Hello Steve, This is the canoe. It's reported to be 4,5 meters long and is intended / approved for 12 persons. The approval procedure is so that I would expect the canoe as such to be approved but with a lot of conditions regarding seasons for use, conditions for use, safety equipment like class of pfd, tools for communication (VHF, cell phone), flares and more. None what so ever of these conditions have been met and I can quote a school official from the day after the accident: "You shall not wrap young persons in cotton" !!! Now only the lawyers speak, and they are silent. http://www.bt.dk/krimi/sagsoeg-efterskolen regards Jens Viggo ________________________________ Fra: Nole4ever_at_aol.com [mailto:Nole4ever_at_aol.com] Sendt: 18. februar 2011 12:44 Til: Jens Viggo Moesmand Emne: Re: [Paddlewise] SV: Danish paddlers, preliminary backgrund information. jens, thanks for the update ..... please keep them coming are there any photos of the canoe ? what type ? how large ? thanks.... oh, i'm in florida (usa) and there are some "dragon canoe's" here also steve *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
A small dragon boat such as the one the school used (or any dragon boat, for that matter) is not the sort of thing to be in if either wind or waves are up. The very low gunwhales let it take water on easily. The length makes it very difficult and slow to turn. The hull shape (a shallow W) combined with the number of paddlers make it impossible to lean the boat in a timely and controlled manner to adjust for waves. The very short paddle length prevents effective bracing. The platform on which the steerperson stands ices over very easily, leading to interruptions in steering and boat balance when the steers falls. The steering oar catches crabs extemely easily when reversing. The drummer and steers significantly raise the centre of gravity of the boat. The significant length and number of paddlers makes the boat easily get caught and turned broadside by the wind. The number of paddlers makes coordinated reaction to wave sets extremely difficult for very skilled crews, and impossible for most crews. In short, a dragon boat is totally unsuited -- literally unseaworthy -- to paddling in rough conditions. I have found that when a sudden squall hits, the best approach is to steer into the wind, assign a few paddlers in the stern to bailing, assign a few paddlers in the bow to assist with steering, use the paddlers midships to maintain position, wait until things calm down a bit, and then ever so gently ferry and surf as needed to drift to a safe bay. It takes a very skilled crew to do this. Turning when the wind is up? No way. Paddling a dragon boat when it might get rough in cold conditions? Nuts to that -- there are far less strenuous ways to suicide if one is so inclined. Attempting to round a buoy in windy conditions, at near freezing wind and water temperatures, with a recreational crew of teenagers, without adequate cold water attire, without a motorized chase boat, without communications, without a rescue plan and onshore rescue coordinator, without, without, without . . . without a hope in hell. How terribly sad. My heart goes out to the crew and their families. Richard Culpeper *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
I think Richard has summed it up beautifully...a debacle in the making. So very sad for the victims, and unnecessary. Bradford R. Crain Subject: [Paddlewise] Danish school dragon boat tragedy >A small dragon boat such as the one the school used (or any dragon boat, >for > that matter) is not the sort of thing to be in if either wind or waves are > up. The very low gunwhales let it take water on easily. The length makes > it very difficult and slow to turn. The hull shape (a shallow W) combined > with the number of paddlers make it impossible to lean the boat in a > timely > and controlled manner to adjust for waves. The very short paddle length > prevents effective bracing. The platform on which the steerperson stands > ices over very easily, leading to interruptions in steering and boat > balance > when the steers falls. The steering oar catches crabs extemely easily > when > reversing. The drummer and steers significantly raise the centre of > gravity > of the boat. The significant length and number of paddlers makes the boat > easily get caught and turned broadside by the wind. The number of > paddlers > makes coordinated reaction to wave sets extremely difficult for very > skilled > crews, and impossible for most crews. In short, a dragon boat is totally > unsuited -- literally unseaworthy -- to paddling in rough conditions. > > I have found that when a sudden squall hits, the best approach is to steer > into the wind, assign a few paddlers in the stern to bailing, assign a few > paddlers in the bow to assist with steering, use the paddlers midships to > maintain position, wait until things calm down a bit, and then ever so > gently ferry and surf as needed to drift to a safe bay. It takes a very > skilled crew to do this. Turning when the wind is up? No way. Paddling a > dragon boat when it might get rough in cold conditions? Nuts to that -- > there are far less strenuous ways to suicide if one is so inclined. > > Attempting to round a buoy in windy conditions, at near freezing wind and > water temperatures, with a recreational crew of teenagers, without > adequate > cold water attire, without a motorized chase boat, without communications, > without a rescue plan and onshore rescue coordinator, without, without, > without . . . without a hope in hell. How terribly sad. My heart goes > out > to the crew and their families. > > Richard Culpeper *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
On Fri, Feb 18, 2011 at 9:15 AM, Bradford R. Crain <crainb_at_pdx.edu> wrote: > I think Richard has summed it up beautifully...a debacle in the making. > So very sad for the victims, and unnecessary. > > I'm a little unclear on the aftermath. Did only the male teacher perish and all the paddlers survive or were there more fatalities? Craig Jungers Moses Lake, WA www.nwkayaking.net *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
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