See your point, but bad analogy
People do suffer serious brain injury falling off their bikes at 3 or 4 mph. The risk may be lower at slow speed than high speed, but any fall from a height of four or five feet onto something as hard as pavement leaves plenty opportunity for really bad things to happen if you happen to hit your head.
That said, if someone points out that a particular river is knee-deep or less for miles at a time, I’m not one to counter that logic with a hypothetical example about capsizing in the ocean, but some people routinely make that leap in logic.
Always wear one.
I always wear a pfd. I don’t enjoy paddling with people that don’t wear a pfd because I fear for their safety and also I think it puts me at risk.
Always wear my PFD
Never paddle without it.
A reason with nothing to do with safety
I read an article by a guy traveling solo in the boundary waters. He was a few miles out from his most recent rest stop before he realized that he had left his PFD behind. He had to go back for it. A person who routinely goes without their PFD is at great risk, maybe not of drowning in most cases, but of losing the thing!
Years ago, a friend of mine lost at least one motorcycle helmet that way, but I think he might have actually lost two. He rode often enough without a helmet that he never even realized he’d left it behind. A person who always wears it couldn’t possibly make that same mistake.
while swimming…? Yes.
On a recent Mississippi River trip I always wore the PFD, including while “swimming” from shore (actually cooling off, not really “swimming”) because of the strong current and steep gradient.
Don’t become an embarrassing statistic
Most people (99%) who die on rivers were drinking alcohol and not wearing a PFD. That being said there are many people, especially athletes, who feel they don’t need a PFD because they are excellent swimmers. Really there isn’t much reason to not wear one now that inflatables are available. In hot weather on flat water I wear an inflatable. If you still get hot then you do a roll.
Gotta agree with GuideBoatGuy
My sister-in-law works in rehab for brain-injured people. Helmetless bike riders hitting their heads on pavement help pay her bills. Maybe even some who crashed on paved trails “at the local park”.
capsize advice …
– Last Updated: Aug-12-13 7:40 PM EST –
..... if memory serves me , according to everything I've ever read , (paraphrasing) should a person find theirself "in the water" due to an unexpected boat upset , a capsize , swamping , ect. ... the best and safest course of action is to "stay with the boat" , abandon it only as a last resort .
Putting peidmont/mountain river fast water and WW activity in the "exception" catagory ... I feel the above "best course of action" is the proper advice .
How many here would abandon their craft and "swim for it" , if it capsized and swamped in the middle of a lake or reservoir ??
The boat has flotation in it , it will be a physical aid in helping a person stay "afloat" until hopefully aid of rescue arrives .
As paddlers we are expected to be able to self rescue , right the craft and reboard to be on our merry way . But you and I know that expectation is far from the reality for the major majority of those paddling upon the waters .
Now let's consider the activity of attempting to self rescue oneself and right their paddle craft . This alone can be very exhausting for many , and again nearly impossible for most who've not the prior training and experience by practice .
Here is where a PFD can be of great aid , try , try , and try again to right and reboard your boat , perhaps you will be successful , perhaps you will feel defeated , but non the less your PFD will keep you from sinking as you tire yourself in your efforts .
Personally I would only "swim for it" if I felt their no other option ... how about you ??
I'm betting 99% of the time people "wil not" abandon their vessel . They may if unsuccessful in righting and reboarding , do all possible to get both themselves and their boat to shore by dragging it and at the same time using it as and aid to their own flotation .
I believe WW paddlers will not be alone but in the "buddy system" and abandoning the boat as it washes away may well be (but not always) the best course of action . Others would be on hand covering your 6 , pick up the yard sale as a 2nd priority . Anybody who paddles into fast or WW territory and isn't wearing a PFD ... is dumber than a rock and if they are defient and bolstrous about not needing one in such waters , I would have no pitty on them .
It did not work for one here
On the Pukaskwa coast of Lake Superior. I am betting that strong river outflow with contrary high winds prevented swimming to safety. At those conditions, hydraulics and four meter standing waves happen.
My condolences to the family. We just finished paddling the same route.
This was one case where the occupant( likely wearing a PFD could not reach shore ) and 40 degree waters sapped his life before anyone could reach him.
Moral… Know the effects of current and winds!!
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/thunder-bay/story/2013/08/11/tby-thunderbay-drowning-pukaskwa-national-park.html
I always wear my PFD
when I’m drinking alcohol. I’m wearing it now.
I do get some funny looks in bars.
Otherwise it depends on the water and weather conditions.
I’m not a strong swimmer but I can wade like nobodies business.
Rules are great if you don’t care to think.
Always
I used to take it off in benign conditions on very hot days. I find now that the PFD seems to protect me a bit from the sun so I use it even on hot days. Plus I keep my keys in it rather than in my cockpit bag, which is a compelling reason to wear it.
It’s like wearing a seatbelt and a bike or ski helmet: I just don’t feel comfortable without those sensible safety items.
I see many people without a PFD in conditions that are far from benign, and in kayaks and canoes that don’t suit those conditions either. The ones that worry me the most are the parents with young children in a canoe, and the parents aren’t wearing a PFD.
Under one condition
Dear Board,
I’ll wear a PFD if it is required by law, otherwise I won’t wear one under any circumstance.
You pay your money and you take your chances, that is how life works. All the rules in the world do nothing to change that.
Regards,
Tim Murphy AKA Goobs
A good reason not to wear a PFD
Heat stroke! In Texas in the summer the choice is clear. The probability of dying from heat stroke is much greater than that of drowning.
I wear my PFD most of the time in cooler weather, but if I want to live to see another day, I will not wear it in the summer.
Looks more
like a case where thermal protection was missing. A drysuit may be overkill for those in a canoe, but 40F water isn’t something that is going to be even remotely comfortable in a wetsuit. For some, this temperature could cause immediate inability to swim or make progress in the water, much less swim through a current.
A PFD on someone who isn’t equipped for immersion just guarantees that the body is still floating after 15 or 20 minutes.
Rick
Sh!t Happens
Spend enough time on this earth and you’ll hear this oft repeated statement about folks who drown; “Family and friends say he/she was a good swimmer.” During an emergent situation, swimming may be difficult or impossible without the help of a PFD. I paddle a few days a week most of the year and my PFD is always on, despite what others may or may not be doing. Not concerned what others might think or say when I’m wearing my PFD on the mostly shallow, upper reaches of the Current River in the summer. Sh!t happens and almost every year we’ll rescue a boat or two who find this out.
that’s an excuse, not a reason
sorry, calling B.S.
I’ve paddled in 90 degree temps but never without a PFD. I figure the water I’m paddling in will cool me if I apply it to my body. It works.
You obviously know…
the additional safety precautions in dealing with the heat.
Your point about swimming over your head is interesting. Growing up I lived near water and as a kid I was always in it. Being a “big kid” meant being able to swim in water over your head and out to the swimming raft. Additionally, we often used a canoe to get where we could swim without worrying weeds again over our head. To quote, “I survived”.
Situation dependent
I would wear one in the situation you describe, but that doesn’t mean I wear it all the time.
90s is BS
Try wrapping yourself in your foam insulation vest in the steady hundreds we’re getting in TX lately. Besides everybody’s different and heat affects all of us differently. I went on an 18-mile river trip two weeks ago and almost had heat stroke by the end of the ride around 2 pm. It was over 100 degs and I was NOT wearing my PFD. I was well fed and hydrated.
It is absolutely crazy to wear a PFD in these temperatures. Unless, of course, you can jump off your boat and take a dip every once in a while, or throw a bucket of water on your head. Some waters are not suitable for that however(bacterial problems and other icky stuff).