Re: [Paddlewise] PFD knife or hook?

I carry several different knives depending on circumstances.

This one, a CRKT "Bear Claw", lives on my Stohlquist rescue vest:

	http://www.crkt.com/cgi-bin/crkt.pl?pgm=co_disp&func=displ&strfnbr=81&prrfnbr=70&sesent=0,0&search_id=363443

with another, smaller, folding CRKT as backup #1 and a pair of
cheap EMT shears (under $10 at any decent drugstore) as backup #2.
Those shears are great because they can be pressed up against a
person -- to cut thigh straps, let's say -- without cutting them.
They live in my primary rescue gear pouch, along with locking
and non-locking carabiners, a couple of prussik loops, and pulleys.

This one, a folding Gerber, generally lives on my Lotus rescue vest:

	http://www.gerbergear.com/index.php/product/id/214

It's clipped inside the mesh pocket, making it slightly harder to
get at but much harder to lose.  (And yes, I've tested that by
pulling it with one hand while upside-down in the boat.)

Finally, whenever doing something creekish, I have this nasty
piece of work in my drybag:

	http://www.fiskars.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=10101&categoryId=10263&productId=10520&page=products

Why?  Because it can saw through a kayak or canoe.  And because
it's cheap enough (under $15) that even if I only use it once,
it's worth the cost and the effort to lug it around for years.

The thing is, any time you actually have to use a knife in a rescue,
there's a decent chance you'll lose it.  My old Gerber straight blade
rode around on my vest for over a decade, never out of its sheath,
until the day I had to cut a line loose in a very big hurry.  Five
seconds later, it was gone, lost into deep water in class IV drop.

But (a) it served its purpose and (b) that's why I carry backups.

There's no universal answer to the knife question; I think "what
works for you" is best.  The one thing that I think might approach
a common factor is "can you draw the knife and use it with one hand?"
followed closely by "with *either* hand?"  Another possibility is
"can you do it when your hands are cold and numb?"

---Rsk
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