Does the wet-exit demonstration requirement apply to guided groups? It would be a real burden here in Maine if you had to have the entire group wet-exit into the frigid waters before you could guide them around the lovely scenery. Nobody wants to start the day out cold and wet. Do they need to actually do a wet-exit before going paddling in case they flip? I would say no - if the boats and skirts are selected properly so that they release easily. A roto-molded boat and a nylon skirt usually part company pretty fast, with or without a lot of effort on the part of the inverted paddler. I would say it's a different level of risk when you are talking about fiberglass boats and neoprene skirts , which I think was the case in the fatality that lead to this law being constructed. These materials can be quite "sticky" and require a good execution of the wet-exit procedure to separate. You should require real water training if you are using equipment like that. Mark Goff Hampden, Maine Registered Maine Kayak Guide ************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com. *************************************************************************** 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 Thu Jun 07 2007 - 17:01:03 PDT
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