The standard paddlefloat rescue, like many things in life, is something that one can get very good at with practice. If you practice your paddlefloat rescue frequently, in different conditions of rough water, it may eventually become your primary and most reliable means of self rescue. However, that is rarely the case. Many paddlers never practice the paddlefloat rescue after their Beginning Sea Kayaking class. - Julio *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
>The standard paddlefloat rescue, like many things in life, is >something that one can get very good at with practice. > >If you practice your paddlefloat rescue frequently, in different conditions >of rough water, it may eventually become your primary and most reliable >means of self rescue. > >However, that is rarely the case. Many paddlers never practice the >paddlefloat >rescue after their Beginning Sea Kayaking class. > >- Julio To my uninformed opinion, it only makes common sense to practice being able to get back into your boat, regardless of how much of an expert you may be at rolling back up without leaving it. Anybody, even an expert, can get caught in a moment of distraction or inattention and find themselves out of their boat. What could be sadder or more ironic than the loss of an expert who couldn't manage to get back into the boat, because they couldn't lower themselves to practicing for that contingency? Ira Adams *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Ira Adams wrote: > To my uninformed opinion, it only makes common sense to practice being > > able to get back into your boat, regardless of how much of an expert > you > may be at rolling back up without leaving it. ... > What could be sadder or more ironic than the loss of an expert who > couldn't manage to get back into the boat, because they couldn't lower > > themselves to practicing for that contingency? I really don't think that this is an issue. Everyone I know who can roll has also practiced reentry--usually more so than those who rely soley on reentry techniques. (Now isn't that ironic.) The real threat is that someone will bail out (thinking that they can reenter) and then find themselves in a situation where they are unable to reenter their boat, in spite of all of their practice. There are some conditions where a wet exit and reentry is an "iffy" proposition, to say the least. The key is to avoid thinking in terms of wet exit and reentry. In some conditions, it is a last gasp. Think roll, not reentry, and you will be much more likely to avoid a tragic death. IMHO. Dan Hagen *************************************************************************** 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 - 16:32:56 PDT