> This was listed today on one of the paddling newsgroups... > > > Alcohol related, it would seem. The boat appears to be a SOT. > > > > > > Joe P. > > > > > > > > > http://www.news-press.com/news/today/020405drowning.html > Once you fall out of one of those SOT's, can you get back into it? Is it hard? Bet he died of hypothermia. Pity to see remarks, like those of the 70 year old man, published in the newspaper. I wish those with severe water-phobias would keep it to themselves, so as not to influence other, responsible people who might be thinking of taking up kayaking, and get scared off. Jolie with minimal survival time in my 49 degree water > *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
At 10:05 AM 4/5/2002 -0800, Jolie wrote: > > http://www.news-press.com/news/today/020405drowning.html > > >Once you fall out of one of those SOT's, can you get back into it? Nearly all SOTs are easy to get back on. The challenges are the same as getting up onto the deck of a sea kayak. But once on the deck all you need to do is straddle the hull and drop into the seat. I timed my brother at 7 seconds from upright, to swimming, to back in the boat and starting his first stroke on a SOT (surf ski). Not a whole lot slower than some folks doing a roll. >Bet he died of hypothermia. That would be my second guess, since the incident was in Florida, I would start guessing with heart attack. Either way the coroner will know soon. >Pity to see remarks, like those of the 70 year old man, published in the >newspaper. I wish those with severe water-phobias would keep it to >themselves, so as not to influence other, responsible people who might be >thinking of taking up kayaking, and get scared off. I didn't take his comments as water phobic. If what he normally sees for kayakers are newcomers to the sport, in sprayskirt free recreational kayaks I can understand his concern for kayakers with on changes in weather conditions. Some "good" kayakers need to go play on a rough day for him to watch, to adjust his thought that kayaks are dangerous than a regular boat if the weather gets ugly/entertaining. Kirk *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Jolie wrote: > Pity to see remarks, like those of the 70 year old man, published in the > newspaper. I wish those with severe water-phobias would keep it to > themselves, so as not to influence other, responsible people who might be > thinking of taking up kayaking, and get scared off. Good point, Jolie. I agree sometimes folks not acquainted with sea kayaking regard us as nutso! Having paddled that area (Cayo Costa State Park, Cabbage Key, etc.), I can understand where the 70 year old man is coming from, though. Lots of folks down there have a very casual attitude about paddling. The area typically has warm water in summer, but winter waters can be quite chilly. A year ago two "experienced" sea kayakers starting a long trip dumped a double their first day and drowned, almost surely because of hypothermia. We paddled in late January, 2001, and were the __only__ paddlers around in farmer johns, despite water temps in the 50-55 F range. I suspect the 70's guy is just describing what he has seen. When I rented from an outfitter, they were very safety-conscious, and understood that wind could soon make a mess of the shallow embayments (some have enormous fetches). But others ...? -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 4/5/2002 10:26:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, kolsen_at_imaginelan.com writes: > Nearly all SOTs are easy to get back on. The challenges are the same as > getting up onto the deck of a sea kayak. This seems to be a common misconception. While climbing back onto a SOT (or the deck of a sea kayak) may be easy for those of us who are relatively fit and athletic, there are those folks out there who have some, if not a great deal of difficulty accomplishing this. If you throw in a little fatigue and possibly some hypothermia, then the task becomes even harder still. This has been a bit of a pet peeve of mine since the introduction of sit-on-top "kayaks." They have frequently been presented as being safer then enclosed boats since you can "easily" climb back on if you fall off. I use SOT's in my surf zone class and know for a fact that a surprising number of people have considerable difficulty trying to get back onto those things. It requires not only a bit of physical fitness, but some technique and practice. Scott So.Cal. *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
At 11:22 PM 4/5/2002 -0500, KiAyker_at_aol.com wrote: >In a message dated 4/5/2002 10:26:56 AM Pacific Standard Time, >kolsen_at_imaginelan.com writes: > > > Nearly all SOTs are easy to get back on. The challenges are the same as > > getting up onto the deck of a sea kayak. > > This seems to be a common misconception. While climbing back onto a SOT >(or the deck of a sea kayak) may be easy for those of us who are relatively >fit and athletic, there are those folks out there who have some, if not a >great deal of difficulty accomplishing this. If you throw in a little fatigue >and possibly some hypothermia, then the task becomes even harder still. You are quite correct. I thought of including that when I wrote up the original but mistakenly left it as the implied part of "the challenges are the same". Fatigue, fitness, technique, stuff on the front of your pfd, are all going to play a factor. Getting back onto a sit on top is as difficult as getting on the deck of sea kayak, but it's also not any easier than getting on the deck of a sea kayak. As usual every person and boat is different, practice before you need to do it for real. Kirk *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
> > > Nearly all SOTs are easy to get back on. > > > > This seems to be a common misconception. > > Fatigue, fitness, technique, stuff on the front of your pfd, are all going > to play a factor. And other gear. I had a student with a SOT who said she had frequently used the boat to paddle out to reefs to snorkle and so was experienced in doing re-entries. But she couldn't get back on it until I dropped a sling for her. Turns out it was easy to get back on when she was wearing fins to give extra propulsion, but much more difficult when she just had her feet to swim with. -- Steve Cramer Athens, GA *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:33:28 PDT