Author Topic: Whats so bad about PFDs?  (Read 41151 times)

coldsup

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #60 on: May 21, 2016, 10:56:55 AM »
If you are totally stuffed out to sea and can't get back for one reason or another and you are too far from shore to swim....and then lose your board or have lost it already....then you will be glad of a PFD but you will also wish you had a waterproof VHF or a phone you can use in the water. Or a PLB. And if your water is cold you better hope that rescue comes quick or you are dead. Simples.

But that's a worse case scenario. Either a belt PFD or standard PFD are good options when out to sea but you MUST have a means of communication if you are in cold water too IMHO.

Change the leash , inspect your leash and make sure your string attachment is good.

And if you are traveling far and away from shore take a spare paddle....eh UK Dave.

Paddling in cold water in thick wetsuits and colder temps brings lots more added probs. If I was in a t shirt and shorts then swimming back to shore in warm water would be great but alas not. I wish I had that option....I really do as I doubt I would be so concerned about getting stuffed out there.
« Last Edit: May 21, 2016, 11:03:53 AM by coldsup »

headmount

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #61 on: May 21, 2016, 12:07:52 PM »
I use a full on sea kayaking buoyancy aid at sea every time!

And I'm a pro swimmer too 😀

Yeah but you're in water that's so cold your muscles won't work.  So in that case the PFD and a Mustang suit would be the bomb.

UKRiverSurfers

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #62 on: May 22, 2016, 01:37:26 AM »
Err - it's cold but not toooooooo cold.

I am a 3 X 3 hour surf sessions in 6c water... That's 9 hours in water that is only 6 Celsius...Often changing afterwards in minus 5 air temps with minus 30 wind chill

I wouldn't try to swim in, I would use one of my back up plans. Every trip 'should' have an escape plan. As Coldy says - VHF, PLB, etc, etc..... 

We need to stop using the term PFD too as it is the cause of ignorance among beginners and has caused deaths - simply because a PFD was given as a life jacket
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Califoilia

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #63 on: May 22, 2016, 12:07:14 PM »
Most people I know wear the inflatables to avoid tickets, and after that for the protection.  I think almost all of them also wear leashes.
Exactly.

An excerpt from my last encounter a couple months ago with the County Sheriff Office's patrol board while paddling the harbor on my 8'5" surfboard when out with some friends:
Quote
Officer: Excuse me sir, do you have a personal flotation device with you?

Me: Yes, I'm standing on it, and I'm attached to it with this leash (pointing down to it).

Officer: No, you have to have a "real one" on your person or attached to your board.

Me: OK, so if/when I fall in....do I pull my board back to me, climb back on to it, and then put my pfd on...or do I pull my board back to me, grab my pfd off of it, put it on in the water, and then climb back onto my board?

Officer (with a dumbass look in his face):  Uhhh, well....you'll have to take that up with the Harbor Master or the Coast Guard.  Now turn around, and paddle back to the beach where you launched.

Me: Ah, you do know that from where we are, it's a shorter route if I just keep going around the island, and back to the beach that way, right?

Officer (now po'd):  Whatever, just paddle back to the beach, and don't let me see you out here again without one.  Consider this your one, and only warning...the next time it's a ticket for not having one.

Me (with a big smile on my face): Rightio officer, thank you....have a nice.  ;D
In between the "take it up with the Harbor Master", and the instructions to turn around, and head back to the beach...I pointed out several of the "renters" out with orange life vests attached to the nose of their boards sans a leash, and inquired about what would happen if they fell off, couldn't swim, and the board floated away from them.

His now frustrated, but certainly poignant, and somewhat unexpected (or maybe not) reply...."I don't know, but they're legal, and you are not".  He than had obviously had enough, and directed me back to the beach after that.

Sadly, stupidity abounds at all levels of the sport, and the enforcement of its "rules and regs".  I now wear belt pfd, and leash when in the harbor, one for the same reason as "pdxmike", one to "just to avoid the ticket"....and the other to hopefully promote what I believe to be the more realistic answer to the problem.

That said, if heading out past the breakwater on my 14'...I wear both, and a belt water bottle holder with no real discomfort or obstruction in my paddle stroke "just in case".  While I'm fairly sure that the leash is not going to break, and that the board itself is the best "floatation device" I'll have on the trip....the "fairly sure" thing is still in place, and as long as that's there, I'll toss it on for piece of mind, and maybe a false sense of security if nothing else.
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pdxmike

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #64 on: May 22, 2016, 03:19:12 PM »
Most people I know wear the inflatables to avoid tickets, and after that for the protection.  I think almost all of them also wear leashes.
Exactly.

An excerpt from my last encounter a couple months ago with the County Sheriff Office's patrol board while paddling the harbor on my 8'5" surfboard when out with some friends:
Quote
Officer: Excuse me sir, do you have a personal flotation device with you?

Me: Yes, I'm standing on it, and I'm attached to it with this leash (pointing down to it).

Officer: No, you have to have a "real one" on your person or attached to your board.

Me: OK, so if/when I fall in....do I pull my board back to me, climb back on to it, and then put my pfd on...or do I pull my board back to me, grab my pfd off of it, put it on in the water, and then climb back onto my board?

Officer (with a dumbass look in his face):  Uhhh, well....you'll have to take that up with the Harbor Master or the Coast Guard.  Now turn around, and paddle back to the beach where you launched.

Me: Ah, you do know that from where we are, it's a shorter route if I just keep going around the island, and back to the beach that way, right?

Officer (now po'd):  Whatever, just paddle back to the beach, and don't let me see you out here again without one.  Consider this your one, and only warning...the next time it's a ticket for not having one.

Me (with a big smile on my face): Rightio officer, thank you....have a nice.  ;D
In between the "take it up with the Harbor Master", and the instructions to turn around, and head back to the beach...I pointed out several of the "renters" out with orange life vests attached to the nose of their boards sans a leash, and inquired about what would happen if they fell off, couldn't swim, and the board floated away from them.

His now frustrated, but certainly poignant, and somewhat unexpected (or maybe not) reply...."I don't know, but they're legal, and you are not".  He than had obviously had enough, and directed me back to the beach after that.

Sadly, stupidity abounds at all levels of the sport, and the enforcement of its "rules and regs".  I now wear belt pfd, and leash when in the harbor, one for the same reason as "pdxmike", one to "just to avoid the ticket"....and the other to hopefully promote what I believe to be the more realistic answer to the problem.

That said, if heading out past the breakwater on my 14'...I wear both, and a belt water bottle holder with no real discomfort or obstruction in my paddle stroke "just in case".  While I'm fairly sure that the leash is not going to break, and that the board itself is the best "floatation device" I'll have on the trip....the "fairly sure" thing is still in place, and as long as that's there, I'll toss it on for piece of mind, and maybe a false sense of security if nothing else.
If you ever are out without a PFD and get caught again, remember this handy sentence:

But Officer, isn't it true that I am exempt from PFD carriage requirements under the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 33, Chapter 1, Subchapter S, Part 175--Equipment Requirements, Subpart B--Personal Flotation Devices, Section 175.17--Exemptions, which states under section (b): "Racing shells, rowing sculls, racing canoes, and racing kayaks are exempted from the requirements for carriage of any PFD required under Section 175.15", given that my vessel is correctly described under Section 175.3--Definitions, as a "Racing shell, rowing scull, racing canoe, (or) racing kayak", because it is "A manually propelled vessel that is recognized by national or international racing associations for use in competitive racing and one in which all occupants row, scull, or paddle, with the exception of a coxswain, if one is provided, and is not designed to carry and does not carry any equipment not solely for competitive racing"?

SeaMe

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Re: Whats so bad about PFDs?
« Reply #65 on: May 22, 2016, 05:57:08 PM »
If you ever are out without a PFD and get caught again, remember this handy sentence:

But Officer, isn't it true that I am exempt from PFD carriage requirements under the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 33, Chapter 1, Subchapter S, Part 175--Equipment Requirements, Subpart B--Personal Flotation Devices, Section 175.17--Exemptions, which states under section (b): "Racing shells, rowing sculls, racing canoes, and racing kayaks are exempted from the requirements for carriage of any PFD required under Section 175.15", given that my vessel is correctly described under Section 175.3--Definitions, as a "Racing shell, rowing scull, racing canoe, (or) racing kayak", because it is "A manually propelled vessel that is recognized by national or international racing associations for use in competitive racing and one in which all occupants row, scull, or paddle, with the exception of a coxswain, if one is provided, and is not designed to carry and does not carry any equipment not solely for competitive racing"?

Perhaps just print and laminate?  :P
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