Hi all, from DownUnder.. may I draw to your attention to a thoughtful article by Roger Schumann in a recent Seakayaker on developing the ability to hold one's breath underwater . This is a skill developed by divers and is a practical counter to the all too natural 'panic' reaction when your world has turned watery and upside down [ those of us born south of the Equator have uniquely developed genetic systems to cope with this ] ! Becoming accustomed to floating attached and upside down in your kayak gives you a safety edge.. to set yourself up for a roll up, wet exit, or wait for a rescue. One of my boats is a Klepper and I find it hard to conceive of an occasion when I would be 'trapped' in my kayak, but even in this kayak, I have come close when the boat has been jammed with heaps of camping gear, and I am using my heavy weather skirt. Of course, anything can happen at sea, and does. But I took the point of Roger's article: develop skills around sudden immersion [ especially in cold water] and SELF SURVIVAL ... whether it be with a bombproof roll, re-entry and roll up, or other self rescue method. I have always considered the best rescue method is the one I practise and expect will give ME the best chance of SURVIVAL. And this will relate to my skill level in the type of boat I am paddling on that day. For some this will be a bombproof roll, for others it will be a paddlefloat rescue, for others, a cowboy rescue etc. And I paddle on the understanding that I am personally responsible for my actions on the water and cannot rely on anyone to help me. Certainly develop the group dynamics and leadership [ well canvassed over years of PaddleWise discussions] to maximize group safety, but surely it would take extraordinary circumstances, as outlined by Doug's jam into a rocky seabed, to find oneself trapped in a properly set up seakayak. Jim, I would gently disagree with your view that 99 per cent of seakayaking is 'minimal risk', but I accept your premise that a skilled WW paddler would probably have a more reliable roll than many seakayakers. Cheers, Peter Rattenbury *************************************************************************** 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 Wed Jan 07 2004 - 06:31:24 PST
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