Paul wrote: >Stu's bad experience with 2 failing PLBs have sparked a discussion this >week, with a couple of other people here in NZ questioning what >best-practice should be. G'day Paul, Looks like the performance of PLBs is a neglected area when we assess our safety at sea! Perhaps kayakers are just trusting the advertising literature, which just possibly may be misleading. I started searching for specifications and so far have not found a PLB (including yours, mine and Stu's) that is adequately specified as waterproof enough for use by someone immersed in the sea. Considering the expense and the risk involved I think there's a place for kayak clubs (and yachting clubs who require deckhands to carry PLBs, presumably in case they are washed overboard), to band together and publish their own assessment or review of the suitability of products in this device class. I suspect many PLB manufacturers, when pressed, would say their PLBs are not guaranteed to operate correctly over long periods by a person immersed in the ocean. I'd value your and Paddlewise opinion on whether a group effort across clubs and associations in this area is worthwhile, achievable? All the best, PeterO *************************************************************************** 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 Aug 04 2011 - 15:43:04 PDT
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