I'm not much of a believer in paddlefloats. Sure, like most of us, I learned the paddlefloat self-rescue when I started sea kayaking --- and, like most of us, I learned in a pool. With the old Sea Lion, my self-rescues became pretty routine, but --- again, like a lot of us, I never tried it in big water or under challenging conditions --- like at night. Then I learned to roll, moved from the Sea Lion to a VCP Pintail and from a Lendal to a Greenland paddle, pushed the conditions I'd practice in out into clapotis and surf, and have been confident that my roll --- or, worst case, my re-entry and roll --- are sufficient to get me out of any realistic problem I could encounter. But Tim Matson's post made me rethink this: it really <would> make sense, on a personal worst-case scenario re-entry and roll, to have the paddlefloat handy. Stability would be a critical factor to me in cases where I was forced out of my boat --- it's virtually impossible to be <knocked> out of a 16" by 20" cockpit when you're a normally upholstered adult --- and the solid foam paddlefloat that I carry, especially during swim supports, would be a great asset to have on a permanent basis. (I always stuff the yellow inflatable paddlefloat in next to the seat, and never think about it.) So, a question and a comment or two. First, how many people who depend on a paddlefloat to get back into their boat routinely practice self rescues in rough water and in other adverse conditions --- high winds, night (blindfolded), simulated limited use of an injured arm or hand (duct tape), simulated solo paddling, etc.? Are you really confident that a paddlefloat self rescue will work in all conditions in which you might paddle? Second, how many of us routinely leak-check inflatable paddlefloats? Blow them up to a firm point, wash them down in a soapy water solution, and look for bubbles or loss of pressure in a few minutes? With normal wear and tear, these things will develop small leaks which become bigger leaks. Yes, most are dual-chambered, but will one chamber "float your boat", and are both chambers sound? Just a thought. My checks have frequently resulted in finding air leaks --- try yours! Third, we've talked a lot about floatation bags in non-bulkheaded boats and about seasocks. (Floatation bags in plastic foam-bulkheaded boats are definitely advised, too --- for those with foam bulkheads, try flooding the cockpit in a sheltered area, and remove the hatches to see how long it takes the water to enter the bulkheaded compartments. Doesn't take long in most Sea Lion-type boats.) The bottom line here is to minimize the amount of water that needs to be pumped out of a cockpit. Probably the most important factor is the design of the boat. The Pintail is great in this regard: the after bulkhead is immediately aft of the seat, and the forward bulkhead can be special-ordered further aft than normal to establish a smaller cockpit volume --- as well as serving as a great footrest. My (standard) Pintail has been modified with a large, tight foam plug in the forward end of the cockpit to serve as a footrest and footpump holder, and further minimizes the water volume I have to pump out. I also designed a solid foam backrest and filled the remainder of the volume under and alongside the seat back to the bulkead with marine expanding foam, eliminating more water volume, and have pretty well foamed out the underside of the foredeck to serve as knee and thigh supports, again eliminating the water collected when the boat is inverted. With <my> volume re-inserted (not a bad term, in this boat) back into the cockpit, there's precious little water to pump out. Another critical factor is the waterproof-ness of hatches: again, VCP has put their own "Tupperware" seal hatches on their boats --- and sell them to other manufacturers. These things keep almost all water out, excluding any extra and non-accessible leakage that can occur when the boat is inverted or on edge for any period of time. Sorry --- did not mean to pontificate on this issue for as long as I did. Just a hobby of mine in modifications and improvements (?) to an already great boat. Hope some of these ideas might be useful in one way or another to others. Bottom line --- keep as much water out of the boat as possible. And carry a reliable paddlefloat --- thanks for the thought, Tim. Jack "Joq" Martin *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Jack_Martin_at_jtif.webfld.navy.mil wrote: > <SNIPPED> > Second, how many of us routinely leak-check inflatable paddlefloats? > Blow them up to a firm point, wash them down in a soapy water > solution, and look for bubbles or loss of pressure in a few minutes? > With normal wear and tear, these things will develop small leaks which > become bigger leaks. Yes, most are dual-chambered, but will one > chamber "float your boat", and are both chambers sound? Just a > thought. My checks have frequently resulted in finding air leaks --- > try yours! I don't understand why people in hardshells don't use a rigid paddle float rather than the inflatable kind. The inflatable kind makes sense for someone in a folding kayak in which the rigid type of paddle float takes up roam in the kayak carrying bags. But if you have a boat that can't fold, why have a folding paddle float? They have several advantages. 1) No air leaks. And, 2) no wasted breath in blowing them up in scary conditions. It is amazing how being scared makes you a bit short of breath especially as water is gushing up close to your mouth and nose and you feel the shock of cold water against your lungs. I have often thought of getting one for any boat I am leaving assembled for long periods. They make good seats too on rocky beaches. ralph diaz -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:32:49 PDT