Does anyone on this list use safety tethers to tie themselves to their kayak? How about those who sail their kayak? I'm thinking of using a paddle tether and attaching it to my PFD on the shoulder webbing, and have it connect to my (sailing) kayak on the top of the rear deck just behind the seat. I'm concerned that if I wet exit and the kayak then rights itself, it might go sailing off at high speed if I'm unable to grab the lifeline. I guess the same thing could happen with a non-sailing kayak if the wind was high enough. Obviously there'd be an entanglement risk anytime I wet exit, rising to a dangerous condition in breakers or surf. But what good are all the EPIRBs, VHFs, flares, mirrors, extra floatation, and whatever other safety items you can't carry on your PFD if they all go off with the kayak? Maybe I should tether all these safety items to my PFD in an "abandon ship" bag instead. What are the pros or cons of personal safety tethers used in non-surf conditions? *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
If I'm paddling alone in difficult conditions, I run a length of 1" webbing between my stern grab loop and the tow belt on my Kokatat PFD. I've had no problems re-entering and rolling (in practice sessions, admittedly), and, in any case, the tow belt allows for a quick release. I unclip the tether from my waist and stuff it under some deck bungees before entering the surf. The worst thing about it is the embarrassment on shore when I try to walk away from the boat with the tether still attached. -Paul On Tue, 15 Oct 2002, Gary Gibbs wrote: > Does anyone on this list use safety tethers to tie themselves to their kayak? > How about those who sail their kayak? I'm thinking of using a paddle tether > and attaching it to my PFD on the shoulder webbing, and have it connect to my > (sailing) kayak on the top of the rear deck just behind the seat. I'm > concerned that if I wet exit and the kayak then rights itself, it might go > sailing off at high speed if I'm unable to grab the lifeline. I guess the > same thing could happen with a non-sailing kayak if the wind was high enough. *************************************************************************** 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 02:53 PM 10/15/02 -0700, Paul Murtaugh wrote: >If I'm paddling alone in difficult conditions, I run a length >of 1" webbing between my stern grab loop and the tow belt >on my Kokatat PFD. I've had no problems re-entering and >rolling (in practice sessions, admittedly), and, in any case, >the tow belt allows for a quick release. The key point here is that if you *do* decide to use a tether (a frequent religious debate topic here) the way to find out if it is going to cause difficulty during a wet exit/reentry is to practice them under controlled conditions using the tether. *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
[Moderator's Note: Content unaltered. Excessive quoting (i.e. headers/footers/sig lines/comments from previous posts, etc.) have been removed. Please edit quoted material in addition to removing header/trailers when replying to posts.] I've never heard of kayakers tethering themselves to their boats. However, solo open ocean sailors routinely tether themselves to their boats where separation from the boat equals death. I guess it depends on what the greatest risk is on a particular day, entanglement or loss of boat. bob ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gary Gibbs" <garygibbs_at_ameritech.net> Subject: [Paddlewise] Safety Tether > Does anyone on this list use safety tethers to tie themselves to their kayak? *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
Gary wrote: - >Does anyone on this list use safety tethers >to tie themselves to their kayak? Bob wrote: >I've never heard of kayakers tethering themselves >to their boats. However, solo open ocean sailors >routinely tether themselves to their boats where >separation from the boat equals death. I guess it >depends on what the greatest risk is... G'day, Bob's point about balancing the risks rings true to me. A well known ocean kayaker who regularly uses tethers is Audrey Sutherland. The February 2000 edition of Sea Kayaker has an article describing personal tethers by Doug Lloyd. There were also two related discussions on Paddlewise, which were recorded. http://www.paddlewise.net/topics/boatequip/tethers.html and http://www.paddlewise.net/topics/boatequip/tethers2.html. They were triggered by the death of Lone Madsen. John Fereira gives a description of Audrey Sutherland's method in the first discussion. Apologies to those who have heard this before but in view of the new interest thought it was worth giving the references. All the best, PeterO *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
I have taken a tether when doing a solo crossing of a large expanse when the risk of loosing the boat outweighs the risk of entanglement. It was not elegant but consisted of a nylon webbing belt with quick release buckle attached by a carabiner to an approximately 6 foot section of floating yellow rope (so I could easily spot it) which was tied into the cockpit seat. In case of entanglement I had several options including unhooking the carbiner, releasing the plastic buckle or using the rescue knife on my vest. Like I said, it has some problems but I was weighing the risks. Actually I have never actually used it, just had it in case the conditions seemed to warrant it. Prior to this I had myself never heard of kayakers doing so. Most surfers I have seen wear tethers that are attached to their ankle or wrist so I just modified their idea with the guidence of surf shop owner in California. Bob Chicago *************************************************************************** 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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