Re: [Paddlewise] Knives and tethers

  I was surprised to see such a query...  Around here carrying cutting implements as a precautionary device is considered second nature. I was also surprised to realize how many I actually carry.  
   My primary kife is an old Gerber with a clip on it which fits into a slot on a plastic sheath.  This one's old, probably over 25 years by now but it is still in great shape.  It is locked into a lashing strap on the left shoulder of my pfd and kept high so I can access it with either hand.  The clip is kept on the inside (pfd side) --Still pressable with my thumb but not susceptible to being pushed by something external, such as a branch. I'd known a few people to have lost theirs in that fashion. However I don't use a yether line, feeling comfortable enough with this configuration.
   Alas, it is a double-edged kife with a sharp point and I have come to consider this a dangerous condition.  I would now prefer a single-edged one.
   I'm ambivalent about a point.  There have been a few situations where that may be important, such as piercing through a recalcitrant sprayskirt.  To me, a screwdriver tip is not a factor with great immediacy.  For such I carry a small multitool in a pocket; when I need one there is usually plenty of time. 
   Besides that knife and a SpyderCo folding blade in a pfd pocket, I also have a seatbelt cutter on a belt loop of webbing and a carabiner. I also carry a drybad with Prusik knots, pulleys, and a Gerber folding saw.  
   Does it get used?  Rarely but you never know.  I have seen the saw used twice, once to cut through the seat of a canoeist whose pinned boat collapsed and locked her legs beneath it in a pin, and in an older vertically pinned kayak where the paddler's legs had gone past the footpegs. The top of the boat was sawed open to get him out.  
   --And there could be dangers as well.  There was a well-known case here in the states where a sprayskirt could not be pulled and someone pierced it with a knife to rip it out.  Unfortunately he accidentally stapped the victim's femoral artery and he bled to death.  It's now recommended to cut a sprayskirt open Behind the paddler...
   On balance, would I recommend having one with you on the waer/  Absolutely.  When you need one you really need one.  Fortunately the only time I really used it in such a fashion was when I cut away entangling monofilament from the legs of a trapped bird...

Joe P. 

(PS -- I like the looks of that BearClaw...)

-----Original Message-----
>From: Rich Kulawiec 
>> Do any Paddlewisers clip knives to a holster on their PFD, if so do you
>> tether it as well and in that event have you ever been injured by a tethered
>> knife? 
>
>I carry two or three knives most of the time.  One's in a holster
>clipped to the outside of the PFD; the second is in one of the PFD's
>pockets; the third is in a nylon rescue pouch that also has carabiners
>and prussiks, and is usually clipped to my throwbag.
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