[Paddlewise] Kayaking safety

    We've had lots of discussion about safety, but I keep thinking about
the question that John Winters raised some months ago.  Paraphrasing
roughly, does having gear and training lead kayakers to take risks that
they would otherwise avoid.
    Yesterday I participated in a club trip on a coastal river--blackwater,
flat, modest current, no unavoidable hazards.  The distance to be covered
was too short for such benign conditions, so folks paddled slowly and two
of the guys started playing, doing things like rolls and sculling braces.
Later, I heard one of them say to one of the women in the group that if she
would learn to roll and brace, she'd lose her fear of capsizing and be able
to handle tougher situations.
     I've heard this line of argument before; it's a fairly standard one.
However, I found myself wondering if either of those guys, who obviously
enjoy rolling, could roll consistently in heavy chop or in the reaction
waves thrown up by heavy wakes on a narrow, winding river.  Yesterday I was
the only one actually wearing a PFD (we were on a fairly shallow river),
two paddled without spray skirts, and at least two did not have spare
paddles.  We did encounter some boat wakes large enough to surf.
    People like me who don't roll get criticized all the time and I
understand the reasons for that criticism.  On the other hand, I have a
pretty good grasp of what conditions I can handle and what I can't.  Risk
assessment is something I do before I start out into rough conditions.  To
date I've had good luck finding an alternate route if my intended one seems
too risky.  Also, I'm always prepared to "sit it out" if necessary.  My
wife would prefer my coming home late to my not coming home at all--and I
agree with her.
    I have a nagging feeling that a great many kayakers believe that they
are better prepared and safer than they actually are.  Are my suspicions
justified?

Bob


--------------------------------------------------
Robert C. Perkins, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Research and Planning
Methodist College, Fayetteville, NC 28311
910-630-7037     rperkins_at_methodist.edu


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