RE: [Paddlewise] 3- Dead Kayakers

>  One thing that was very forcefully drilled into my thick skull as a
>beginning whitewater paddler was that "low-head" dams are drowning machines.
>Just because it's only a 12"-36" drop doesn't mean it's safe - just the
>opposite.  A big part of the danger comes from the fact that these things
>don't look like daunting obstacles.  The hydraulics created by these dams
>can be inescapable.  To further the hazard the outflow area on the bottom of
>many of these dams can have exposed re-bar, steel mesh, broken concrete, etc
>just waiting to "grab" a struggling, recirculating swimmer.

One Sunday very long ago, a group of us were paddling in inflatables down the Salt River in Arizona.  Much more beer drinking than was healthy was part of the usual plan.  PFDs?  Saw one around a beer cooler once.  This is a slow, warm, easy river, except when it isn't.  There was a low obstruction underwater, possibly a dike or just prominent rocks, making a condition like a low dam.  Or damn.  Most of the time you could cruise right through and it was a thrill.  This Sunday, it threw my raft end over end and spun me head over heals three times, smacking my head on the concrete or rocks below each time.  The third time I managed to kick out and hit something solid and break out, otherwise I probably would have spent eternity there.

Complacency is easy to develop.  I think I went through that spot without incident 5 or 10 times before getting my head beat in, that day.  Some people have to have safety beaten into their thick heads.  I know.  I got away with some cuts and bruises and $106 for new glasses -- I was luckier than the people in Michigan.

jerry.
***************************************************************************
PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not
to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission
Submissions:     PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net
Subscriptions:   PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net
Website:         http://www.paddlewise.net/
***************************************************************************