Re: [Paddlewise] Death by Tether

Julio wrote:
>That was an excellent report. And the fact that you contacted the
>sheriff to get more detailed information is admirable. There were
>some disturbing thoughts that came after reading your report, though.

Yea, you should see my phone bill. I also called Baffin Island on another
kayaker death I'm doing, and I think my wife is going to kill *me* when she
sees the bill. I will be calling the sheriff on Wed again, to find out
about the exact tether arrangement the dead kayaker used, and post the
results later this week.

>Whether tethers are good or bad things to have is a matter of opinion. I
>teach my students to exit their boats leaving one leg inside the cockpit
>as being in contact with your boat should be voluntary, specially
>in the surf.  We can debate on this on another thread.

We could. However, I will mention that one can easily "over coach" this
whole issue of wet exiting. I simply tell students that they should
maintain contact with their paddle and kayak. For some, that means the
"leg-in" method. For others, especially with deck lines running along side
the cockpit, it is easier to maintain a grip on the kayak as you exit. At a
minimum, I do tell newbies learning the wet exit to make sure they take off
their kayak like you would a pair of pants. The biggest issue teaching the
wet exit, other than the perception of danger of having to place your head
underwater and grabbing and pulling the grab loop, is getting them to make
sure the back of the skirt has also come off the coaming. Of course, the
bigger the cockpit and looser the skirt, the less of an issue all this is.
Personally, I find a wrist tether works well when wet exiting, as you then
only have to worry about the kayak. A paddle to boat tether is nice too,
because then if you have the paddle in hand, you also have the kayak. But
again, I wouldn't over coach the issue. And I totally agree, it is best to
teach all kayak rescue strategies from the perspective of no adjunctive
gear, then add stuff later as back-up. When I wet exit, I always turn my
head to the side that has the paddle if I can, then as I come out beside
the kayak, I rise to the surface with the paddle between me and the boat.

Getting back to my original accident post, I was not trying to advocate a
paddle tether (though I would on a different venue). I was simply trying to
make a point that in my opinion, the cockpit is not the best place to store
a paddle. However, I do not fish from a kayak, so don't know of all the
issues and complications. I belive Outside Magazine has a gear and
adventure supplement out on the newstands right now. On the front cover is,
you guessed it, "Extreme Fishing", and an article inside on fishing off the
coast of California by kayak. The marriage between the paddling and fishing
industries is just in the courting stages, but the love affair is bound to
be hot n' heavy. You can get a newsletter called "Yak Attack", and a
website exists at <kayakfishing.com> Ocean Kayak, makers of these SOTs, are
coming out with special gear, including paddle holders, etc. I hope safety
will be emphasized, and the need to be proficient in the sport of kayaking
as a whole. I also predict more deaths from kayak fishing related
activities.  

Anyway, if I have not addressed your point, it is probably due to that
nasty part of e-mail exchanges where one doesn't always understand the
question because immediate qualification of a statement is not possible
(plus I confuse easily!). I do know that enough people use tethers that you
can't arbitrarily discount them for the paddling populace at large.
 
>The Inuit hunters carry a lot of rope in their forward cockpit, and
>the risk of entanglement is high.  That is one of the reasons why
>they have developed 30+ rolls that include rolling with more body
>positions than most of us can think about.  They believe in increasing
>safety by increasing their skill level, not by using gadgets.
>In fact given a PFD, they would probably use it to roll up, like
>  http://www.home.earthlink.net/~bonito/images/PFD_roll.jpg
>It is possible that this kind of roll would have saved the victim.

Yes, right again Julio. However, your holy war against gadgets will not
succeed, not on this continent of gadget-guys and gadget-gals, especially
with Inspector Gadget, me, promoting gadgets and writing articles about
them and telling friends to buy things like Sea-Seats (c) if they paddle
solo in rough stuff. But the truth be know, your approach is refreshing and
your essential philosophy of keeping it simple with an emphasis on skill
development is actually at the heart of sea kayaking as a heritage,
lifestyle, and a sport. I have a friend like you, an avowed simpleton, er,
I'll rephrase that... an avowed promoter of simplicity, skill and technique
over brawn and gadgets. He stands in one corner, screaming his message,
while I stand in the other corner, shouting out the gospel of back-up
strategies ad infinitum. Somewhere in the middle of the ring is the truth.
And heck, Paul Caffyn didn't even use his PFD during an emergency paddle
float style self rescue - he used his sleeping pad. Like, whatever works. 

>Your post gives the impression that a knife is an all mighty gadget
>that will save your life if you ever get entangled.  This can be tested
>in controlled conditions in a pool--tie a string around your wrist,
>capsize, and see if you can retrieve your knife and cut the line
>in less than 20 seconds (that is more time than most people would
>endure without breathing after capsizing by surprise).  Yes, a knife
>increases your chances, but not dramatically, specially if you do 
>not practice many possible scenarios regularly to keep your mind
>clear when the situation becomes real.

Absolutely right on again, Julio. To think that a knife will get you out of
trouble, while upside down with seconds of air remaining if you went over
on an exhalation breath, is a fallacious notion indeed (see my other post,
also). However, my post took the moral high ground which prudence would
dictate that carrying a knife isn't just for old Sly, Sylvester Stallon. As
with any safety device, knife, flare, whatever, I always wonder what my
last thought would be if I needed said piece of equipment, and didn't have
it. That is why you see top kayakers like Chris Cunningham who lives and
breaths Inuit traditional kayaking, carrying lots of "gadgets" when he is
out tripping. But again, you do bring some balance into the "ring". Ding
Ding!!
   
>Too much stuff for a single mail.  Food for thought folks!

Wanna have a food fight? :-)

BC'in Ya
Doug Lloyd

>- Julio
>
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