Re: [Paddlewise] Bad advice on paddle float rescue

At 10:48 PM 6/12/01 -0700, Rex Roberton wrote:
>The web site for Outdoorplay has a page on self rescue using a paddle float.
>There is a serious flaw in the technique that is illustrated.  The
>victim/swimmer has let go of the kayak, with one paddle blade under the
>bungie, she is out at the other blade putting the paddle float on.
>
>Rule #1 when you capsize and wet exit it to NEVER let go of the kayak.  Slip
>one arm under a deck line (this is what perimeter lines are for) so you can
>have both hands free and still have a hold on the kayak.  The wind can
>easily blow a kayak away faster than a person can swim to catch it.

Audrey Sutherland has a good tag line to this bit of advice. She adds, "all 
a PFD is going to do at this point is keep you afloat while you slowly die 
of hypothermia".



>The source for these illustrations is a book "Kayaking: Whitewater and
>Touring Basics."  Outdoorplay claims this is the "ultimate illustrated
>how-to guide to touring and whitewater."  I don't think so.

I've got a copy of this book at home.  The key word there is 
illustrated.  It does have good illustrations.  The question you raise is 
whether or not those illustrations depict best practices.

I noticed a couple of other things in those illustrations.  In picture #5 
of the sequence, just before she is about to slide into the cockpit, she is 
in a very vulnerable position with her knee on the seat.  The pictures 
shows her center of gravity to be real high.  She should have her body much 
closer to the deck, rather than kneeling up as she is.  Whenever I've seen 
someone capsize during a paddlefloat reentry it has almost always been from 
one of two reasons;  too little weight toward the paddle float, or they 
raised their center of gravity too high.

Picture #6 looks suspect too.  She's about to remove the paddle float and 
her spray skirt is not attached yet.  In conditions sufficiently rough 
enough to capsize someone, leaving the cockpit open is likely going to 
result in a lot more water entering the boat in an already flooded 
boat.  Generally, I've always seen it suggested that you leave the 
paddlefloat on until you've attached your spray skirt and pumped out the 
water.  A flooded boat is usually going to be more unstable than when you 
first capsized, and keeping the paddlefloat on until you're stable might be 
the only thing that'll keep you from going over again.


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