RE: [Paddlewise] Roll-aid

> I have to take issue with the "trapping the paddle" 
> technique. Certainly that is what one should do, but the 
> doing of it can be difficult for some. We often use eskimo 
> resuces to back up paddlers doing rolling practice who are 
> unsure of their rolls. They rarely seem to keep their paddles 
> in the manner described even after being repeatedly 
> instructed to do so. There also seems to be some inverse 
> correlation between a paddlers ability to roll, and their 
> ability to hang with the boat for an eskimo rescue................

> A more realistic scenario is repeated roll attemps by a 
> paddler who has every expectation of a successful one. By the 
> time a decision is made to deploy, breathing will be the only 
> concern. I guess the same is true of an exit, but my point is 
> that any plans of using this device should include plans of 
> how to retrieve your spare without ending up in the water.

Steve,

I agree with you on this. However, one thing that a lot of the people on
Paddlewise writing about this don't seem to know, since they have never
used one is that this is not like using a paddle float, although it can
be used as one.

There is much more buoyancy to the Roll Aid than to any paddle float I
have ever tried. You can actually lean onto it and it will hold you up.
The entanglement issue that some have mentioned is also another
non-issue. It has about 18 inches of very thin cord and a plastic clip
to clip it to a deck line. This cord is easily broken by hand if
necessary. The float is not connected to you or the boat when you deploy
it. If you let go of the handle, it will blow away.

My main objection to most of the arguments I've heard from others, is
that they feel this should be used in place of learning to roll and THAT
IS JUST PLAIN WRONG!!!

Even the manufacturer's literature states that your first line of
defense in a capsize is to roll. The Roll Aid is strictly to help
prevent a wet exit and nothing more.

At almost $25 per use (including shipping), I am too cheap to use it
unless it was a life threatening situation. Again, first line defense is
a roll, then when you can't hold your breath anymore and the water is
too cold or too rough to consider a wet exit (and if it was too rough,
what was the person doing out in those conditions without a bomb proof
roll), only then would I deploy it.

I think of this along the same lines as my VHF and flares. I carry them
both to either call the CG or attract attention in case of an emergency.
Capsizing is not necessarily a reason to have to call the CG or shoot a
flare. They are another tool to use WHEN NECESSARY.

Steve Holtzman
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