Re: [Paddlewise] Lost at Sea while Sailing

Glen "delurked" and said:

>>Here's my first post to paddlewise.  At the risk of stating the
obvious, here's my comments.>>

Glad to hear from you Glen!

Mr Doug Lloyd writes:
 > <snip>
 > the gear. The people who ask me to do these talks are trying to sell
as
 > many boats to as many people as they can, I'm sure, and want a
 > "balanced" presentation -- not melodrama.
 >
 > <snip -story about missing kayaker>
 >
 > I feel better about preaching the hard-line safety-tech talk now -
 > though it is unfortunate it takes tragedies for me to feel better
about
 > myself and tether articles and other such things that I preach the
 > gospel about, but are often non-conformist to established sea kayak
 > training regimes and the proclivities of many instructor trainer
types
 > involved with these germane schemes. Geesh I'm weird!

>>Perhaps the hard line talk can be mitigated by stating that the gear
and preperations are relative to the situation.  While the sea is
mighty fickle, my experience of inland paddles is that of a gentler
sort.  If the concern is to not scare new paddlers from the sport,
steer them towards lake and calm river paddles.  Show how levels of
gear and preperation are appropriate for an increase in the
risk/challenge of a paddle (esp as you cross from lake to inlet to
open ocean).>>

This is generally the line I take with newer paddlers, or those thinking
of getting into it. We are fortunate in our area, as lots of tour guides
are available, as well as lots of sheltered water. Unfortunately, new
paddlers are often told to stay close to shore, and you will be fine.
One of the areas I love to paddle on a big tide is just a few feet off
the Victoria waterfront, near a golf course in Oak Bay. I was giving
this example I'm about to give to you, to a friend recently, when they
immediately understood what I was saying. They had been out for a walk
near the golf course, when they heard a terrible, mighty roar. As they
walker further, they could not believe the sight before their eyes. The
tide was moving so fast, only a few feet from shore,  and horrendous
overfalls churned everywhere. A paddler came around the corner here just
last year, and hit this area with no warning. Fortunately a whale
watching operator picked the fellow up out of the water after the
paddler bailed. The point is, you are not safe just staying close to
shore. This isn't even a gear issue.

I ran a report in SK a while back about another fellow who capsized
further out off Trial Island, near this same area above. He had been
lake paddling for the most part, and had stayed safe up until that
point. He opted at the last moment that day not to do the lake thing,
and headed out to sea and almost lost his life. I agree that lakes are a
great place to start -- smaller lakes, no tide, keep near shore. Good
advice Glen.

As far as my mentioning feeling weird (per my above post you included),
I was a bit sensitive at the time over the tether issue. I had ran an
article in SK magazine about tethers and taken a bit of heat about it
from the ACA and CRCA types. I know tethers are a controversial issue.
My SK article wasn't meant to be a wholesale proscription for everyone
to tether everything, including themselves to their boats. I was simply
trying to indicate in some logical manner, what some of the options
were, why one might consider the use of certain tethers, and what some
of the pitfalls are. I run in to people out on the water with all kinds
of dangerous tether arrangements. It is de facto that people are using
them, so why not provide some clarification and information so people
can weigh the pros and cons more appropriately.

As it turns out, Audrey Sutherland wrote a  letter to the editor at SK
supporting  certain notions about tethers, adding others, and thanking
me. I only recently got my copy. I felt a bit better after that, as I
never got a chance to respond to a previous letter  in SK criticizing my
article indirectly. Some of the stuff Audrey wrote had been cut from my
article, which was more icing on the cake for me (not meant as a
put-down to SK, stuff always gets cut for brevity, etc).  The reality
however, is that tethers can be dangerous under the wrong conditions,
and much thought must go into their use. (And whether the kayaker who
died using his kite to sail would have been better off with a tether, I
do not know. I am working with the Comox Coroner's office, collaborating
on a report. The coroner also requested a copy of my SK article.)

That is one of the reasons I exclude my self from teaching and coaching.
I've been told by instructor trainers that I overwhelm students with too
much info regarding all the pros and cons of various gear, boats, etc. I
guess I like to tell everyone, every option and every kind of way to do
certain things. One can't do that with new paddlers. Guys like Rob
Crookson and others on this list probably know how to stimulate
interest, deliver appropriate info, convey necessary detail - all
without overwhelming the student. That is a great skill to have.

Happy paddling Glen. If its wet, paddle it, pond or otherwise!

BC'in Ya
Doug Lloyd




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