[Paddlewise] Broze's deck bag roll

I was talking to the Watershed rep a couple of days ago and decided to throw
an idea I gave him into the public domain before it gets patented by
someone. Maybe Tim Sp*ns*nman Ingram has just made me more paranoid about
such things. My idea was to make a watertight deck bag that can be easily
yanked free from its deck position (by a capsized paddler) and used to do a
"Float Roll" by the paddler. (for those who don't know what it is, the
"Float Roll" is described in the Manual for the Rescue Float Plus on our
website). The deck bag could also be set up to double as a paddlefloat if
the paddler failed to roll (with paddle, hand, or float) and exited the
cockpit after capsizing. I envision a bag that is fairly streamlined so as
to not interfere with ones paddle stroke  (like so many foredeck bags do)
but with enough volume to provide about a quarter cubic foot of flotation
(16 pounds) even if packed with the normal day gear and snacks that are
often kept in such a bag. I'd like to see a handle or a reasonably secure
way to grip the bag and a shock cord tether (that would be long enough to
leave attached to the kayak in a paddlefloat rescue situation). The tether
would serve to prevent the bags loss if the capsize victim inadvertently let
go of it once it had been pulled free of the deck. Maybe it would store
under the bow deck bungies or maybe a quick release buckle could be released
to allow it to slide back out of its moorings or case and into use to
perform a "Float Roll".  something that hold the bags shape when empty (so
it will always have enough buoyancy) would seem to be needed. I am
renouncing all rights of exclusivity to this idea. Anyone, including
Watershed, who wants should feel free to use my idea and try to make a
superior product and profit from it. Let the competition begin.

Matt Broze
www.marinerkayaks.com

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