I have a nifty North Water micro tow line, but the problem is that when around my waist, there’s two feet of excess belt hanging loose.
I’d like to trim it but have no idea how much to leave in the event I have to pass it to another paddler. Is there some sort of standard length?
Thanks.
@Rookie said:
I have a nifty North Water micro tow line, but the problem is that when around my waist, there’s two feet of excess belt hanging loose.I’d like to trim it but have no idea how much to leave in the event I have to pass it to another paddler. Is there some sort of standard length?
Thanks.
It’s yours, make it work for you.
I’m pretty sure I gave the same advice some time ago, but I can understand now wanting to “damage” something until the newness is past.
Just find another petite paddler to whom you may bequeath it should something happen to you.
@Sparky961 said:
I’m pretty sure I gave the same advice some time ago, but I can understand now wanting to “damage” something until the newness is past.Just find another petite paddler to whom you may bequeath it should something happen to you.
Silly Sparky. Hopefully I have a few years left and won’t have to list it in my will! o:)
In the towing class I took, it was easier to pass the belt and line to another paddler to take a turn towing the pretend-injured victim than have that paddler do the hook up with his/her belt (and me winding up with lots of line to gather and pack).
I’m all for shortening it because two feet of excess strap sure isn’t a “quick” release. At its current length, with six inches of excess strap it would fit a 38-inch waist.
Maybe I’ll compromise and cut off 12-inches.
Surely my math is wrong here… 38 + 6 - 24 = … Really?
Some of this may come down to how you are wearing it, though in the end make it yours. Are you wearing it with the pocket holding the rope behind you? You .might find, once you get serious about rolling, that you want to spin it around for paddling so that the bag holding the rope is in front. Reason being that the bag at your back can be annoying for some ways of starting a roll. Depends on what approach you learn. It would put the offending extra strap in a different position than in the back.
But in the end it is your bag and there is only so much you can do to make the jump to gear to work for bigger guys. Some stuff you can size up - my cags have always been sized extra large so that I could more easily pull them on in the boat as well as hand it off to someone else. But most things have to be my size.
Is that “excess” with summer gear or winter gear on?
If it fits a 38" waist and has 2 ft excess (24") does that mean you have an 14" waist?
If you handed it off to me I’d just loop the skinny belt and hook it to my contact tow clip.
@Sparky961 said:
Surely my math is wrong here… 38 + 6 - 24 = … Really?
Maybe I didn’t include the length of the bag? Will do a recheck The excess length is with summer gear, but there still would be a long tail over my drysuit. Good point, though.
I wear size 6 jeans/pants, 28" waist. Bag worn behind but most often carried in day hatch.
Didn’t know that cags come in sizes. I have a one-size-fits-all. It’s like wearing a tent, which is precisely why I bought it.
In years of paddling, I can’t remember ever passing my tow belt off to someone else to use. As such, I’d go ahead an personalize the belt to your desires, leaving as much extra tail as is comfortable to you.
I have that tow belt . When I wear it, I actually spin the bag around so it is in front - I find this less out of the way. I wear the belt loose enough that if I clipped on to someone to tow, it would spin around to the back.
I usually pass the tow to Qruiser in the first place. She’s always looking for a work out. I’m more of a motivational towing person. I’d rather talk 'em through it.
@Overstreet said:
I usually pass the tow to Qruiser in the first place. She’s always looking for a work out. I’m more of a motivational towing person. I’d rather talk 'em through it.
Me Too… I’ve been known to trade my CF paddle to see if that would help a tired paddler rather than tow them… Sometimes it worked.
My pigtail and short tow is a part of my “uniform”. It’s as much used for my own safety as it is to help others. Thus, I wouldn’t part with it casually.
@Sparky961 Measured again, strung out the total length is 59". Workable for portly paddlers, but somewhat oversized for me. As soon as I can find my fabric shears, snipping away.
@Rookie said:
Measured again, strung out the total length is 59". Workable for portly paddlers, but somewhat oversized for me. As soon as I can find my fabric shears, snipping away.
Good choice. Make it truly your own gear. Don’t forget to melt the end to prevent fraying/unravelling.
Mine was also stupidly long when I purchased it. It was during my L2 practicing releasing a tow underway that I realized the extra had to go. It severely limited the ease of releasing.
It also occurred to me to pass along a little tip I learned to quickly deal with all the rope that’s played out after towing or rescue. Just gather it up (there are ways this can be done to minimize tangling) and shove it down the front of your PFD. This gets it under control, out of the way, and readily accessible if you need it again quickly. When the situation has passed and you’re in calm water you can take the time to put it away properly.
That said, I’ve learned to gather and properly stow my short tow in probably less than a minute. It’s a good skill to practice.
@Sparky961 said:
@Rookie said:
Measured again, strung out the total length is 59". Workable for portly paddlers, but somewhat oversized for me. As soon as I can find my fabric shears, snipping away.Good choice. Make it truly your own gear. Don’t forget to melt the end to prevent fraying/unravelling.
Mine was also stupidly long when I purchased it. It was during my L2 practicing releasing a tow underway that I realized the extra had to go. It severely limited the ease of releasing.
I agree, having too much extra length is probably a hazard. I just got a North Water tow belt as well and will be trimming off some of the excess webbing…mine has so much extra length that I would be concerned about getting tangled up in it or having it get caught on something during a capsize. Hadn’t thought about it making it harder to release but that is also a good point.
While we are on the towing subject, if your seakayak has a high stern it might be good to take the tow rope over your shoulder instead of straight from the waist. Down low if the tow turns it can push on your stern giving you control problems.
Well, I made it mine and trimmed it. And today when an exhausted paddler needed to be towed, my belt wouldn’t fit a gallant guy who offered to tow. Love my NorthWater micro tow line’s two carabiners as that allowed a solution. I felt guilty letting him do all the work, though.
Just think of all the work you did previously that put you in a position to have a spare tow line for him to use.
@“Doggy Paddler”
Alas, it wasn’t a spare tow belt. He didn’t carry one. Had he, we could have set up a two-person tow. Half the work and twice the speed.
The NorthWater micro belt is nifty because it has two carabiners. One is attached to 15’ of line. Releasing both puts out 50’. Clipped the 15’ line to the tired paddler’s boat and the other carabiner to his boat.
Got it through The River Connection. I’ve never been disappointed with Marshall’s recommendations.
I usually don’t wear it as I mostly paddle solo, but with all the talk about boat leashes, etc. it might make sense, especially since it’s so compact I didn’t notice it during the six hours we were on the water.