Perhaps this forewarded message from last year is what John Waddington was thinking of. There is a growing amount of discussion on what to have on board. An extra PFD is a good idea as well as a tow rope of some sort. Also, if you can afford it, a marine VHF radio. Obviously a whistle or airhorn is a good idea. Another thing is techniques involved in two types of situations: 1)steering swimmers back on course and/or away from dangerous obstacles; 2)dealing with a swimmer who is in trouble. Here is some quick stuff on this. I think by next year we will have worked out a good set of guidelines on this. So this is just to tide you over. 1) Steering swimmers. Swimmers vary in their ability to hear and carry on a conversation. Some have seemed totally deaf to anything but a mine going off. Others catch your words quickly. Try everything you can to communicate. But if the swimmer is going off course or into danger, position your kayak in front of them so that they either hit it or see it and stop. We are making certain in the NYC swims that the race announcer makes clear to the swimmers that if a kayak is in their path it is for a reason, i.e. to help them stay on course or away from a danger. And, most importantly, such incidental touching of a kayak that might result from this manuever is NOT an immediate disqualification. If they hang on to the kayak, then they will be disqualified. 2. A swimmer in trouble. The tried-n-true advice is not to let a distress swimmer grab you on the side of your kayak, which will likely result in a capsize unless you are in a double folding kayak (which is as good as swim raft float). Let them grab only your bow and be ready to pull away if they seem panicky. Tossing them an extra PFD or seat cushion, i.e. any good portable flotation, is also a good idea. Call for help with your marine radio or by waving your paddle and using your whistle or airhorn. I have been told by someone who presented to a BCU 5 star coach the problem of dealing with several people in trouble at once that the coach advised flipping over your boat on your own and having it serve as a grab on raft for all of you, with you on the opposite side of them. This was actually told in the context not of swimmers but rather if coming on to several people in the water who did not have PFDs and were in the thralls of drowning, something that happened here a year or so ago not to far from where last Saturday's race started. Two guys in a motorized dinghy flipped and drowned within 50 feet of the esplanade along Manhattan's Riverside Park. I doubt that there would ever be a need for such action in a swim with motor boats all over the place and plenty of rescue help available. But a spare PFD and having persons hang on to your bow would be a good working solution until help came. Again, guidelines are evolving as we speak and something should be available by the next swimming season. ralph diaz -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Return-Path: <owner-nyckayaker_at_envirolink.org> Received: from envirolink.org ([208.195.208.7]) by mail00.dfw.mindspring.net (Mindspring/Netcom Mail Service) with ESMTP id rtvjiv.f24.33qs884 Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:50:37 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by envirolink.org (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id MAA20151; Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:47:42 -0400 (EDT) Received: from bnl.gov (bnl.gov [130.199.128.163]) by envirolink.org (8.8.7/8.8.7) with ESMTP id MAA19850 for <nyckayaker_at_envirolink.org>; Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:44:03 -0400 (EDT) Received: from leonhardt (leonhardt.star.bnl.gov [130.199.88.87]) by bnl.gov (8.9.1/8.9.2) with SMTP id MAA00853; Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:47:56 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <3.0.32.19990915124516.0099db00_at_exchange.bnl.gov> X-Sender: wjleonhardt_at_exchange.bnl.gov X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Pro Version 3.0 (32) Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:45:17 -0400 To: nyckayaker_at_envirolink.org, paddlewise_at_lists, intelenet.net_at_bnl.gov From: Bill Leonhardt <WJLeonhardt_at_bnl.gov> Subject: Swim Race Floation Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Reply-To: WJLeonhardt_at_bnl.gov Sender: owner-nyckayaker_at_envirolink.org X-Listprocessor-Version: 8.2.07 -- ListProc(tm) by CREN With the upcoming swim race, I'd like to take a moment to consider the role kayakers play in a swim race. Naturally, we provide a good channel for communicating with swimmers and we help them navigate, but, in my mind, the most important service we render is to provide immediate aide to a swimmer in distress. A prime example of this is the aide given by two kayakers during a swim race in the Chesapeake Bay last summer. They came upon an unconscious swimmer floating face down (due to a seizure, I believe) and had to take immediate action. Their alertness and quick response literally saved the swimmer's life. I am bringing this topic to light because I have witnessed a few swim races where kayakers participated but were ill prepared to lend immediate aide. It's not too hard to imagine a scenario where a kayaker might have to come to the aide of a swimmer and make physical contact with him or her. I know that there are times good judgement requires that we keep a good distance from a swimmer (panic thrashing, etc.) but there are also times, like in the Chesapeake race, where we might have to grab one. Therefore, I recommend that swim race support kayakers: 1. Always wear a PFD. If a swimmer is in distress, you may need to lend immediate aide and not think to put one on or waste time doing so. If you are dealing with someone in the water, things can happen that would cause you to be in the water too. Wearing a PFD will help you continue to provide aide while in the water and make your rescue easier for the rest of us. 2. Always use a spray skirt. If you are helping a swimmer in the water, you may need to lean your boat while doing so. The last thing you need is to be scooping water into your cockpit. 3. Insure that your boat has adequate floatation. If you go for a swim while helping a swimmer, it will give you both something to hold on to until more help arrives. It will also help other kayakers to help you get back in your boat. 4. Carry a spare PFD under a deck bungee. If a swimmer gets in trouble, it is much better to toss a PFD to them then to have them grab onto your boat possibly causing an upset. In essence, what I am preaching here is to have floatation for you, your boat and for a swimmer. I think it makes good sense. Perhaps we've discussed this too much in the past, but there are new people and, you know...... Bill Leonhardt *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Tue Aug 08 2000 - 11:35:00 PDT
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