Re: [Paddlewise] Rolling, rolling, keep them kayaks . . .

>Date: Sun, 28 Nov 1999 23:16:44 -0800
>To: Wes Boyd <boydwe_at_dmci.net>
>From: Doug Lloyd <dlloyd_at_bc.sympatico.ca>
>Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Rolling, rolling, keep them kayaks . . .
>
>At 07:15 PM 11/28/99, Wes wrote provocatively:
>>In the midst of the long discussion on rolls we've had, there was a nice
>>thread on the subject on rec.boats.paddle.touring. In the midst of the
>>threat, a canoe tripper had a thought that I thought I'd throw out here for
>>comment:
>>
>>"Then there's flatwater canoeing & canoe tripping.  Very few if any of us
>>can roll our canoes, yet we are in far less seaworthy craft than sea
>>kayaks.  If sea kayakers need a roll, are we canoeists totally unsafe?"
>>                                     -- Lloyd Bowles, "The Mad Canoeist"
>>
>
>At our local club pool sessions, a number of canoeist usually show up to
practice rolling. It really is amazing to watch these guys. I canoe too,
and enjoy paddling an open Canadian on the sea. It requires extreme
caution, both from the perspective of wind avoidance and taking on waves
from strategic angles. I use a canoe with three deep keelson strips, it is
very wide, and has a high bow to ride up over waves of various heights and
stages of breaking. It is always a very calculated risk, especially when we
are out as a family. Countless families have died over the millenia around
the tide influenced shores of Southern Vancouver Island. Surf requires
specialist knowledge. Few can roll their canoes, and certainly most of us
would not go out in the kind of conditions we would frequent in a sea kayak
where a roll was available.
>
>My private boy's school teacher from 30 years ago was in the front of the
paper a few years ago. He decided to circumnavigate Vancouver Island, solo,
in his open Canadian. He told a number of us that it would be relatively
easy given his skills and proclivity toward carefully selecting healthy
windows of weather opportunity. Some of us had our doubts. He could not
roll, though he could paddle at an easy 3 knots all day long. He had a
lovely "J" stroke. Anyway, it was not surprising to see him in the front of
the paper. He had been rounding Brooks Peninsula on the Island's west
coast. It is an area that can challenge advanced sea kayakers. He got
taken-out by a boomer that broke near some offshore reefs. He made it to
shore with only a bit of rudimentary gear, after stripping down to fight
his way ashore. It was a cold night on the "surface of the moon" like
shoreline. Fortunately, the Coast Guard had made an exception in his case,
because he was raising money for Cystic Fibrosis. When he failed to make
radio contact the next day, a helicopter was sent out. The Sar-Tech who
rescued him is a neighbor of one of my paddling partners. My friend said
the rescue guy's comment was, "In all my years of coastal rescues, I've
never seen a human being run so fast in bare feet over barnacle covered
reefs, jumping up and down and waving their hands".
>
>I thought you might like this example. My ex teacher always did make me
roll with laughter.
>
>>What does the group think? Is a roll for sea kayaking really, absolutely
>>necessary, especially for those that don't go into conditions where they
>>wouldn't go with an open canoe, anyway?
>
>Don't forget guys like John Dowd. "Dowdsy" has paddled his Klepper in open
water conditions that most single, hard-shell kayakers would have expired
in rather quickly. I'm not dealing with your specific question, Wes, but
wanted to make the point that people without a roll do some amazing things
with their sea kayaks. And, looks like I beat Ralph to the mark on this
last point!
>
>BC'in Ya
>Doug Lloyd
>
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