PFD
Always. 100% of the time. Water depth or location is not a factor, only a floating boat.
That’s the 1st thing I thought of
Nobody knows where she died, just where the body was found.
And on that note, wearing a PFD doesn’t guarantee that she would’ve survived, only that her body would float. She may have died for non-drowning reasons in the first place (stroke, heart attack, etc).
The fact that she did not know how to swim and still didn’t wear a PFD points to lack of judgment.
Drowning 10 years ago
Local to my area, happened right next to shore at a reservoir, hot air, warm water, people all around him.
He wasn’t wearing a PFD, but he floated, oh yes he did. He weighed about 400 lbs. Didn’t know how to swim but he went in anyway, began floundering, his companions also did not know how to swim, nobody could save him.
You’d think he could have floated and thrashed his way out, but how much water did he inhale while panicking? I don’t think wearing a PFD would’ve made the difference between living and dying.
Which is not to say that PFDs never make that difference. But anybody can take isolated instances and try to imply that they are the norm.
Drowning doesn’t look like it
– Last Updated: Aug-04-12 12:59 PM EST –
Many don't recognize what drowning looks like.
There is no yelling, no waving, just death happening.
Drowning people are physiologically unable
to call out for help.
The respiratory system was designed for
breathing with Speech being secondary.
Drowning people cannot wave for help.
Nature instinctively forces them to extend
their arms laterally and press down on
the water’s surface.
Drowning people who are struggling on
the surface of the water cannot stop drowning!
No PFD conditions
Warm, slow moving rivers in high summer heat.
The PFD will be in the boat NOT on me.
You all can do as you like.
PFD’s
do more than just keep one afloat. They are designed (the USCG approved ones, anyway) to keep the head above water. As such, they do one thing that simply being a floating fat guy can’t - reduce the onset and the risks of panic.
I’ve seen people debilitated in shallow water and rendered unconscious in the surf zone when struck by heavy objects (generally their own board, but in one case, a SCUBA diver). Surfers don’t wear PFD’s, at least, none that I’ve ever seen, nor do virtually all adult power boaters. I see more now than I used to, but most seem to think a PFD is supposed to be waved at the coasties to make them go away should they threaten to inspect.
And I agree with the statement that what one wears is entirely up to them, as long as they conform to the local rules, and I won’t try to dictate otherwise, but we had a drowning here last summer during the PWC races where drunk swimmer met PWC and was knocked unconscious. He survives (probably with some major injuries) with a PFC and dies otherwise. If you are paddling amongst power boats, particularly drunk yahoos in powerboats (perhaps not the majority of same, but they are too well represented), a PFD is at least potentially needed.
Rick
Mine saved me in two feet.
I slipped on a rock and bumped my head. It could be why I’m still breathing.
2012 PFD stylings
The ol’ massive orange foam horseshoe around the
neck restricting movement is long, long gone.
Paddling LifeVests or PFD’s are low slung,
cut wide for movement, and stylishly colored.
http://bit.ly/AliveOK
They are NOT hot, cumbersome, or clumsy.
People need to advance, evolve and modernize.
Risk
It really is about risk assessment and management. When the risk of heat stroke from wearing a PFD exceeds the risk of drowning because you are not wearing it then it makes sense to take it off. The risk of drowning is variable depending on circumstances and conditions. The risk of heat stroke varies mostly with heat and sun exposure and can be mitigated by cooling techniques.
There are very few absolutes in life and I don’t think wearing a PFD at all times is one of them.
Peter
I’m rarely in water over my head
and taught lifesaving when I was a WSI certified lifeguard/instructor. I never paddle/pole without a pfd. They provide good protection against rocks and during out of boat experiences, provide one less thing to worry about.
Did just swim 600 yards out to an island yesterday with my son sans pfd’s. No current, good temperature. I wasn’t worried for myself, but stayed close to my son. He wasn’t worried about himself, but asked how I was doing…good to hear him say that.
Like a few others
– Last Updated: Aug-05-12 7:49 PM EST –
if I am anywhere near the water while boating, I have my PFD on. Not just for my own safety either, but in case I have to go in to assist someone else.
I remember the OP link incident last year. She was not boating but was playing in the river with friends, as a lot of folks do in the James during the summer. Unless there have been heavy rains, it usually runs pretty low during August. As I recall, there was alcohol involved, diverted attention by by her friends on shore, and a possible foot entrapment and fall. While a PFD may have helped, it is not unusual in the least to see non-boaters without them. It is illegal to be "ankle deep" in the James through the city section without wearing a PFD when the gauge is over 5ft. The city will issue citations to you if you are caught. It is still quite shallow in many spots then, but there are foot entrapment hazards, slippery rocks, and strong rapids. The river was well below that level when this occurred. Just an unfortunate event with tragic consequences.
Heatstroke is a a poor argument
Really? Heatstroke? I can’t say that I’ve ever heard of someone not being able to cool down while kayaking. Ever.
Too hot? Get out of your boat and swim, float or what ever. I hear of many people saying that they’re strong swimmers and feel that they don’t need it due to that, but bollocks to that as well. The PFD’s job is to keep you afloat…even in the event that you’re unconscious.
Or are you one of those folks who “don’t plan on tipping over”?
Heat CAN be a problem
– Last Updated: Aug-05-12 10:41 PM EST –
Some kayakers love to spout off about how easy it is to cool down by rolling, but I'm one of those neanderthals who still uses a canoe. Sure, on most trips I don't work so hard that overheating due to the PFD is all that bad. But sometimes I've been out in some terribly hot and humid conditions, and at such times, especially during those rare situations when I'm trying to "make time", wearing the PFD means that I'll be drinking about twice as much water as I'd otherwise need - water I might not have on board in such copious quantity as that. If there's even a small reason to wear the PFD, I'll deal with the heat as needed (slow down, stop often, etc.), but if river conditions are such that I feel okay about going without the PFD, doing so makes a big difference in how far and fast I can go for a given amount of effort and quantity of water consumed. For someone to say that isn't true is just plain ludicrous. I'm not saying the PFD is a deal-breaker in hot weather, because on lots of rivers I'd never consider doing without it. It's just that it DOES make a huge difference in super-hot weather. If I'd be perfectly comfortable jumping into any part of the river to swim at any moment during the trip, I really don't feel too guilty about going without the PFD (sort of like the way many people feel okay about not wearing their seatbelt in the car if all they are doing is cruising along a dirt path at 5 mph).
Stop and cool off? My usual reason for getting terribly overheated has been hurrying to get somewhere in a specific amount of time. If it's that hot and I've got miles to cover and the water is comfortably swim-able absolutely everywhere along the way, stopping at frequent intervals to cool off isn't as attractive an option as simply not overheating in the first place. Do I "not plan on tipping over"? That's not the point on such a river, where tipping over doesn't scare me, with or without the PFD.
Being unconscious in the water? Your PFD will keep you afloat just as you say it will, but since it won't keep you alive in that situation it's a pretty silly argument. Relax totally in your standard PFD (no high-back collar) and see if your face stays out of the water. It won't. Even the USCG says you need a special PFD for that, but try it yourself and you'll be convinced. Besides, when have you EVER heard of someone falling out of a canoe in benign conditions (no whitewater, no rocks) and becoming unconscious? It's like an earlier poster said: There's risk everywhere we go and at all times, and you have to apply a little bit of logic when deciding which of those risks to prepare yourself for and which you do not. You are far more likely to fall and hit your head while walking in the woods than while paddling a canoe (in benign conditions), and you are likely to hit it harder if you do, but do you wear a helmet every time you enter the woods? That's why I see nothing wrong with "drawing the line" in situations where the risk becomes vanishingly small.
I'm not saying wearing the PFD all the time is a bad idea or is not a good practice, and most of the time I do it even when there's no apparent "need". What I am saying is that one-size-fits-all RULES about the "reasons" for PFD use often miss the mark. Go ahead and wear your PFD all the time if you wish. Go ahead and say that you think everyone should. I won't have any problem with that. But DON'T insist on reasons that aren't always true for all people all the time, because then you become the paddling equivalent of the person who insists that a farmer who drives his pickup truck at walking speed alongside a corn field without wearing his seatbelt is risking his life.
Heat stroke from a PFD?
– Last Updated: Aug-06-12 1:24 PM EST –
I am not a doctor, but I very much doubt that a typical paddler is likely to get heat stroke that can be attributed primarily to the wearing of a modern, low slung kayaking PFD. An unprotected head, arms and legs unprotected from sunburn and overall hydration are larger factors.
Later add - I was seeing this on a small screen and didn't see the stuff above from guideboatguy etc. But that is not inconsistent with the above, where there were a combination of factors that would have placed someone at risk without adding in a PFD.
In any case, it can be handled by rolling or dunking off of someone's bow in a kayak, or dumping water on the body in a canoe. I am scratching my head about why anyone would sit in a paddle boat and sweat uncomfortably rather than scoop some hatfuls of water onto themselves. If you are already wet from sweat, adding some cooling water doesn't change anything except to improve comfort.
thoughts
– Last Updated: Aug-06-12 1:07 PM EST –
I used to think that everyone should wear a PFD all the time when on the water in a small boat. That's what I do. And having just taken another swiftwater rescue class, I absolutely wear one in moving water with rocks, regardless of the depth.
However...
I have no experience paddling in truly hot/tropical weather -- southern US, Caribbean, that kind of thing -- so for me to dictate to those folks would be arrogant & stupid. For a good swimmer, floating down a lazy, warm, shallow sandy-bottomed river seems like a low-risk activity.
So if someone asks, my new "rule" is something like "You should wear a PFD if being in the water puts you at greater risk than being in the boat".
I'll keep wearing mine.
only if you don’t know ho w to swim
1) Take away fast moving water (surf/WW). A swimmer will NOT panic and simply stand up.
PFD does nothing.
2) If the swimmer is knocked unconscious, kayaking type of PFD will not keep their head above water. So they WILL drown even with PFD on.
PFD won’t help.
Just because non-swimmers drown on shallow water doesn’t mean it’ll be useful for swimmers. Otherwise, no one should be SWIMMING without a PFD???
Cold water
which doesn’t have to be very cold for us older folks - water temps in the 60’s can be plenty to kick off hypothermia. Been there.
It appears that you mostly paddle in warm water. Those who paddle in colder water have long since found out the hard way that fingers and arms and overall ability to focus and coordinate fades damned fast in cooler water. A PFD provides enough flotation to help support a body that is otherwise beginning to lapse in muscle control, enough to make the difference in getting back into a boat or making it to shore.
When I first started paddling,
I almost never wore one.
I never planned to “tip over.” And I never have. Lily dipper here.
But now I really can’t remember the last time I paddled without wearing one. My Astral 8 is very comfortable, and I also occasionally wear an inflatable which feels like nothing at all.
When I started volunteering at a state park and was required to wear one on the water, I realized that setting an example is important, too—and it is much easier to say to a child, “I’m wearing my life jacket, why don’t you put yours on, too?” when I actually have one on.
I still don’t plan to take an unexpected swim—but when I consider all the other stuff in life I didn’t plan to have happen—heck, it is just easy enough to wear the thing.
“shallow water”?
By definition, “shallow water” is water you can stand up, right?
(otherwise, 6 ft of water is just as deadly as 60’ of water)
I’ll allow the extension that includes shore nearby, which a swimmer can get ashore quickly. PFD might help if you insist on re-entry. But if it were just to swim ashore, how much longer distance can one cover in cold water with vs without PFD?
Somewhat off topic . . .
. . . but it’s good practice (and rather informative) to try a paddle float rescue, reentry and roll, and all-in-rescue (rolling up off the bow of another kayak) WITHOUT a pfd. I tried it yesterday. If you are accustomed to doing these rescues with a pfd, you will likely be surprised how much more difficult these rescues become when you are not wearing a pfd.