In the late 1950's I was stationed in the German Alps with the US Army's 10th Airborne group. We had some very fit, lean soldiers who were as cold-resistant as any fat people I have ever come across. The generalization that fat people resist cold better than lean people is just that - a generalizaton. And like most generalizations, it's sometimes true, sometimes not true. Jack Fu ----- Original Message ----- From: Ira Adams <iadams_at_earthlink.net> To: Fred T, CA Kayaker <cakayak_at_mindspring.com>; PaddleWise <PaddleWise_at_paddlewise.net> Sent: Monday, January 01, 2001 11:40 AM Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] fatal Kayaking mishap in the Florida Panhandle. > On 1/1/01 9:54 AM Fred T, CA Kayaker (cakayak_at_mindspring.com) wrote: > > >A number of years ago two US Army Rangers in training died from hypothermia > >in the same general area during a portion of their final exams. The > >Rangers would leave Georgia and make their way to the Gulf of > >Mexico. These men. I believe, would be in far better shape and more adapt > >at surviving extreme weather conditions than the two unfortunate men in > >this case. Yet, hypothermia can and does take down the best of them...... > [snip] > > Actually, I think you'll find that people in "top physical shape" like > this are not as well off in terms of succumbing to hypothermia as are > people who have plenty of excess body fat to provide both flotation and > insulation. > > Someone just finishing something like Ranger training has probably lost > most of their insulating "blubber" and is probably a prime candidate for > quicker death from hypothermia. > > That does not, of course, imply that we shouldn't dress for the water > conditions we are paddling in, but being a lean, mean killing machine is > not going to help anyone fight hypothermia. > > Ira Adams > Kayaks currently covered by two to three inches of snow in south > Mississippi. *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
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