At the morbidity and mortality
conference every week,
the hospital’s learned minds
from bad outcomes do seek,
answers to those best laid plans
where life has proved aloof,
As one doc says, “Many are dying here
to touch on half the truth.”
Risk assessment and management should be a constant when paddling. For me that is even part of the appeal. The first and foremost goal should be coming home in one piece. So examining with a critical eye the “mistakes” of others can help with that goal. Being sensitive to others (family members, surviving group members, rescuers) is important as well. I haven’t met anyone yet that thought they were going to be the one that was going to end up dead.
I like to think I have my own healthy sense of adventure and enjoy a few surprises but I firmly believe regardless of what environment you play in, you need to maintain control. Wearing a pfd, dressing for water temps, and picking environments friendly to your skillset and fitness level go a long way toward avoiding trouble. As someone that has limited experience with open water ( I’m more a ww guy) I find the whole premise of having to depend on a SAT phone or other device for rescue to be a bit discerning. Others may find my own whitewater addiction and the associated risks to be a bit troubling for them. We all get to make up our own rules, and can be verydifferent from each other in that regard.
If all that is standing between me and my own survival is some sort of emergency signalling device then clearly I’m no longer in control of my own destiny. I simply don’t want to put myself in that situation or environment to begin with. I have made the phone call for help (a group member became lost) and it ended well but definately calling violated my own sense of self reliance, a small price to pay, for someone’s safety. One final thought, nobody buys insurance because they want to use it but sure is nice to have when stuff happens.
The buddy system is a layer of protection recognized in many differing activities such as deep sea diving. When we paddle solo it is a layer of protection we give up. Relying on yourself doesn’t negate the buddy system advantage. The best buddies to rely on are those that have the skills to take care of themselves. However even less skilled buddies can prove valuable if you are incapacitated for some reason. Say a sturgeon going airborne on the Suwannee River knocks you out and you capsize. Your skills, preparation, or signaling device have little value, but an inexperienced buddy could save your life. Folks have been killed by sturgeon and carp. It’s not unheard of. The thing is crap happens, and no matter how prepared we are there can be situations beyond our control. I think everyone here recognizes this. What remains is the level of risk we are willing to live or die with.
@MCImes said:
Minimalism (sometimes to a fault) is fairly well ingrained in the surfski community from what I have seen.
So true. The difference between the two camps (sea kayakers and surfski) is astonishing–polar opposites on the topic.
@castoff said:
Folks have been killed by sturgeon and carp. It’s not unheard of. The thing is crap happens, and no matter how prepared we are there can be situations beyond our control.
Or is it carp that happens? Apparently.
[Not intended to diminish the rest of your comments]
Carpe pun: Seize the Pun
Unfortunately I am kind of on the side of victim/ group blaming. What struck me in the article by Avery is that the victim is characterized as a very experienced paddler, but he could not keep up with the group and could not paddle straight in the high winds and waves. His leash broke at the velcro (I’ve only seem this happen with very cheap leashes.) When he capsized he let go of the boat in high winds. His friend did not immediately go after the ski. He was unable to have his friend tow him. The cell phone was safely packed away in the boat. not secured to him. Had he ever swam in high waves and wind as practice? S__t happens but it’s more likely to someone who is in conditions above their ability. Paddling with a highly competent group gives a lot of paddlers a false sense of security. My feeling is if the group was willing to take him out in high winds and waves, they needed to stick together or take him into shore. That is what the best experienced paddlers would have done. BUT If things go south you have to be able to save your self. I don’t go in for the post mortem victim blaming posts, but when new paddlers are reading this stuff they need to realize that it was not the leash or the farmer john that did this guy in. And paddling with the “the best most experienced paddlers” maybe more hazardous than paddling with some 60 year old women intermediates who may exercise more caution and responsibility. SYOTW
It took me years to realize that group paddles may be much more dangerous than solo outings. If you are out with others you may well need extra “layers of protection” that protect everyone else or someone else’s problem/mistake could well put YOU in danger. I’ve had several memorable experiences where group paddles exposed me to serious dangers that would not have existed on solo paddles.
I lean rather more against blaming/shaming and more towards an analysis of the incident. The semi-annual report that Charlie Wallbridge does for American Whitewater is a good example of this. He tries to provide accurate details and some root cause analysis. His reports tend to be respectful to those involved- in some cases rather more than I would be. (Case in point - the report from a western river where two ‘gentleman’ put in to a river in inappropriate craft above a class III - IV section. The survivor was later arrested for Drunk and Disorderly at the local Dairy Queen.) I believe that the Sea Kayaker magazine reports were similar and perhaps more detailed
One the group vs. solo, in my case I tend to be very conservative when solo. I’ll mostly be on familiar local rivers or lakes (Lansing Michigan area). Given that I’m more often with a group it stands to reason that some of my sketchier moments have been when with a group. In most cases, helping someone out.
To add to my thoughts above, as others said above group paddles have some risks that are unique being in a group. One of our most important lessons learned was when I and my husband got into a spot with ridiculously high winds and a three person rescue and having to land on the opposite shore and hitch a ride back to our cars near the mouth of the Naragasett River. We later found out there are many such stories about that area.
We got away with it, suffering no more than getting razzed by the two locals who took us back to our cars and a chilled swimmer who, thanks to being in a drysuit was handled by hot tea and a cag once on land. And having three boats available to get the swimmer, their kayak and all sets of paddles landed.
My husband and I should have applied our knowledge from Maine and refused to do that crossing. The signs were there by 9:30am and by ourselves we would not have gone for it. But the two others were sure of things being OK and had more training and paddle time than us. So we went along with them.
Lesson learned, even if we weren’t sitting on hot shot training compared to others in the group, my husband and I were way better at assessing the situation in the realm of ocean conditions than the others were. We never made that mistake again.
This caution has resulted in being labeled a wuss. One of my faves here was some years ago when when we tried to head out to a nearby island with a friend, on a day that NOAA had a failure reporting marine weather. Turns out winds were being clocked at 40 mph plus. North Shore Paddlers remembers this July 4 weekend, they had their annual gathering in Popham and conditions trashed the bulk of the paddling plans. I called our paddle a short distance from the mouth of our sheltered cove, said it was no go conditions. We came back into the Cove and spent a short bit discovering fun facts about how that much wind affects rolls and static braces.
Our friend insisted we should have gone and and were giving in too easily. Interestingly, one of the same people whose advice we had followed a few years earlier in the Naragansett incident. So I was fine with saying no…
I was an aircraft accident investigator in the Air Force. An investigation summary will state causes for that accident. It might be mechanical, it might be procedural, and/or it might be operator, i.e. pilot error. It’s a sobering business and the goal was to remain as unemotional as possible in the process and find the cause(s) of the accident in order to prevent that accident from occurring again. Listing an accident as operator error would always rile up family, friends, squadron members, or aircraft specific community but the best among us screw up. It happens. Don’t look at operator error factors as an accusation of personal failing but as an acknowledgement of human failing. Humans screw up despite our best planning. As humans, we will, in fact, screw up again. All of us have our “there but for the grace of God” stories where a near disaster was narrowly averted. So, by studying mistakes of others, we might be able to avoid those errors or at least minimize the magnitude of the error.
To err is human. To make the same error repeatedly is good reason to avoid paddling with the person who does so.
@Celia said:
This caution has resulted in being labeled a wuss.
That’s so, so wrong! Isn’t there some saying to the effect that it’s better to be on land wishing to be on the water, than to be on the water wising you were on land?
I’m a big believer in always trusting your instincts.
shit happens. I will still paddle. I will still portage. My risks qualify as “wuss”, someone mentioned that risk factor earlier. It was windchill 9F, but the wind was only stirring up 1 footers at best. 11/9. Tuilik time, .
to iterate ‘shit happens’ . My bride got diagnosed with early onset ALZ 2 years ago now. Sweet Child of God.
So when I see someone expire from “Enjoyment Problems” I’m kind of numb, darkly. They might be the lucky ones.
I’m so sorry, Paatit
I too am sorry for you both.
Mortality too often uses rotten scales Paatit. Not easy to find our spot on them. I am sorry for the loss of your companion in this way.
The problem is two fold. A. We always seem to blame…and blame someone or thing else.
B. We get too personal and emotional . You can survive with hurt feelings.
My old paddling club, Chesapeake Paddlers Association, made this video after hearing about the surfski incident. Hope it is helpful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OnpkRHTbXo&feature=youtu.be
@TreeA10 said:
I was an aircraft accident investigator in the Air Force. An investigation summary will state causes for that accident. It might be mechanical, it might be procedural, and/or it might be operator, i.e. pilot error. It’s a sobering business and the goal was to remain as unemotional as possible in the process and find the cause(s) of the accident in order to prevent that accident from occurring again. Listing an accident as operator error would always rile up family, friends, squadron members, or aircraft specific community but the best among us screw up. It happens. Don’t look at operator error factors as an accusation of personal failing but as an acknowledgement of human failing. Humans screw up despite our best planning. As humans, we will, in fact, screw up again. All of us have our “there but for the grace of God” stories where a near disaster was narrowly averted. So, by studying mistakes of others, we might be able to avoid those errors or at least minimize the magnitude of the error.
Best post of the thread, IMO. Being in the transportation biz, I am very familiar with accident investigations and reports. They are immensely valuable tools.
Paatit - so sorry about your wife. That is one of my biggest fears.