ralph diaz wrote: > I am not arguing with any of what has been reported. I am taking the 6 > points above as givens. Am just wondering if such facts may want us to > reconsider the cold-water garments we use, their materials, and how we > use them. I re-quote myself to make clear that for purposes of the discussion/rethinking I was stipulating as givens the minimal amount of water entry stated by several individuals. I think there have been some very useful comments made. one of the most useful was that from Rex Robertson where he says that the secret to comfort/utility of a dry suit is getting the right cut of the latex gaskets that will be comfortable but still keep water out. I want to make it clear that I am not advocating not using cold-water protection. Far from it. Just wondering whether we can do things like what Rex points out about gaskets. Or his classic advice about roto-cooling, i.e. cool-off rolling if you are wearing a drysuit in high air temperatures (or if you don't have a reliable roll, just do some upper body dips while hanging on to the bow of a friend's kayak). However, I still take exception with Kevin about wearing a dry suit at half mast (i.e. the top part off or the zipper open) while on the water. Doing so counts too much on the smarts of the paddler and sea conditions remaining calm or, when conditions suddenly turn bad, having enough time to get the dry suit back on properly or not getting caught half way into it and capsizing. He says "You are welcome to never follow my suggestions if you wish, but I think the information should be out there for discriminating paddlers to at least consider." He also says "Ralph, you are very obstinate in your thinking." Perhaps I am. My obstinance with this is that the information was written in a national magazine, Sea Kayaker, that many people take as gospel. I am not certain how discerning or discriminating a beginner or intermediate paddler may be in reading the advice about going half-mast in a dry suit while on the water no matter how calm the conditions. I don't believe there were enough caveats attached neither in the article nor in his followup to my Letter To The Editor regarding this. Kevin is a world class paddler and instructor; there aren't all that many around. What works for him, a recognized expert, and which he advises a general public to consider, may not likely work for the least common denominator paddler who is reading it and has a fraction of Kevin's skill level. How many Sea Kayaker readers, or even the more select group of us on Paddlewise, could do what Kevin can such as while capsized, manage to release a neck ring holding the latex neck gasket open while all the time hanging on to paddle and then when completing the task smoothly rolling up? Remember this was in a general piece on dry suits in a national magazine not some esoteric discussion in some internal BCU instructors communique or a more select publication like Anorak with mainly discerning readers. Kevin and Sea Kayaker are very lucky that Kevin's piece appeared well after Jack Martin's friend, Rhino, perished in calm conditions on a Great Lake in Autumn while apparently paddling with his dry suit zipper open. Any smart lawyer who could establish that Rhino may have read the article would have had a slam-dunk case against both Kevin and the magazine. I still maintain, with un-apologetic obstinance, what I wrote in my letter to Sea Kayaker, namely, if you are going to wear a dry suit, for heaven's sake, wear the suit dry. I find it interesting that Sea Kayaker printed my letter and that of another individual who had accidently left his newly added relief zipper open and had a devil of an experience after a capsize. Perhaps they may have had second thoughts about the article. 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." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Fri Dec 01 2000 - 11:11:59 PST
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