Re: [Paddlewise] boat tether

Nick Lyle wrote (regarding my boat leash): 

> How do you attach the webbing to yourself?  How long is the tether you
> use?  How and where do you attach the tether to what kind of boat?

I attach the tether to a web belt at the bottom of my "shorty" PFD,
which is about in the middle of my torso. (This works with my torso
shape; some might need a harness with a keeper strap passing under the
crotch.) The other piece of the tether attaches to a 6mm line that
passes through six pad eyes on the deck of my Caribou. The pad eyes are
laid out in a parallel fashion, three on each side. The line begins with
a stopper knot (at one of the pad eyes furthest from me), passes through
the three pad eyes on one side, across the deck in front of me, and
through the three pad eyes on the other side, ending in another stopper
knot. I don't recall the exact composition of the line, but it has a
braided nylon or polyester sheath and some sort of core material (as
with climbing rope or rescue rope). 

The two pieces of webbing are attached in the middle with a cam buckle,
which provides a quick release. You just need to pull the end of the
strap that passes through the buckle to release it. The advantage of a
cam buckle is that it can be released fairly easily when under tension,
unlike the more common side-clamp buckle, which is extremely difficult
to release when under tension. With my current setup the strap that one
pulls to release the tether is red, but I am planning to replace it with
yellow since yellow is easier to see when it is wet. As for length, I
would estimate that it is about three and a half feet long. (I can't
measure it right now since I am at my vacation home. If you want an
exact measurement e-mail me tomorrow and I will measure it for you.)

Happy paddling!

Dan Hagen
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