Yes, things have certainly changed over time. https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtEpirb
Still used on aircraft, I note, but the class that was formerly used on AC is now ignored unless verified by a 2nd source. The more modern rules do not seem to have as many limitations on use, but there are some restrictions for the satellite capable EPIRB’s.
Rick
When I last kayaked in New Zealand, I was surprised to see that kayak flags were extremely common among club paddlers. While I didn’t care for the aesthetics and potential windage of the flag, I didn’t find rolling with one to be an issue, as I had first feared. Most are mounted with quick-release fittings: link from KASK.
FWIW, following is from Water Safety New Zealand:
When kayaking in areas used by other craft, make sure you will be seen. A kayak can be almost invisible to skippers of other craft. Wearing bright clothing, having brightly coloured paddle blades with reflector strips, and displaying a very bright orange or red flag about a metre above the water on a rod will greatly reduce the chance of being run down accidentally;
I have had close calls several times where a powerboat was apparently on auto-pilot, or just not looking where they were going, and came within meters. In one case, in the middle of Biscayne Bay, everyone was on the aft deck enjoying their cocktails at the time. At the other extreme, I have also had powerboats intentionally veer toward me from out of the blue, in open water, to scream out that I’m an idiot/dork/etc, apparently for being too far offshore in a kayak to their liking (it’s nice to be loved…).
I have owned my share of powerboats, so know that the majority of operators are responsible, but it only takes one yahoo / inebriated operator to ruin your day (or worse), so I always kayak defensively.
Most of my encounters have been close to the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway), so I generally try to stay as far away from it as possible. For events such as the Watertribe Everglades Challenge, many competitors voice that kayaking close to the ICW, in populated areas, is much more frightening than paddling at night through remote parts of the Everglades. I would have to agree.
@gstamer said:
…and displaying a very bright orange or red flag about a metre above the water on a rod will greatly reduce the chance of being run down accidentally.
Only 1 metre? My head is pretty close to 1 metre above water when sitting in the boat. I’m sure a bright hat would serve the same function.
@Sparky961 said:
@gstamer said:
…and displaying a very bright orange or red flag about a metre above the water on a rod will greatly reduce the chance of being run down accidentally.Only 1 metre? My head is pretty close to 1 metre above water when sitting in the boat. I’m sure a bright hat would serve the same function.
That’s one reason I wear my Kokatat hat that is bright red/orange winter summer day or night.
@PaddleDog52 said:
That’s one reason I wear my Kokatat hat that is bright red/orange winter summer day or night.
Not a bad idea. I’ve needed to replace my aging collection of ball caps that are mostly black and tan. I’m thinking I might shop for my next few in the store’s hunting isle, day-glow orange.
Many surfski suppliers offer DayGlo orange shirts/tanks and baseball caps/visors in quick-dry fabrics. That said, in mid-summer Florida, I wear white or off-white to provide some respite from the heat and sun. Even orange can feel pretty hot in 94 degree temps.
@rjd9999 said:
Yes, things have certainly changed over time. https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtEpirbStill used on aircraft, I note,
Read your link again. The transmitters mentioned for aircraft are ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitters):
" Although Emergency Locator Transmitters used by aircraft may still be used"
A few of my kayak fishing buddies said that as soon as they went to camo colored sit on tops. the incidents of near hits/collisions have gone way up. Power boat drivers do NOT see them, especially at dusk. One runs with a neon colored flag and another with a flashing/pulsing clip on light on the top of his hat’s bill. Good reason why to avoid this camo color fad!
“Although Emergency Locator Transmitters used by aircraft may still be used, alerts from these devices or from 121.5/243 MHz EPIRBs will no longer be acted upon unless independently confirmed by two independent non-satellite sources.”
I stand by what I said.
Rick
@rjd9999. I believe they changed the frequency that current epirbs operate at. The frequency you mention sounds like the older one, though l would have to knock around to confirm it. Somehow l want to say 400 and change?
@Celia said:
@rjd9999. I believe they changed the frequency that current epirbs operate at.
They did. It is now 406 MHz - both for the EPIRBs used on ships and the ELTs used on airplanes. (121.5 MHz is still used for the short range signal on both.)
On the occasions that I have paddled on the Mississippi River, I have found crossing the main channel to be difficult and sometimes rather scary, so I wear a high-visibility construction worker’s vest over my PFD whenever I need to cross the channel. Of course I cross when there’s a break in traffic, but some of those boats are so fast and the channel is so wide that I worry about misjudging that. I figure that being spotted at a glance at great distance is the best way to deal with those lunkheads who might otherwise not see me at all.
I have serious doubts about usefulness reflective tape, since it’s designed to reflect directly back toward the light source and in no other direction (those who reflexively dispute this should take a few minutes to see if they can back up their idea with actual evidence, like a daylight photo that’s taken without the use of flash).
@Guideboatguy said:
I have serious doubts about usefulness reflective tape, since it’s designed to reflect directly back toward the light source and in no other direction (those who reflexively dispute this should take a few minutes to see if they can back up their idea with actual evidence, like a daylight photo that’s taken without the use of flash).
Or they could try this:
The effect is very noticeable. When the light is 1 meter to the side, the reflective tape will actually appear darker than the white background because almost all the light is reflected back towards the light source and not back towards the viewer’s eyes.
And probably most important: The angle of the tape relative to the light source doesn’t really matter much. Even from an off angle, the light will be reflected back toward the light source.
I thought of one other thing. Does anyone remember the days when putting a flag on a bicycle was all the rage? Half the people who rode in town had a six-foot fiberglass pole attached to the back of their bike with little pennant at the top, and many people used them on country roads too. I don’t remember it being a very effective method, and certainly not compared to the high-visibility shirts worn by so many bikers nowadays. Back then, when cars were bigger, a flag might have helped people to spot bikers in traffic, and maybe that was the main justification for the idea.
@Allan Olesen said:
Or they could try this:
- Place a piece of reflective tape on a white background.
- Stand in the dark 3 meters from the tape.
- First shine a light toward the tape from a position near to the eyes.
- Then shine a light towards the tape from a position 1 meter to the side.
The effect is very noticeable. When the light is 1 meter to the side, the reflective tape will actually appear darker than the white background because almost all the light is reflected back towards the light source and not back towards the viewer’s eyes.
Good idea. I think you are only the second poster I’ve seen here to say that the stuff accomplishes nothing to make it visible to someone who’s not shining their own light where they look. That one other poster (I think it was bnystrom) said something to the effect of “in the daytime, it’s nothing but colored tape”, but I always thought it was worse than that, and your comment explains exactly why that’s so.
And probably most important: The angle of the tape relative to the light source doesn’t really matter much. Even from an off angle, the light will be reflected back toward the light source.
Yes, and this is exactly why it’s impossible to make it flash in the sun like a mirror or any other shiny object. You can get a tiny bit of flash off the shiny, clear coating of the tape, but that’s pretty minor compared to what you’d get off any other material with a glass-smooth surface. The wet surface of your paddle blade will flash far more efficiently.
@gstamer said:
Many surfski suppliers offer DayGlo orange shirts/tanks and baseball caps/visors in quick-dry fabrics. That said, in mid-summer Florida, I wear white or off-white to provide some respite from the heat and sun. Even orange can feel pretty hot in 94 degree temps.
Hats need insulation from and cold. Kokatat is great winter and summer
@Guideboatguy said:
I have serious doubts about usefulness reflective tape, since it’s designed to reflect directly back toward the light source and in no other direction (those who reflexively dispute this should take a few minutes to see if they can back up their idea with actual evidence, like a daylight photo that’s taken without the use of flash).
Prism tape is what I’ve added: 
Taken with my iPad mini (no flash): Paddle photo taken outdoors. Boat is inside my back porch. 7:35 p.m., natural lighting
Today I again wore the top of my purple/gray/black drysuit as it was 59F and very windy. Did switch to a fluorescent green hi-vis ball cap. Different lake, though. No issues except on the way back when I had to switch to my stick and was paddling into 24 kt gusts. Raised my stick once in the air because I didn’t like the course of an oncoming wave ski boat and wanted to get its attention. It changed course.
I have prism and Solas tape on the back of the blade, but know that Solas only shows up as a white strip during the day. When I can ditch the drytop, I’ll wear a fluorescent green long sleeved rashguard. Or hunter orange.
Does the prism tape help? Maybe not so much on the boat; those strips are to remind me about 10/2 rotation and ending my stroke at my knees. I like to think it adds some flash to the blades.
The best solution is your own awareness.
I was run over by powerboat when I was sailing a catamaran under full sail.
The powerboat came from my blind side and he wasn’t paying attention. I had right-of-way but didn’t see him coming so I didn’t take evasive action… Both our fault.
That prism tape might work pretty well. I’ve seen “sparkly party thingies” that seem to be similar, and those things definitely flash brightly in sunlight, so if prism tape is like that it should help a lot. Regular reflective tape doesn’t do a darned thing though, except at night, and then only if the person who needs to see you is shining a light out over the water, which of course can be valuable at certain times (one person here swears that reflective tape virtually glows in the dark based on what they see among their night-time paddling partners, but they need to turn off their own L.E.D. headlamp before being so sure).
Add SOLAS tape to your paddles. It is good for lakes. On Cape Cod, I have been approached a few times by boaters thinking I was signalling for help. Whoever told you that reflectivity only works at night is clearly not in possession of the truth,
I had an unsettling experience with a self-driving lobster boat. But at 200 yards or so, his radar, which was running, must have started a proximity alert. It turned out that his autopilot and I were navigating to the same harbor buoy. I always bring some foil when I go to Maine.