In very warm, humid weather
and when I’m paddling close to shore I’ll tuck my PFD under the aft deck bungees. For me, the risk of overheating is greater than the need for a PFD. Anyway, compared to my bicycling 4000 plus miles a year on the roads of New Jersey, kayaking with or without a PFD is a low risk activity.
“Impossible”?
Where did I use the word “impossible”? You must be replying to some other message.
Touche
Nice touch with the seat belt.
I’d agree that more often than not a PFD is a good thing.
That explains it
You’re a kayaker. 
Seriously though, I figured that was the point of your question. No, long clothes are not as hot as a PFD. Proper materials, venting and the sun protection make them cooler than a PFD. BTW, I don’t always wear them, and I can swim in them.
Thank god there are a few brands whose
– Last Updated: Aug-14-13 12:55 PM EST –
TypeIII models fit me like a t-shirt.. I always slip it on. Find the ones that fit comfortably and aren't too bulky. It takes a little shopping to find the best fit. Grit the teeth and bare it..and pay up...it's the one thing that you never know when you're going to really need it.
yep
You can find PFDs with minimal coverage and good ventilation.
Rescues…
– Last Updated: Aug-14-13 2:11 PM EST –
Some rescues of people who "chose" to NOT wear their pfd(for whatever reason)do require quick actions.
Yes, it is good to help others.........within reason.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of victims I have rescued, or assisted in rescuing were adults, were not wearing a pfd, and were drunk. Their not having a pfd on often makes rescues more difficult. Rescuing drunks makes it difficult, and sometimes dangerous for the rescuer. Especially for those rescuers who have no rescue training.
Because I always wear my pfd, and because I do NOT paddle drunk; it is therefore my responsibility to help all victims in need?
Risk injury, put my own life at risk, to rescue or attempt to rescue those who make poor decisions by not wearing a pfd, and drinking to excess?
I'm not buying that, and the more drunks I pull out of the river, or assist in getting out of the river; the less I agree.
As for teaching others about their mistakes; I don't waste my breath trying to educate drunks on the errors of their ways.
Little kids: No hesitation on my part to assist.
Drunks: Maybe I will/maybe not!
BOB
I can’t imagine
not helping someone who was in trouble if it was within my power to do so. Doesn’t matter if they are idiots, drunk, and chose not to wear PFD’s. I think most people would agree. You don’t rescue someone who is in trouble because they are smart and truly innocent of any wrong-doing. You rescue them because they are in trouble and might die. I would never want it on my conscience that I didn’t lift a finger.
Judging by the fact that you have repeatedly rescued those who got themselves into trouble by being irresponsible, I think that deep down, you agree.
skiing …
– Last Updated: Aug-14-13 3:17 PM EST –
..... do you mean like snow skiing ??
Or maybe water skiing ??
I didn't know people were wearing helmets in either activity , do they really ?? I know the Olypians and World comps. do , and that is mandatory .
Never been a water skier , but can't remember anyone doing so ever wearing a helmet .
Used to really enjoy downhill (probably really should call it Alpine) snow skiing , still do but haven't been in awahile . Again I can't remember ever seeing anyone wearing a helmet out there on the slopes . Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention to others ??
Most wore a woven bean hat , goggles , sometimes a face cover and maybe ear muffs but no helmet .
Water skiiers might wear sun glasses ...
I'm aquainted w/tight dbl. diamonds and the trees , boulder hoping (dodging) on steep slope (similar to mogul) . Is that why & where people are wearing helmets now ??
ive paddled
Your Colorado 100 in the heat and a pfd. Mine is even black and gray. I was thinking a snake bite or a feral cow was more my worry.
Ryan L.
snow skiing. I know someone
– Last Updated: Aug-14-13 5:11 PM EST –
who suffered a serious head injury falling down backwards in the lift line.
But what did it for me personally was the time I had my GPS on me and tracked my speed on an icy downhill run. That, and the fact that it's a lot cozier than any hat. It's funny because I used to ski hatless as much as possible, but now if I try to do so I feel vulnerable.
ok , ok , ok … I wear , but …
– Last Updated: Aug-14-13 10:22 PM EST –
...... I don't like doing so .
Have found some consolation in the cool weather and even motovation when it's cold (ya insulation , mmmm good !!) .
Also never used to wear helmet when riding my motorcycle or a dirt bike .
One by one every decent place to go on the dirt bike got hammered by the errosion nazis , they even got to the point where if they caught you they impounded your bike on the spot . End of an era unless you were willing to go to course tracks , but that's nothing like exploring and running 20 miles into "whatever lay ahead" !!
Then the helmet law ... I got me a helmet and wore it most of the time (but not always) .
In the end shortly there after the law , I protested , sold my motorcycle and never looked back . I insisted my daughter always had to wear one when she road with me which was alot .
I see both sides
I always wear a PFD. I have a friend who never does. I can swim well enough to get me to shore from maybe a quarter mile out. My buddy can swim a marathon. My abilities say “wear a PRD” his abilities say “Why am I wearing a parachute while running” Know you limitations.
NEVER wear a PDF, but…
Carry them on my phone or computer. I do usually wear a PFD when paddling though
I don’t wear a PFD only when paddling competitively (local amateurish races) or for a hard-ish workout in the summer on flat and busy water, sometimes with a boat escort alongside K1 paddlers when in my surf ski. In all other cases, I do wear a PFD.
pfd 100% of the time
I paddle whitewater 80% of the time, and 20% flatwater. I wear a pfd 100% of the time.
Frequently I wear a white cotton t shirt to help me stay cool in the summer. I often dump helmets full of water over my head to cool off or very occasionally roll. Many of the newer designed ljackets are less intrusive and cooler.
Lately I’ve been using an nrs “big water guide jacket” because I can adjust it so its snug yet still stuff a small water bottle between my chest and the jacket, which is an unintended feature that I like. I can take sips down the river without losing my water bottle and the water bottle itself feels cool.
I do scale down the amount of flotation in the jacket depending on the environment. On one extreme my rafting vests have head flaps to support an unconscious victim. I break out my lower flotation pfds for the mellow stuff. I probably own 15 jackets, since I frequently take newbies with me and like different pfds for different environments.
Skydiving without a parachute makes about as much sense as not wearing a pfd in whitewater. So I carry that mindset over to all paddling. I don’t feel secure, complete or prepared to paddle anything without wearing a pfd. Putting on the pfd is a ritual that puts me in a paddling mindset.
I did go on a cruise ship without wearing a pfd, so yes, I can adapt a little bit!
I’m not sure most people would agree.
– Last Updated: Aug-15-13 8:45 AM EST –
Anyone who is well trained in rescue technique knows that the cardinal rule is "don't compound the situation by putting yourself in trouble too".
Now perhaps you meant help as in assessing the level of involvement necessary to effect some marginally effective rescue, perhaps something short of jumping in yourself or risking capsize or being pulled under by a panicked drunk not wearing a pfd. Say like calling in for help on your VHF, or throwing them something floatable, maybe even in extreme circumstances offering your stern grab loop (better) or gunnel/safety lines (so they can flip you too....count on it).
I have done a number of rescues of inexperienced people both in WW and seakayaking. Those NOT wearing pfds invariably make the worst victims and the lessons of paragraph 1 above are well heeded unless it you are *very* well trained and practiced in rescue techniques. And if you think they are bad, the drunk ones make it even worse by far.
exactly
– Last Updated: Aug-15-13 8:51 AM EST –
You do whatever is in your power to do. Obviously that may not be literally pulling them out of the water if that really wouldn't be helpful. If he/she endangers you, you aren't exactly going to be in a position to be saving them while you are trying to save yourself. The author I was responding to was making it sound as though the people who don't wear a PFD are just getting what's coming to them, and I was saying that I wouldn't be able to live myself if I didn't at least try something(whether they were being stupid or not). You have to assess the situation and decide how best you can help them. The author I was responding to seemed to think they don't even deserve that.
Which, to a large degree,
– Last Updated: Aug-15-13 9:00 AM EST –
is one of the reasons I *always* wear a PFD.
Because in the circumstances of a imminent rescue necessity, your options for doing it without putting yourself in trouble too are limited and the consequences if you do attempt it potentially grave if you are not wearing a PFD. Time is a factor if you have to put it on.
Thus, I consider people who choose not to wear PFDs as irresponsible not only to themselves, but to their fellow paddlers who, should the worst happen, may hope for their assistance but they are less likely to be equipped --or willing-- to offer it in quick response. I mean, I guess they could always toss you their unused PFD....and a cold one... with wishes for best luck!
And that being said, I will not paddle with people who won't wear their PFD, fastened. There are plenty of other people to paddle with that I feel have both my and their best interests in mind.
I still think it’s crazy
If you completed the Colorado 100 in the heat wearing a PFD, then congratulations. Finishing a 100-mile race means you are pretty fit to begin with and therefore at less risk for heat stroke.
I see water snakes all the time and never worry about being bitten. You leave them alone, they leave you alone. The risk is even lower than drowning. And that is already pretty low. So I think your concerns are misplaced.
misconceptions about safety
– Last Updated: Aug-15-13 10:32 AM EST –
I think it's a mistake to think you only need a PFD if the conditions are severe (rough, cold, exposed, etc.) The majority of deaths in PA waters over the years, per the State's annual detailed summaries, were to lone paddlers or fishermen in quiet ponds not wearing their PFD's. The great majority seemed to have drowned either because they had a heart attack, stroke or other medical event or became exhausted after accidentally falling overboard or capsizing. Without flotation, some even died within view of people on shore before help could reach them. I'm a strong swimmer, very buoyant and always dressed for conditions. But I'm also aware that I could faint on a hot day or my kayak could be hit by a power boat, knocking me unconscious.
I've also had the experience of receiving a major head injury from a no-helmet bike crash (at low speed on a quiet side street). My uneasiness about pedaling without a helmet far overwhelms any feelings of physical discomfort created by the headgear itself. I even wear a bike helmet on dirt path Rails to Trails.
I cringe when I see motorcyclists bareheaded. A dear friend of our died a few years ago when a car cut him off (he was barely going 10 mph) and his unhelmeted skull was caved in when he hit a parked car. At the other end of that spectrum, my ex-boyfriend was the track mechanic for Eric Buell (of Buell Motorcycles) back in the late 70's when Eric was a Formula 1 privateer racer. At one race we watched in horror as he slid at 120 mph into a track mashup and was thrown in a 20' arc, bouncing headfirst on the pavement with his Snell approved full helmet. But he got up and walked away with a bad headache and stiff neck.