RE: [Paddlewise] Respecting the Sea - a Response to Chris' story

On a positive note, had Chris decided to go home he wouldn't have been there
for the rescue (not to condone going out in dangerous surf).  Thanks for
sharing your story so that others can learn from it.  

Having taken part in a recent rescue "attempt" I can add that you cannot
take too many precautions.  In my case I happened across a power boat with
an occupant in a medical emergency.  The boat had no means of communication
on board for which to summon for help.  Should they have had a radio or
phone the outcome may have been completely different.




-----Original Message-----
From: Chris & Ellen Kohut [mailto:chriskayak_at_earthlink.net]
Sent: Wednesday, August 11, 1999 9:34 AM
To: paddlewise
Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Respecting the Sea - a Response to Chris'
story


" Chris wrote a good article on the power of surf.  However at the risk of
preaching, I think a better course of action would have been not to have
gone
out-even to test the current."

    Rest assured that such actions will not be repeated.  At the risk of
falling
to the sin of self-justification, clearly the point was to 'test the
waters', a
plan of action that in the cool light of morning seems to me now a
questionable
objective (to put it kindly), and dumb-assed stupidity placed in it's proper
perspective and context, which is probably vastly more accurate and  where
where
it needs to remain.
    And also you are right, the shoes (water sock type) are but a bit
player in
the in the whole melodrama, what I failed to mention in the account is that
I
had to run over oyster rakes myself to get to her over the sea wall.  I be
grateful to dem shookies.
    Loved the bit about the drowning victim/barnacle bumper, explains a lot
about our own beloved lifeguard staff down here, they are about to all fly
off
to their respective colleges to pursue higher volleyball theory, and leave
we
long suffering surfers finally alone.  More than once this summer I have
muttered that " I could fix it so that whistle could sound during periods of
flatulence as you sleep at night..........."

Chris

Scott Ives wrote:

> Chris wrote a good article on the power of the surf.  However, at the risk
> of preaching, I think the better course of action would have been not to
> have gone out - even to test the current.
>
> I know a bit about ocean currents.  I spent every summer growing up at the
> beach, and I was an ocean life guard for several seasons in Ocean City,
> Md. - one of the toughest beach patrols on the East Coast.  You can easily
> see a nasty ocean current.  Another alternative to testing it with your
body
> is to throw a leaf or some grass out, and see how it moves.   Chris
mentions
> a sea wall - these can be particularly nasty.  In O.C., we have a number
of
> moronic jetties and rock piles (I say moronic because they were intended
to
> add sand to the beach - however they accomplish this merely by robbing
sand
> from one side and giving it to the other!).
>
> Jetties, rock piles and sea walls can be deadly in rough weather.  We
> lifeguards were actually taught to take the tourists we were saving and to
> cushion ourselves with their bodies if we were thrown againt the rocks.
> Why?  Because the city had to pay for the time we took off with cuts and
> bruises, so better (in their thinking) to let the tourists absorb them!
> The lesson here is that one should always respect the ocean.  It can kill
> even a good swimmer.  There were times I had to go out in storm conditions
> (ie. 7-9 foot seas) to make rescues, and I didn't enjoy doing it!  Under
> such conditions, the waves are relentless, and you don't have a chance to
> dive under them.  Sometimes you can't even tell which way shore is when
you
> are out there in such conditions!
>
> So folks, when in doubt, don't go out!  Not trying to pick on Chris, but
if
> you are sucked out into really nasty stuff, your shoes are going to be
your
> last concern!  If you are going out in such conditions, DON'T LAUNCH near
> sea walls, jetties or rock piles.  If you approach them when you are out
in
> the sea, give them a wide berth!
>
> Finally, if you are sucked out to sea, just try to relax!  I know this
> sounds funny, but the rip tides will wear off as you get further out, and
> then you can swim back to shore - but only after swimming parallel to get
> outside the zone of the rip tide.    As a guard, I would intentionally
swim
> into a rip tide - it was like an escalator to get out to sea faster!
>
> Happy sea paddling!   Just respect mother nature, she is much stronger and
> wilier than we are!
>
> - Scott
>
>
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