The moderator should have granted your wish and banned you .
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Dang, I thought it was filo, nuts, and honey.
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Man, don’t take this stuff personally, we are all just joking around here. I was just aggravated because after talking to an experienced paddler like you who was also a very serious instructor that I met on here, I thought maybe there are more situations where I should be wearing a PFD then I have been. I was toiling around the inner harbor Industrial Canal taking a long paddle and power boats were playing wake board with me. I was not wearing my PFD. So someone broke into my truck and wiped me out including the Stearns Infinity Series Type III life vest I was using under my legs and sometimes wore. So I figured why invest another $30 into something that might serve as a deterrent to me wearing it more often when it really ought to be worn. So I got recommendations from this guy, four brands to look out for, researched it, got on here and asked for advice, got information, took up people’s time, shopped hard and found a deal on some Stohlquist when @rstevens15 said Stohlquist was going out of business, waited for delivery and one arrived, “The Edge” and I opened the box up expecting a lot and I can’t stand the thing, everything I didn’t want. So after making the commitment and doing the work complete frustration so I came on here to express my frustration and have some fun at my own expense. The second Stohlquist arrived today and I have to open it, I am almost afraid to. I get aggravated and believe it is not worth wading through all of the marketing hype, which I hate, that is why I am on here, I am going to Chuck the whole idea out of frustration, it won’t be worth it and interfere with my enjoyment of paddling. I know quite well what people are capable of doing and causing other people a great deal of pain out of bad judgement, that is why I ALWAYS paddle alone. I never depend on anyone or trust anyone. I won’t even take this guys courses because I do not want to be around the other members of the class or even him.
I can not be responsible for the things that have happened to you as you can not be responsible for the things that have happen to me. But this in no way was intended to cause someone discomfort, that was the last thing on my mind. I was laughing at my own situation and trying to make the best of it. When am I joking around?…ALWAYS. You have been to Atchafalaya, there is an old Cajun proverb, “Why is a Cajun always laughing ?…To hide the pain inside.”
I do not care what you say, I like paddling without a PFD for the freedom it gives me. So if I am going to paddle with a PFD more often, in situations when I really should in deference to people like you and that instructor and your experience that PFD has got to give me the most freedom as possible. I hate bulk around me when I paddle, I detest it, that is my main priority. I want a PFD that is minimalist as possible and definitely not stuffing things into the pockets like a fisherman. That is why they have day hatches and dry bags and they will keep things a lot drier then a PFD pocket. But that is just me and I am not budging from that and my mistake was thinking other people should think the same way. As long as I am allowed to think the way I want, that should be enough.
Now I shouldn’t do this, but I am going to point out a contradiction in your direction. You are extremely serious about promoting safety due to some unfortunate things yo have witnessed and from experience and principle as you said yourself, to try and prevent just one person from suffering an injury or even worse. You will go to that length for that. Yet, despite getting a dire warning by contracting Type II Diabetes, you will not get into shape which affects your longevity and ability to do activities like paddling which you love.
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mjac
You must be bored to type all this 
. PFD pockets are not meant to keep things dry.
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I see no need to store anything in a PFD. There are much better ways to store things and they don’t add bulk to the PFD which you want to make as comfortable as possible so you will use it more often. There is no reason not to use a day hatch or dry bag.
I put this Stohlquist on and I felt it and did not like it and this was with nothing in the pockets. There is no way I would paddle with that thing. If I had stuffed things in the center pouch I would have felt like a pregnant kangaroo. The other Stohlquist just arrived, I have to open it up, maybe it is an improvement. I am making an effort here which is more than I expected to do. Give me some credit. I will be honest with you, I don’t know how you all can say, “I don’t even know it’s on.” I just spent quite a bit of money, not as much as ya’ll, and I knew it was on a lot more then I wanted to, I will tell you that. That rescue thing you wear must weigh a ton. I don’t get it.
I am making an effort, give me some credit. I could have blown the whole thing off.
Ya’ll don’t want me to get hurt huh?
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mjac
People’s posts deserve a reply, I got carried away, the guy got serious with me.
Another reason why not to put anything in them, it makes no sense. It is a PFD, that is what it is, it does what a PFD does, it is not a storage locker.
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mjac
You wouldn’t care to explain this would you?
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mjac
Sorry you need to learn much more about sea kayaking and the gear used. It shows by you comments and understanding of the sport there’s more for you to possibly learn. There are many good books, video’s to buy or watch on YouTube. You would understand risk reduction and safety much better. Enjoy which ever path you choose.
I am going to post this as a reply to you because you got upset that I might not carry through and find and start using a PFD more often because of personal experience. I ordered two Stohlquists from Amazon at a reduced price. The first came yesterday (The Edge)and it sucked, big time, making me doubt this PFD thing. The second came today (The Trekker) and I didn’t want to open it because of what happened yesterday. I just opened it and vast improvement, my style of vest, deep rich color, comfortable, pretty non-restrictive, I could live with it and could see myself using it. I want to try on an Astral EV-8 but Isould be surprised if it is any better than this PFD. I got this one for $85 and the EV-8 would cost me $149 so it would have to be a whole lot better and I just don’t see it.
Wrote enough, just wanted to let you know.
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mjac
How many times do I have to tell you people, I do not do sea kayaking. Ya’ll are putting me in ya’ll’s shoes. Sea Kayaking is open water, inherently more dangerous, usually need paddling companions, no scenery, no wildlife, bigger boats, more expensive, I paddle Bayous, Marsh, in the future small rivers, no open Sea Kayaking.
Just opened the second Stohlquist, vast improvement, looks like a keeper that I would not mind using, unless the Astral is much better and I doubt it, this is a good PFD, I probably will keep this one. The difference between the first one and this one is night and day.
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mjac
Great all your problems are solved enjoy. Bye-bye. 
Not even started.
Bye Bye to you too.
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mjac
mjac Never mind if this year alone I’ve already paddled 192 miles, walked 183 and pedaled the stationary bike 490 miles to keep the artificial hips and wanky knees loose. You apparently know all about me and my health and the fact that I’ve reduced my medication in half through diet in the last year and that wanting to improve my health is a key reason why I retired a couple of years ago. You also know I’m averaging about 3,000 miles of cardio a year for the past couple of years…but hey because I have a medical condition that goes back several generations (type 1 runs on my mother’s side) you know I’m a walking contradiction with later onset type II. Yes, I do need to keep working at both the diet and exercise. It is a work in progress and I admit my own shortcomings as well, at 210’ pounds at 5’9" . I own it. When I’m paddling in ky I drink ale 8, in idaho I eat fruit pies, and in Louisiana I’m partial to etoufee and po boys.
Now mjac how about you man up like I did? How about you actually read the entire thread about why some of us always wear pfds? You got the balls to do that? That comes from one wv whitewater redneck to one freedom lovin’ cajun. I’ve alienated ya, but that tends to happen after you ask people for advice and rather than really consider it, you joke or mock them. My own life is worth $260. 0nly you can decide what your life is worth.
Yeah I’ve got my own ghosts and plenty of near misses. It drives my passion for water safety. I played pretty hard. My advice is just stay in the kiddy pool, the shallows, close to home, all by yourself and enjoy all that freedom with your seat cushion. Harsh isn’t it? That’s how we play on the new, gauley, and meadow in wv. It can be a very harsh place. I now dial it way back to class II and III and when I’m on the ocean, only protected reefs and bays, the kiddy pool. Mostly though I’m going out to play with lots of folks in lots of places around the country with plenty of risk. I try to mitigate those risks to improve my safety.
Yes I take that sh## seriously…because I know it can get serious. I think you started this thread with a good goal…but a lifejacket works best when its worn. That even applies to the kiddy pool.
I ain’t an instructor no more. My own skills are diminishing. Someday you’ll figure out that the river, lake, ocean, or swamp doesn’t care if you live or die. If you don’t respect me and my ghosts that’s okay. It’s the water you need to respect. It gives life but it also takes it. My advice is live free and try not to die. I’ll still paddle with ya but by god if you ever come to wv and go the places I’ve been you 'd better learn to respect the water or your freedom will come to you in a pine box. Pfds float here but bullsh@@ sinks so you won’t find many seat cushions here, just throw ropes. We got it all, kids drowning in lakes, adults getting drunk and drowning while boating or swimming and I’m pretty sure we lead the nation in ww fatalities according to the aw data base.
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Ain’t got time right now to reply, I will try tomorrow. The tone seems way off though, don’t quite understand it unless you have a chip
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mjac
The biggest problem for people is chemical sunscreens are endocrine disruptors.
I think you meant “long” …typo?
I brought up the topic because people are very passionate and emotional about sunscreen too. From a purely mathematical perspective, we could all be more safe wearing a helmet in the car as MVAs are a major cause of death. But this will not be normalized for various reason.
Over the years, I have noticed that people have pet safety peeves and beliefs. Mine are impaired drivers, sugar, and medical errors. For some people, it is life jackets, sunburns, gun access, etc.
Auto Correct, kind of changed the meaning there didn’t it…
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mjac
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Somehow I figured than.
Glad you like the Trekker! But wow, 158 posts to get a new PFD… I really hope you don’t need a new paddle. 
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Ok I will! I used to windsurf from Sapphire Beach on St Thomas to St John and actually I met my husband “lost at see” on a drift dive off Sea Caves (Oahu) because the boat lost us for a few hours. I’m as passionate about Surface Marker Bouys as you are about PFDs.
We freedive off our kayaks and take underwater pictures. You can’t do that wearing flotation.
Do you realize how many people in California and Hawaii use their sea kayak to get to the dive site?
Try and expand your tolerance a little, you guys.
Not everyone is paddling where and how you are.
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