bags" A link to a pic would be useful. Here's one (sorry for the wrapping) http://www.planetfear.com/product_de...s_id=579&p_id= 1819 |
I saw this type of "Safety Blaster Horn" blaster in Boaters World and its
alot bigger than I would want on my PFD. Is there a smaller one like 3"- 4" instead of 8". The one I saw remains me of a bong. Thanks. Steve Wilmington, NC |
Steven Murch wrote:
I saw this type of "Safety Blaster Horn" blaster in Boaters World and its alot bigger than I would want on my PFD. Is there a smaller one like 3"- 4" instead of 8". The one I saw remains me of a bong. Yeah, there are two sizes and the smaller one is hard to find. I think the one at the FogDog link is the smaller size. According to SeaSense, K-Mart sells the small ones, but I've never seen them in the local stores and they're not on their web site either. Dick's Sporting goods carries them, too. |
For bracing, look for the
February issue of Seakayaker for an article called "Bracing Drills". How do I know about the article if it hasn't come out yet? I wrote it. Yes I've read your recent article on the high brace save and have a couple of questions? One, why hasn't this manuever been suggested before? Is it because most instructors are reluctant to recommend something which missused by a novice might lead to shoulder injury? Two, would you recommend starting off with a paddle float to at least learn the correct arm position? You could lay over very gently with the float in the water and let the outboard arm rise up until the paddle was in the best postion for bracing before hip snapping up. Gene Cosloy |
If your consistently wearing a wetsuit, why hava pee-zipper.
By having a your keeping your pee inside the suit, it helps retain the heat. |
"stayinalive" wrote in news:1103835108.037263.289320
@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com: For bracing, look for the February issue of Seakayaker for an article called "Bracing Drills". How do I know about the article if it hasn't come out yet? I wrote it. Yes I've read your recent article on the high brace save and have a couple of questions? One, why hasn't this manuever been suggested before? Is it because most instructors are reluctant to recommend something which missused by a novice might lead to shoulder injury? I've seen someone dislocate a shoulder when grabbing the side of a pool to practice hip snaps. The exercises themselves do not make paddlers inherently prone to shoulder injury. I've taken a number of classes that covered a high brace and every time the instructor has warned of the potential dangers if it is done incorrectly. The article does stress the importance of keeping your hands close to the body and below the head. Chris was pretty firm about getting that verbage into the article. I had taken a bunch of photos which demonstrated the exercises, one of which should a friend of mine in a marginally vulnerable position. Chris didn't want the photos in the mag. A coupld of years ago Nigel Foster did an article on a reentry roll which had a photo with a paddler in a similarly unsafe position. There were quite a few editorial comments on that. I actually heard about the queen annes salute through some friends that did some BCU training and assessment. The assessor was having the student perform the exercise to demonstrate that the bigh brace component of the 3 star assessment is suppose to be a recovery stroke and not just for stability. Two, would you recommend starting off with a paddle float to at least learn the correct arm position? You could lay over very gently with the float in the water and let the outboard arm rise up until the paddle was in the best postion for bracing before hip snapping up. That's not a bad way to learn the position. Doug Alderson's rolling article in the previos issue demonstrates using a paddle float in this manner. You may have also noticed that I wrote an editorial comment in the current issue on that article, specifically cautioning the use of a paddle float as demonstrated and the pressure that it can put on your shoulder. Sliding over slowly with a paddle float with a paddle float is okay but I wouldn't recommend getting into a queen annes salute position with a paddle float and falling over. Instead, set the paddle parallel to the boat on the opposite side that you're going to capsize. After you've hit the water bring the paddlefloat to a perpendicular position and brace up. Bracing is rarely taught in novice classes. One of the reasons is that when novices first start trying to brace they end up capsizing a lot more. In one class of six students we had four of them in the water at the same time when they first started trying a low brace. In the novice classes I teach we don't get into any of the strokes that involve tilting the boat although if a student seems to be doing very well we'll introduce edging the boat a bit to help turn. In the intermediate class we start with hip snapping off a partners boat and then have them tip over, let go of the partners boat, re-grab then hip snap back up. Once they're able to capsize and perform an eskimo rescue off the bow of a partners boat we'll start working on bracing. Because they often capsize while learning to brace it's nice if they're able to do an eskimo rescue rather than we exit and have to reenter. The exercises that I suggested in the article are not really for a novice that doesn't know how to brace at all. Another method for learning the arm position requires a helper. Have a friend paddle up parallel to your boat and grasp your cockpit rim. They can hold your boat while you get into position to keep you from going all the way over. They can even assist in getting your boat back upright by pulling on the cockpit rim as you do a brace. This method also works really well for learning how to perform a deep sculling brace. |
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 20:34:04 +0800, "Mike Sundowner"
wrote: If your consistently wearing a wetsuit, why hava pee-zipper. By having a your keeping your pee inside the suit, it helps retain the heat. It may retain a little heat, but sooner or later, you have to take the wetsuit off. Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear) ------------------------------------------------ at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom |
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