On Aug 13, 2007, at 5:51 PM, Will Jennings wrote: > Life Vest or Life Jacket implies that the device WILL, in fact, > contribute greatly to preserving or saving your life. > That's just not true about PFDs. They will help keep you more > buoyant. They may also provide some insulation, > or allow you to carry signaling and survival gear on your person. > But they will not contribute to preserving or saving your life. I'm sorry, but if one of those things that kayakers often wear does not contribute greatly to saving our lives, why are we saying the subject kayaker "lucks out" when he survived without one on? We don't wear these things because they look cool and are comfortable. I don't think they are either. Wearing one is an extremely effective tool for assisting to keep boaters alive when they end up in the water. We can delve into the semantics of what it means to "contribute greatly", but I think that even a type III "PFD" saves lives. Other categories may have more buoyancy and cause people to float upright when unconscious. But, if you aren't wearing it when you enter the water it isn't worth much, so those with more capabilities in the water that are too uncomfortable to wear while paddling are not going to save many lives either. It is not the reporter's duty to set forth a treatise on the intricacies of different categories of safety equipment every time someone has close call or worse. Yes, it would be a valuable service if they did that, but it is not an obligation. If you think it really should be done, I'm sure the paper would appreciate a well written letter to the editor on the subject. However, I don't think saying a type III PFD does not contribute to preserving life would be in the public interest. Nick Schade Guillemot Kayaks 824 Thompson St Glastonbury, CT 06033 USA Ph/Fx: (860) 659-8847 http://www.guillemot-kayaks.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 Tue Aug 14 2007 - 07:17:22 PDT
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