Paddlewisers, As I was paddling along the coast today, I was thinking about the barrage of safety I read about in Sea Kayaker magazine and on Paddlewise. It made me try to think of the single most dangerous thing about sea kayaking, which I determined was the closed cockpit. That darn closed cockpit has killed a lot of people. In rare instances people have been trapped in them when they capsized. More often they can't get back into the cockpit after a capsize, and therefore they die of hypothermia. Sometimes even if they can get back inside the cockpit, the thing is so full of water that the kayak is tippy, and they can't get the water out fast enough before capsizing again. Then again it is death by hypothermia. It even happens to experience sea kayakers, not just the new ones Why are so many of us paddling these kayaks with dangerous closed cockpits? Why have we allowed the dogma of this huge safety design flaw to exist? Why haven't closed cockpits been banned by laws? Why haven't the families of victims of closed cockpits filed class action lawsuits against the manufacturers? Why haven't we denounced closed cockpit kayaks as macho phallic symbols and destroyed them so that we can all be safe? If sea kayakers truly wanted to be safe, they would paddle sit-on-top kayaks. Gone would be having to know how to roll or do rescues, using paddle floats and pumps, and worrying so much about new people in the sport. If we capsized, all we would have to do is climb back on. It is as simple as that! The closed cockpit really is the Achilles heel of sea kayaking safety. Duane Bored on a Sunday night and not looking for a SOT yet! *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Limited selection probably prevents a lot of people. Much wider range of closed cockpit models out there. Anyone know of a maker of glass sit on tops that compare favorably with a closed touring? Or even harder, a foldable sit on top for those that must fold? I'm very curious about this, I would consider one for specific hot weather/warm water situations. Why are there more closed cockpit boats? Maybe just the feeling. 'Suppose Harley-Davidson could be sued for promoting unsafe antique hardware. As the Harley rider says with a far away look "It's an experience unto itself". Can't deny people the option to get it into their head to say wonderful things like that. Todd *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Duane, Bored enought to try to start another debate a la "whales" huh? I paddle in cold water, and often cold, rainy weather. It's nice to know that at least part of me is warm and dry. Much harder to achieve in a SOT. We've got one (a Heritage) in our Boston area club, and the person who owns it is on her way to a SI (sit-inside), because it is relatively slow and gets blown by the wind a lot worse than the traditional boats. Roger Voeller *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Duane, I tried a SOT with thigh straps at a symposium a few years ago and liked it (don't remember the make or model), but the reason I stick with my closed-cockpit boat (Romany) is that it is a wonderful playboat. It turns very fast if you edge it steeply, and it rolls so easily it almost rolls itself. I've paddled it in rough seas and in great play spots such as Deception Pass (WA) at max flow. To get more playful, you'd have to go to a whitewater boat, which wouldn't make sense for sea kayaking, at least not if you're going to cover any distance. True, closed-cockpit boats are not as safe as SOTs when it comes to getting underway again if you fall out, but we should allow choice in the world. If someone wants the playfulness and maneuverability of a sea kayak, he should be allowd to choose it instead of the safer SOT. I don't know if you are joking when you suggest that closed cockpits be banned (don't we have enough govt regulations?), or their manufacturers be sued (isn't America litigious enough?), or the boats destroyed as phallic symbols (what's wrong with phallic symbols? :-). And what's wrong with a bit of dogma? I believe in the dogma that man is born free to do what he likes even if it's foolish. I smoke every now and then (though I don't enjoy it and think it's stupid) just because I'm pig-headed and don't like the gov and various superior types telling me Tut-tut I shouldn't. But wait, maybe pig-headedness should be outlawed too! :-) -----Original Message----- From: owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net [mailto:owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net]On Behalf Of Strosaker_at_aol.com Sent: Sunday, October 29, 2000 9:20 PM To: paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net Subject: [Paddlewise] Achilles Heel of Sea Kayaking Safety <snip> Why are so many of us paddling these kayaks with dangerous closed cockpits? Why have we allowed the dogma of this huge safety design flaw to exist? Why haven't closed cockpits been banned by laws? Why haven't the families of victims of closed cockpits filed class action lawsuits against the manufacturers? Why haven't we denounced closed cockpit kayaks as macho phallic symbols and destroyed them so that we can all be safe? <snip> Duane Bored on a Sunday night and not looking for a SOT yet! *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
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