I used the Rooster PFD in the pack canoe on a short lake trip yesterday. It was very comfortable, did not ride up and gave me the free-est shoulder movement I have had to date with any vest – completely chafing free. Hardly felt I was even wearing one.
But I won’t know until I use it with one of the SINK kayaks if it does or doesn’t ride up over a spray skirt. If the weather is as good Sunday as they are predicting I may get that stage of the test done.
Didn’t test the in-the-water flotation yesterday as the small pond I was paddling in is a mass of weeds and rather nasty from goose poop. Didn’t feel like flailing around in that. Tomorrow’s destination is a much larger, deeper and cleaner lake. I’ll report back once I’ve run those tests.
yes, it pops over your head. There is elastic around the bottom so it’s easier to slip into than most over-the-head PFD’s I’ve had – once you have it on there are wide webbing straps inside soft neoprene tunnels at the bottom of the side panels that you can pull forward to tighten at the waist, just as there are, but exposed, in most PFDs.
I like the slicker fabric – most PFD’s are made of cordura these days, the rougher polyester canvas. These are a smooth rip-stop packcloth weight. That and the clean front, without zippers, accessory patches, etc., I suspect will make it easier to slide onto the deck from the water for self rescue. I’ve had issues with my other PFD’s dragging and even hanging up on deck line hardware as I’ve executed these practices.
There are inflatable PFDs used on larger boats and the user pulls a tab to cause a replaceable CO2 cartridge to inflate the vest. The user needs to be conscious when they enter the water.
One thing that the PFD requirements ignore is whether the wearer has a wetsuit of other buoyancy aid. Where I kayak the water temp is below 50 degrees and a 3 mil wetsuit, at least a farmer john type that is sleeveless, is needed.
Did your friend Polly find a PFD with proportional fit yet? If not, I found another model that might suit her.
It’s a discontinued Astral model called the Bella. I picked one up used on eBay last week and it’s clearly designed for us shortwaisted voluptuous types. The back is slimly tailored and short and the front can actually be shortened or lengthened by an unusual double panel sliding design. Lots of room for “the girls” too and the shoulder straps are flat and sized for a smaller frame.
I can see why they may have discontinued it — the construction is very complicated and it must have been quite costly due to that, but it’s a clever design. I’ll teport back once I have used it — it is a little bulky in the front but I won’t know if that affects comfort til I’ve paddled with it. Rain all this week so that won’t be soon.
I actually don’t know. She told me she was going to contact someone who sells those PFDs (maybe Astral themselves) but as of now I have not heard what she did, if anything.
I will e-mail or call her and find out.
As we draw closer to the end of this season I’d expect her focus to slow down a bit, knowing we can’t get on any water until mid spring after the winter freezes everything up. So far it’s not been cold, but October is nearly upon us and in the months of October and November the difference between wonderful paddling and ice fishing can be 2-3 days.
I intend to do a 2 day camp-out this Friday and Saturday but I expect I’ll make contact with Polly before I leave. If I do I’ll let you know. If not it will probably be Monday or Tuesday before I find out any more details.
No rush. If I don’t get out on the water locally to test the Bella, I will take it with me to kayak camp in 2 weeks and try it out there.
Meanwhile, I did a search on the Bella specs and found that Astral replaced it with the Siren model which looks very similar but slightly less bulky in the front. You might want to send her this link – NRS has them on sale for $90, though only grey is available in the size that would fit her (no red or black). A random search shows these have sold out fast across the web in that wide ranging smaller size. I honestly wish Astral would stop the rapid turnover of their models, though it does result in great discounting of the cancelled models.
I just spoke to her son. Polly is out of the home now but her son answered.
Anyway, she ordered a new PFD, but the son didn’t know which one. She and her 2 kids are going to do some kayaking soon, probably next weekend. and I am sure she’ll be trying the new PFD out then. Now I am wondering what she ordered too.
Cool that they are willing to help her out with fit.
Though I was not happy when a Stohlquist Glide was recommended to me as being suitable for my body shape. I found that it was no better and, in fact, a worse fit than some of the “unisex” Astral models I already had. I plan on trying to sell it. Very stiff and bulky front and the extra pair of straps that are supposed to shape the front to the bust were useless and only made it more uncomfortable.