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Sea Kayaks Techniques Bulletin Board
Kayak safety - the value of a dry suit
Posted By: Brian Nystrom In Response To: Re: Kayak safety (Roy Morford)
Date: Tuesday, 2 January 2001, at 3:53 p.m.
: Hi Lee, I couldn't agree more. I have only been in the water once by accident
: and blew my roll because of the large waves. However, within five minutes
: I was back in my boat after a paddle float rescue. This was also December
: and the water was COLD. Even with such a short time in the water and a
: brisk half hour paddle back to land I was still shivering. I hesitate to
: think what a longer immersion would be like. For the record, my roll is
: now better, I practice self rescues regularly, wear appropriate clothing
: and carry whistle, flares, strobe, VHF, paddle float, sea seat and a
: thermos of hot tea. I also check the tide tables and marine forecast
: before venturing out. Sometimes I think all that "stuff" might
: be overkill because I've never had to use it, other than the paddle float
: and tea! My point is the same as yours - be prepared for the worst and
: practice what I like to call "active safety". Cheers and have a
: great Christmas.
: Roy.We (the NSPN) recently had a cold water workshop in order for those of us who have never paddled in winter (in New England) to try out our winter gear and see what it feels like to roll in cold water. Several of the people who attended spent a fair amount of time swimming around in the icy water, just for the experience. When I say icy, I mean ICY. The harbor we were in was frozen over, except for an area around the boat ramp. The air temp was ~20F and the water was 32F (salt water). One of the participants decided to see what the limits of immersion in these conditions was. He stayed in the water - wearing a dry suit and fleece undergarments for 19 minutes. Upon exiting, his only complaint was that his feet were cold because his boots leaked. He claimed that his body was warm and comfortable. I cannot imagine anyone surviving that long without clothing that kept them dry.
Personally, I did some rolling and bracing and thought it was fun. The worst part was the sting of the icy wind on my wet face after a roll. If nothing else, I felt much more confident about paddling in cold conditions.
We paddled yesterday in temps ~30F and it was very comfortable. No one complained about being cold, but a few of us were a bit too warm. I had to switch from a 5.5mm neoprene hood to a 3mm hood, in order to keep from overheating.
One tip for dry suit users. The wrist, neck and ankle seals on your suit should be stretched and/or trimmed until they are comfortable. They only need to make light contact to do their job. If you cannot lift them off your skin easily, they're too tight and will impede blood circulation. This will result in cold extremities and in the case of a too tight neck seal, it can cause lightheadedness.
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