In a message dated 4/11/2002 9:20:57 AM Eastern Standard Time, niels.blaauw_at_wanadoo.nl writes: > ... The release mechanism is a problem in itself. A sure release system that > only releases when the boat is upside down, full of water and no kayakker > in the cockpit ... This thread has grown on me! The idea of the auto-release sea anchor sounds like a potentially very useful safety device in conditions so severe, relative to the paddler's skill and emotional or physical state at the time, that they could force her or him actually to exit accidentally. At that point, a sea anchor holding the bow or the stern of the boat into the wind might not only make the difference between said paddler being able to reach the boat again or the latter drifting away, but might also be of invaluable assistance during the re-entry, assuming for the moment that wind and waves are more or less aligned. In fact, I suspect that under almost all real (!) circumstances that I can imagine (and hope never to experience), the poor paddler will find the head-on orientation of the hull effected by deployed anchor helpful. Therefore I do not really see any need for the cockpit to be full of water or the boat to be upside down as additional deployment criteria. The anchor should be released as soon as the spray skirt pops, in my view. This would cut down on the amount of drifting the empty boat could potentially do before the anchor is fully deployed and able to hold the boat back effectively. A simple pull-pin "velcroed" to the spray skirt might do that job in combination with a "Drift Stopper" (anchor-in-a-bag) type set-up for the anchor. Will have to work on that idea a little ... Keep It Simple, Stupid comes to mind ... Under NO circumstances would I rig the anchor in such a way that it pulls anywhere other than at bow or stern, certainly not in the area of the cockpit, guaranteeing that the boat will end up broadside on to the waves. Personally I prefer pointing the bow into the waves because I like to see the monsters that might be coming at me! Best regards, Ralph Ralph_at_PouchBoats.com www.PouchBoats.com *************************************************************************** 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 Thu Apr 11 2002 - 08:08:33 PDT
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