@davbart that’s because you have confidence, and I respect that. I don’t want to deal with possibilities, so I make sure I wear mine. It’s counter intuitive to reduce my own worry then fret over what a person I don’t even know is doing or not doing. Stay safe.
Some would call it hubris, arrogance or downright stupidity; oh well, I have no ability to control someone else’s thoughts. Anyway, until I get this shoulder working better, I don’t even have to make a decision about wearing a PFD. It’s been months since I’ve been in a boat.
Bummer
How about a peddle kayak?
I’ve been working on the shoulder for months. I think it is about time to give the shoulder a try. Plus the grandkids have been asking about going to the lake for kayaking and swimming, one more reason to see how it responds.
Good luck!
Don’t forget your PFD. 
Congrats on your recovery. My shoulders aren’t quite like-new either and I’ve also had to take a break from paddling to build myself back up to where I was before overdoing a couple things. My local river is low and slow and that’s fine by me; here’s my put-in today.
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That’s the type paddle I look for now for the same shoulder issues. The 5 gentle miles yesterday were nice.
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Just realizing we might have to rescue our dog. I’m usually wearing a waist inflatable but I always take the vest on deck in case the dog swims out or jumps off the canoe.
Aussies will die trying to follow you anywhere.
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American Whitewater has an extensive database of fatalities and near misses on moving water. There are options to drill down into the data.
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Thanks! Really interesting breakdown chart that calls for attention and thought from more invested (as opposed to casual) ww paddlers.
sing
yes it is interesting.
Note the % of non-pfd wear - 15%
I’m a little surprised it’s that ‘high’. The WW paddler knows the dangers of whitewater and will always have a pfd (and helmet), not so the casual kayak paddler.
It would be nice to see fatality stats for non-ww paddlers which includes the same parms (fatality, private/comm, cause, boat type).
‘boat type’ would differentiate between ‘seakayak’ and ‘rec boat’, maybe length.
I hope it doesn’t make me sound like an ‘elitest’, but my guess is that ‘seakayak’ paddlers have a rather high rate of pfd wear, rec-boat paddlers much less, though I would also say that of the rec-boat paddlers in this forum the rate is probably rather high.
That % of PFD wear is for the fatalities not WW paddlers in total. If 15% of WW paddlers didn’t wear PFDs, I imagine the fatality rate would be even higher.
so raisins the aw data is as good as the reports they (charlie w) get. That stats include some low head dam drownings, fishermen and others who get swept away in ww rivers who were swimming. The stats include class II rivers with strainers. Combine that combo with commercial liveries and pfd usage can be lacking.
@rival51 that’s the best graph I’ve seen. Another good find. It shows some evidence why some would feel a PFD could be a hinderance rather than a benefit. Unfortunately, statistics for how many times a PFD saves a life is harder to assess. As I studied the graph, it’s apparent the figures are for white water only. Wonder what the toll is for other kayaks or canoes on open water.
Pinned under a raft in a Class IV, my buddy was able to keep my nose above the river level by pulling on my PFD straps.
While swimming a Class V, I went into a big hole and it got dark and cold. There was no way to tell which way was up. PFD rocketed me to the surface.
In aerated water floation allows you to breathe.
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https://uscgboating.org/statistics/index.php
Pretty much everything collected by the CG. A lot of wading through it but some interesting info.m
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The personal incident that convinced me to always wear a PFD was when I was born with a brain.
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Statistically speaking, you would wear a helmet in your car too, just saying.
Risk is a fascinating topic.
I can’t believe all these German eighty year olds riding bikes in traffic with no helmet! 
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That woman is not a potential victim. The only potential victim is anyone that messes with a confident German woman that knows she’s following the rules and may well have had two beers at lunch with her girlfriends.
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I started wearing mine on the e-bike once I realized my head could crack like an egg 
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