USA versus CANADA and PFD's

-- Last Updated: Apr-06-12 1:59 PM EST --

Jim Segerstrom mentions in the recently
released ACA Tech Rescue Issue:
in which PFD's are thoroughly discussed at length ---

""The Coast Guard approval process is
stacked, biased, and arduous""
"" you could use squirrels velcroed to a
SWAT vest and call it a PFD
and the Coast Guard has little to say in the matter""

Apparently manufacturers must pay huge sums
for testing vests under ""different regulations""
in Canada versus the USA...?????

WHY should there be ANY differences between
Canadian PFD manufacture
and the USA manufacturing regulations on
the the same continent of North America ?

Is a Canadian Coast Guard approved vest
that different from one granted
blessing from the USA Coast Guard
to paddle the exact same waters ?

I live in Michigan, surrounded by
International Canadian Water boundaries
along the Detroit River and Lake St. Clair
-so I'm interested to learn more about this.

Article link
http://www.americancanoe.org/resource/resmgr/sei-educational_resources/tech_rescue_r-pfd_mc.pdf

The Ministry of Transport
approves PFDs and lifejackets in Canada…not the Canadian Coast Guard (except for offshore fishery operations)



The approval process is even more arduous and expensive. Look at the selection in Canada and ask yourself…why are there so few to choose from. The manufacturers that feel they will get a payback from such a small pool of paddlers (population) are few in number.

Trying to make sense out of MOT’s regs is sometimes an exercise in futility…

Seems a bit foolish

– Last Updated: Apr-06-12 2:32 PM EST –

If I wander into Canadian waters paddling around Michigan
-say Detroit River, Lake St. Clair , etc., etc.
is my USA made paddling vest really inadequate...????

It's the same continent with very similar conditions.
Maybe Canadians care more about human life :-)

You can wear your PFD
in Canada, as a non resident. I do.



Its not about caring about saftey. Its about money.



More babble from MOT



http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/debs-obs-quick-quick_visitor-1610.htm

What puzzles me is Canada’s
requirement for a “throwline.” I’ve downloaded their requirements, and I still can’t tell whether they mean a throwbag would suffice, or that I need something different.

15 meters of floating line
in a throwbag makes sense.



They call it bouyant heaving line. I call it a PITA . When I am solo, am I supposed to throw it to me?



It often doubles as a food hanger…not what you should do to your throwline.

Different strokes

– Last Updated: Apr-06-12 3:41 PM EST –

Canada and the US have different laws for the same reason Toyota puts their headlight switch on a column stalk while Ford puts theirs on the dash: each one believes their method is better.

It's called national sovereignty, and it's a natural extension of what we here in America call 'states' rights'.

You may be surprised to learn that in England, for example, driving one's car on the right side of the road will get you a ticket--you're supposed to drive on the LEFT side.

What we call french fries, they call 'chips'. And what we call chips, they call 'crisps'. Crazy, huh? Who can keep up?!

In the interest of conformity, should Canada tell us what sort of PFDs to wear, or should we impose our rules on the Canucks?

Perhaps if the 1783 Treaty of Paris had gone a little differently, we'd all be one big happy country with uniform PFD rules. But for now, we'll have to wait until the UN gets involved.

Sorry for the cynicism, but it IS the Political Season, after all ...

Different Countries/ different rules
FYI; if an American citizen paddles in Canadian waters; their US Coast Guard approved PFD will NOT cause a problem.

A Canadian citizen paddling in Canadian water need to use a Canadian approved PFD ;and could be fined if using an US Coast Guard approved PFD.

Rules don’t need to make sense!

Several of their “requirements” are for
things that only some paddlers need, on some trips. And why require a throw line if one doesn’t require instruction on when and how to use it?

Not quite
if you are on an outfitted guided trip where the guide is a Canadian company…you must wear a Canadian approved PFD.



I was on such a trip that did not work out well. Their supplied PFDs sucked and rode up. But I knew that ahead of ime the PFDs were crap and went to MEC and bought a PFD I had at home with the required Canadian certification.

Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to change the things I can,

And wisdom to know the difference.


funny thing
When KoKaTat introduced Ronin-Pro, it was first certified in Canada. IIRC it took almost two years to go through the US bureaucracy corridor.



How do I know? - my good friend got one for himself through his Canadian contacts, but couldn’t get one for me due to liability bs.


Liability
In your situation, with a guided trip , the company had you wear the Canadian for insurance purposes.

European Standards ?
Anyone have experience with European made pfd’s ?

Lots of water over there as well to muck about in.



Does an Internationally accepted PFD exist ?

One thing about the whitewater scene
is that, regardless of the country, one is not going to encounter equipment checkers bothering private parties on whitewater rivers. That includes Europe. There are standards for whitewater slalom and downriver pfds, but those standards are more relaxed than those for regular use. I have a slalom pfd. It is light, flexible, and entirely adequate for anything up through class 4. But if I’m in danger of being “checked” in Georgia, I have to stuff a cheap horsecollar in the boat to present for approval.

Sandiline PFD

– Last Updated: Apr-07-12 1:17 AM EST –

Products from Sandiline conform to ISO standards
EN ISO 12402-5:2006 & EN ISO 12402-6:2006 certified

Never heard of them, you say...
they sell all over the world
http://www.sandiline.com/sports/kayak.html
http://www.sandiline.com/where-to-buy.html

http://catalog.sandiline.com/index.php/kayak/pfd-s/freeride.html

Seems like the European Continent got their stuff figured out
- yet North America bickers over Sovereignty :-(

Which standards are involved with this ?
http://www.dhgate.com/life-jacket-for-kayaking-sailing-fishing/p-ff8080812fb5888c012fb9f4e4a66a09.html

Someone could buy stuff, re-label it and _______ ??
How would ordinary people know it's a knockoff..........

All sorts of paddling gear available
http://www.dhgate.com/wholesale/store/ff8080812f2de289012f4e11f0456550.html

Who’s going to check?
Has anyone out there ever been checked while paddling? I am considering buying a Palm or Reed Chilcheater PFD from the UK since they have a hydration pocket and lots of pockets for sea kayaking. I figured who the hell is ever going to check to see if my PFD was approved by the EU, USA, Canada or Santa Claus for that matter.

I paddle on the St. Clair river…between
Ontario & Michigan. I have been stopped by both the Coast Guard & Sheriff. Both wanted to check safety equipment; but not details of my PFD

Who read the article…?

– Last Updated: Apr-09-12 1:56 PM EST –

A national group, the ACA, has comments in their article,
indicating rescue PFD regulations and testing are a joke.

The intent of the article is clearly stated in the
first paragraph, and at the very last page,
in the right hand bottom, the comments caught my eye.

Yes I read it
the subject is PFDs for technical rescue. Not casual paddling.



The magazine is linked to in the ACA website but is not their publication. The comments are from the author, and not “official” from the ACA.