Re: [Paddlewise] Wet exits and spray deck removal

Peter Treby wrote:

> "I bet that with any neoprene spray deck that you can get over your
> > butt you can also get your arm down into to release it from the inside as
> > Peter described in his tests.
>
> I think this technique would work sitting at your desk wearing a sprayskirt
> (as us whitewater loonies often do when there's no water in the rivers), but
> there is no way that it would work in a "real" situation. A properly fitting
> neoprene skirt is very snug, and then there is the matter of a PFD and
> spraytop/drytop sitting over the skirt. It would not be easy to release the
> zipper on the PFD and then reach through the layers of drytop and then
> through the snug tunnel... especially not when upside down and gasping for
> breath. For the record, it usually takes 3-4 "hops" to get my skirt up and
> over my ample posterior -- I like it tight."

That makes sense to me.

> My practice was done wearing a polypro singlet, PFD and the spraydeck. It's
> pretty warm here at present.
> I did some further wet exits without the grab loop this morning wearing a
> cag top, with a single layer neoprene waistband. It was still possible to
> exit with both the exit-through-the-tube method, and the hand-down-the-tube
> method.

While that may be true, you're practicing in a situation where you're INTENDING
to use this type of exit, you're relaxed and you know you have a backup method
(the release strap and/or grabbing the skirt edge). In a real world situation,
one would only attempt the arm down the tunnel release if the release strap on
the skirt failed or was tucked inside the boat. At that point, you're running
low on air, confused and perhaps a bit panicky. I seriously doubt that reaching
down the skirt tunnel would be a viable release method under those
circumstances.

> But if these could not be used, either because of a snug neoprene
> tube, and/or layers of dry top and PFD, grabbing a fold of the deck at the
> side of the deck and pulling out works fine.

Then why not use this method in the first place instead of one that's
complicated and questionable? I agree that this works well and it's not hampered
by other equipment, such as the paddler's clothing or PFD.

--
Regards

Brian


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