Jeff Bingham has painted his Toksook blades red on one side and yellow on the other, so not only can you see them from a distance, you can tell what direction he's paddling. Bob Denton Aqua-Gulf Transport bdenton_at_aquagulf.com www.aquagulf.com <http://www.aquagulf.com> *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Bob Denton wrote: > > Jeff Bingham has painted his Toksook blades red on one side and yellow on > the other, so not only can you see them from a distance, you can tell what > direction he's paddling. > Aquabound makes a fairly inexpensive paddle with some carbon in it that makes it lightweight. But all black. The first thing I did was put those 4 inch by 4 inch (I think that is their size or perhaps a bit smaller) reflective sold by ACR (I think) on both sides of each paddle blade. I was in a hurry and so just did it. But if I had had time or thought about it I would have used some day-glo paint. I don't think the reflective tape is as visible except under some lighting conditions. One of these days I may try to get the best of both worlds; temporarily mask the reflective tape and spray paint the blades with day glo paint right down to where they meet the shaft. I suspect the paint doesn't hold up that well over time and so would need retouching every so often. I agree with Matt Broze that is the paddles that show the most but I don't at all agree that boat color and PFD color don't make much of a difference. I can see a yellow boat at well over a mile and a yellow PFD pretty far off too. A person with day-glo paddle blades who is wearing a yellow or bright orange PFD in a bright yellow or orange boat stands out quite sharply. While not foolproof, such bright color display has a better chance of catch a corner of an inattentive motorboat operator's eye than black paddles, olive drab deck and black PFD. Remember the two rules of boating safety: 1) Do everything you can to make yourself visible. 2) Act always as if you cannot be seen at all. ralph ralph -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 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/ ***************************************************************************
From: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com Date sent: Thu, 10 Jun 1999 09:57:14 -0700 To: "Paddlewise (E-mail)" <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net> Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Paddle colors > > Aquabound makes a fairly inexpensive paddle with some carbon in it that > makes it lightweight. But all black. The first thing I did was put > those 4 inch by 4 inch (I think that is their size or perhaps a bit > smaller) reflective sold by ACR (I think) on both sides of each paddle > blade. I was in a hurry and so just did it. > > But if I had had time or thought about it I would have used some day-glo > paint. I don't think the reflective tape is as visible except under > some lighting conditions. One of these days I may try to get the best > of both worlds; temporarily mask the reflective tape and spray paint the > blades with day glo paint right down to where they meet the shaft. I > suspect the paint doesn't hold up that well over time and so would need > retouching every so often. > > Great idea, Ralph. I bought what may be the same paddle at EMS --- Aquabound's "Expedition", I think --- at a scratch and ding sale. Incredibly good deal! Nice paddle. But it's all black. Hit the blades with a can of cheap white enamel, then with a can of hi-viz yellow. That was early last summer --- still looks fine! A few black scratches. This kind of treatment is of special value when paddling in low-light and hazy conditions --- those blades really do stand out visually! >From practical experience in testing the use of retroreflective tape on deployable and --- hopefully recoverable --- beacons used on the open ocean --- and as a one-time SAR pilot --- this type of tape is and will continue to be a life-saver. Literally. The limitation on all retroreflective tape --- including the ACR type Ralph mentioned --- is that it requires that it be illuminated by a light the source of which is essentially colocated with the observor. (E.g., a headlamp aimed at retroreflective tape provides a slightly but noticably better visual return than by that provided by a handheld flashlight.) As an example, my paddling partner, Jenny, and I were running through Solomons Island harbor one evening last summer; she was not more than 15 or 20 feet off my beam and slightly aft on a parallel course, and both of us had high output flashlights on our bows illuminating the area in front of us. As we approached an unlit channel marker which was probably 30 yards away and directly on my bow, Jenny could not see it. She only "saw" it when she turned ten degrees to get it in the beam of her light. What was brilliant to me was invisible to her, prior to her turn. There are different numbers for different tapes, but, to be seen, the retroreflective tape must be within a cone of light approximately five to ten degrees directly in front of the observor. So, for practical purposes, those ACR patches are an excellent idea, but they are not "passive", as is day-glo paint, which is visible for 360 degrees in ambient light. Retroreflective tape is only of value to you when the observor is also <at> or very close to the source of light which illuminates you as a target. Without that specific connection --- the close colocation of the light and the observor --- ACR patches are no brighter than Ralph's black paddle. Still a great idea, especially in urban paddling, but there are specific limitations on their value to you as a paddler. Jack 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/ ***************************************************************************
> > Bob Denton wrote: > > > > Jeff Bingham has painted his Toksook blades red on one side and yellow on > > the other, so not only can you see them from a distance, you can tell what > > direction he's paddling. > > > > But if I had had time or thought about it I would have used some day-glo > paint. I don't think the reflective tape is as visible except under > some lighting conditions. One of these days I may try to get the best > of both worlds; temporarily mask the reflective tape and spray paint the > blades with day glo paint right down to where they meet the shaft. I > suspect the paint doesn't hold up that well over time and so would need > retouching every so often. Someone else mentioned a paint job on a Toksook paddle. Derek Hutchingson painted his as well. If I remember correctly he painted the powerface side of the blade on the right and the non-powerface on the left bright orange. That way some looking from the stern and and someone looking from the bow would always catch a glimpse of paint. Not painting both sides makes it easier to tell left from right easier when symetrical blades are used. > I agree with Matt Broze that is the paddles that show the most but I > don't at all agree that boat color and PFD color don't make much of a > difference. I can see a yellow boat at well over a mile and a yellow > PFD pretty far off too. A person with day-glo paddle blades who is > wearing a yellow or bright orange PFD in a bright yellow or orange boat > stands out quite sharply. While not foolproof, such bright color > display has a better chance of catch a corner of an inattentive > motorboat operator's eye than black paddles, olive drab deck and black > PFD. I've also read that red is not a good choice of color for a boat because at night it looks black and just blends in with the water unless a light is shown directly on it. > Remember the two rules of boating safety: > > 1) Do everything you can to make yourself visible. > > 2) Act always as if you cannot be seen at all. My father told me the same thing when I started riding a motorcycle on the street for the first time. I've got a hot pink paddling jacket. -- John Fereira jaf30_at_cornell.edu *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
John Fereira wrote: > Someone else mentioned a paint job on a Toksook paddle. Derek > Hutchingson painted his as well. If I remember correctly he > painted the powerface side of the blade on the right and the > non-powerface on the left bright orange. That way some looking > from the stern and and someone looking from the bow would always > catch a glimpse of paint. Not painting both sides makes it easier > to tell left from right easier when symetrical blades are used. I was on a night paddle on a local river when a paddler got tripped up in some mangroves. She was paddling with a black carbon paddle. After we got her in her kayak another 20 mins were spent looking for her paddle. The next day we took some of the ACR tape mentioned earlier and wrapped it around the paddle shaft next to and below the blades. Now no matter how the paddle is facing the tape reflects light. When pointing a light at the paddler at night the paddle is lit up in a reflective arc. Jeff Bingham *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
There is something that I have noticed in the discussion about being seen on the water by operators of other craft. Having a boat, paddles, PFD which are highly visible is only helpful if the operators of other boats are looking. That's why I also have a large, very loud whistle attached to my vest. I don't recall the brand name but it's a bright orange whistle that supposedly can even be used underwater. It' *loud*. A few weeks ago I was meeting a group of paddlers near a marina for a mass paddle and the woman that was organizing was trying to get the attention of everyone for a group picture. I was floating near her when she said, "oh, I have a whistle" and pull out this little think, blew it, and it went "pweeeet". I said, "that's not a whistle", pulled my up and blew it long and loud. My ears were ringing and it echoed a couple of times. "That's a whistle", I said. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
John Fereira wrote: > > That's why I also have a large, very loud whistle attached > to my vest. I don't recall the brand name but it's a bright > orange whistle that supposedly can even be used underwater. > It' *loud*. A few weeks ago I was meeting a group of > paddlers near a marina for a mass paddle and the woman > that was organizing was trying to get the attention of > everyone for a group picture. I was floating near her when she > said, "oh, I have a whistle" and pull out this little think, blew > it, and it went "pweeeet". I said, "that's not a whistle", pulled > my up and blew it long and loud. My ears were ringing and it > echoed a couple of times. "That's a whistle", I said. I absolutely agree. I am on my 4th generation of whistles have graduated from a small flat thing that was about the size of half a stick of gum to the big storm whistle I carry now (earlier was the Fox 40 and smaller storm whistle). It is tethered to my PFD and not in a pocket (a whistle in a pocket takes to long to deploy...every second counts). Not on the zipper of my PFD where it may loosen my vest if crawling on a back deck in a upset. Your whole story of the whistle reminds me of that scene in Crocodile Dundee when some NY street punks attempt to mug Hogan and are waving a stilleto. Hogan says "You think dat's a knif." "Here's a knif" as he pulls out his huge sheath Bowie type weapon. ralph -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
From: John Fereira >That's why I also have a large, very loud whistle attached >to my vest. I don't recall the brand name but it's a bright >orange whistle that supposedly can even be used underwater. Why on earth would you want to do *that*? >It' s*loud*. A few weeks ago I was meeting a group of >paddlers near a marina for a mass paddle and the woman >that was organizing was trying to get the attention of >everyone for a group picture. I was floating near her when she >said, "oh, I have a whistle" and pull out this little think, blew >it, and it went "pweeeet". I said, "that's not a whistle", pulled >my up and blew it long and loud. My ears were ringing and it >echoed a couple of times. "That's a whistle", I said. > A friend found something in a marine store that he uses as a signaling device. It's a short pipe with a cap on one end for a plastic diaphragm. You blow into the side of the thing. What comes out sounds as though the Staten Island Ferry is about to run you over. So not only is this thing loud, but it's different enough from a whistle to make someone look around to see what the heck is about to hit him. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
It sounds like the Staten Island Ferry whistle isn't an option. What whistles and sources do you all recommend? Also I would be very interested in info on compasses- name brands, types, best means of attachment on a glass boat. thanks Walt *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Two years ago when I saw (and heard) one of those, I went right to West Marine to buy one. There were two left on the shelf. I asked to sales person if I could test it. We did everything and couldn't get it to "blow". We tried the other one, and out of many, many attempts got is to blow maybe twice. She called the store manager and he said that they should have been taken off the shelf. Apparently all that had been purchased (a lot) had been returned. There were many reasons for their failure, but the most common was the thin plastic diaphragm (kind of like suran wrap) was totally exposed and punctured easily thus rending it useless. I believe West Marine intended to discontinue the product unless the quality was improved. The number of purchases and returnes became too much for them. Debbie Reeves Sandy Hook, NJ > ---------- > From: Joe Pylka[SMTP:pylka_at_castle.net] > > A friend found something in a marine store that he uses as a signaling > device. It's a short pipe with a cap on one end for a plastic diaphragm. > You blow into the side of the thing. What comes out sounds as though the > Staten Island Ferry is about to run you over. So not only is this thing > loud, but it's different enough from a whistle to make someone look around > to see what the heck is about to hit him. > > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On Sun, 13 Jun 1999, Reeves, Debbie (Debbie) wrote: > Two years ago when I saw (and heard) one of those, I went right to West > Marine to buy one. There were two left on the shelf. > exposed and punctured easily thus rending it useless. I believe West Marine > intended to discontinue the product unless the quality was improved. The > number of purchases and returnes became too much for them. They appear to have been improved. West Marine still sells them and yesterday we were in the fog and made use of one to "retrieve" someone who had wandered off into the fog. We had a wonderful day in Chatham Mass with many seals, (guesses ran from 100 to 300) harbor and gray seals, watching us and following us. We had seals following as close as 2 feet behind some boats. Talking to someone after getting back in he said he was thinking of rigging up a face net and wearing sunglasses on the back of his head, and then paddling around backwards near the seals. The seals come up behind the boats as you paddle so he wanted to see if he could get a good look at them. If you turn to look at them, when they are following you, they immediately dive. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Good idea, but remember that red is not a very visible color in marginal light situation. Part of the reason that bright colors on the paddles is so effective is the movement. The eye is much more sensitive to movement than static items. There is a difference between being visible and being seen. If I know something is there I may be able to see it, Vs will I notice it if I don't know it is there. The movement of brightly colored paddles will be caught by the eye more so than a life jacket of the same color even if the jacket is larger. -----Original Message----- From: Bob Denton <BDenton_at_aquagulf.com> To: Paddlewise (E-mail) <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net> Date: Thursday, June 10, 1999 8:02 AM Subject: [Paddlewise] Paddle colors >Jeff Bingham has painted his Toksook blades red on one side and yellow on >the other, so not only can you see them from a distance, you can tell what >direction he's paddling. > >Bob Denton >Aqua-Gulf Transport >bdenton_at_aquagulf.com >www.aquagulf.com <http://www.aquagulf.com> > > >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ >*************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Whiterabbit wrote: >Good idea, but remember that red is not a very visible color in marginal >light situation. > >Part of the reason that bright colors on the paddles is so effective is the >movement. The eye is much more sensitive to movement than static items. I agree with you that in low light from behind that red is a marginal color. However my expiernce has been that any light from any other direction red stands out the brightest. Ralph, I like your idea of using Day-Glo, just remember it needs a base of white first. Jeff Bingham *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Jeff Bingham wrote: > > Whiterabbit wrote: > >Good idea, but remember that red is not a very visible color in marginal > >light situation. > > > >Part of the reason that bright colors on the paddles is so effective is the > >movement. The eye is much more sensitive to movement than static items. > > I agree with you that in low light from behind that red is a marginal > color. However my expiernce has been that any light from any other > direction red stands out the brightest. > > Ralph, I like your idea of using Day-Glo, just remember it needs a base of > white first. > > Jeff Bingham > While working for the BLM in Alaska, we conducted test on various colored hard hats and found that day-glo green was best by far. Orange day-glo came in second and bright yellow working well in most lighting and especially if moving. Red did well "some" of the time, but could also completly disapear if the lighting was not just right. Altho not tested over water conditions, we did fly over the crews in many differant backdrops and the day-glo green would JUMP OUT at you in all conditions, even if not moving. If I were painting my paddles this is what I would use. The color is so alien, it commands you to look. James *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
On Thu, 10 Jun 1999, James Lofton wrote: > While working for the BLM in Alaska, we conducted test on various colored > hard hats and found that day-glo green was best by far. Orange day-glo > came in second and bright yellow working well in most lighting and > especially if moving. Red did well "some" of the time, but could also > completly disapear if the lighting was not just right. One of my skiing partners used to have a day glow light green (vaguely yellow) ski jacket. You could identify where he was standing from the bottom of a ski lift while he was near the top (visually about the same size as the head of a pin). Everyone else on the mountain would just be an unidentified speck. That coat just screamed "I'm over here". I haven't seen anything else that had quite the same visibility. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
> One of my skiing partners used to have a day glow light green (vaguely > yellow) ski jacket. You could identify where he was standing from the > bottom of a ski lift while he was near the top (visually about the same > size as the head of a pin). Everyone else on the mountain would just be > an unidentified speck. That coat just screamed "I'm over here". I > haven't seen anything else that had quite the same visibility. and that is why bright red fire engines are being replaced by yellowy green ones - they may not look as exciting by you can see them better. but what aboaut that yucky orangish air-sea rescue red. surely there were lots of visibility tests done on that before it was chosen for life rafts, bouyancy vests and similar? -- jim *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 07:48 am 11/06/99 +1000, you wrote: >> One of my skiing partners used to have a day glow light green (vaguely >> yellow) ski jacket. > >and that is why bright red fire engines are being replaced by yellowy >green ones - they may not look as exciting by you can see them better. > >but what aboaut that yucky orangish air-sea rescue red. surely there >were lots of visibility tests done on that before it was chosen for life >rafts, bouyancy vests and similar? > >-- jim Except that my paddling mate wears a fluro lime-green jacket and it just vanishes, invisible - unless one is up sun of him. It definitely depends on which directions the observer and the sun are. Black is the best colour from some angles. I'm told that my pale blue kayak is very visible sometimes. My partner wears a bright red nylon jacket, also very visible in some lights. Reflective paddles are the most visible items. Alex Alex (Sandy) Ferguson Chemistry Department University of Canterbury New Zealand *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On Thu, 10 Jun 1999, James Lofton wrote: > > While working for the BLM in Alaska, we conducted test on various colored > hard hats and found that day-glo green was best by far. Orange day-glo > came in second and bright yellow working well in most lighting and > especially if moving. Red did well "some" of the time, but could also > completly disapear if the lighting was not just right. Altho not tested > over water conditions, we did fly over the crews in many differant > backdrops and the day-glo green would JUMP OUT at you in all conditions, > even if not moving. > If I were painting my paddles this is what I would use. The color is so > alien, it commands you to look. > > James > this is why day-glo green is now the popular color for fire engines. mark #------canoeist[at]netbox[dot]com----http://www.diac.com/~zen/mark ---- # mark zen o, o__ o_/| o_. po box 474 </ [\/ [_| [_\ ft. lupton, co 80621-0474 (`-/-------/----') (`----|-------\-') #~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~ http://www.diac.com/~zen/paddler [index to club websites i administer] Rocky Mtn Sea Kayak Club, Colorado River Flows, Poudre Paddlers The Colorado Paddlers' Resource, Rocky Mtn Canoe Club Trip Page -- Fortune: Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning. --Winston Churchill *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
A couple of us had too many "potential" situations last year so this year we painted our paddle blades "international orange" (as defined by the USCG). The front of the blade I left white on my Werner and yellow on my Lightning, similar to Jeff. Recently, heading down the Hudson on a gray, rainy, foggy day, we quickly recognized the decision to paint the blades neon orange was the right decision. The group had temporarily split in two and the front group was about a 1/2 mile ahead. The ONLY color quickly visible was the neon orange. The yellow PFDs & blades totally faded out which really surprised us (I guess it is best on bright, sunny days). If you focused you could make out some of the red. But for those of us "color conscience" on that "gray trip", we instantly concluded that International Orange was our color. Debbie Reeves Sandy Hook, NJ > ---------- > From: Bob Denton[SMTP:BDenton_at_aquagulf.com] > > Jeff Bingham has painted his Toksook blades red on one side and yellow on > the other, so not only can you see them from a distance, you can tell what > direction he's paddling. > > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Debbie wrote: <snip>The ONLY color quickly visible was the >neon orange. <more snipping>on that "gray trip", we instantly concluded that International Orange was >our color. I can corroborate the effect. This past Saturday we were able to spot Debbie at distances well over a mile as she paddled kayak support for the swim marathon around Manhattan. We're convinced! Bob & Joan Volin *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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