Safety rant - don't be that guy

I was out yesterday morning/afternoon on Puget Sound in my Revo.  The morning was a bit brisk with some wind and whitecaps, but by noon it had calmed down to flat water. 

I'm bottom bouncing about 1/4 mile off shore and a guy in a sea kayak goes by me and asks "How's the fishing?".  This guy is in shorts, bare-chested, no flotation, 30-40 lbs overweight.  If he went in the water right there and the wind pushed his boat out of reach, he was a dead man just a few hundred yards offshore.  I watched him paddle away and after passing me he headed farther offshore.  There were no PBs on the water in the area all day.

Please don't be that guy.

Darwin.

Some people only learn the hard way.

Maybe the 30-40 lbs extra pounds was the flotation device and the insulation from the cold?

Did you suggest some safety tips? Ask how long he's been kayaking? Encourage him to check out NWKA?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Did you suggest some safety tips? Ask how long he's been kayaking? Encourage him to check out NWKA?

I did not.  He simply paddled past and we did not chat. 

Virtually all the kayakers I encounter, particularly the sea kayakers and paddle boarders are poorly equipped for cold water survival.  They seem to believe wet fleece and wool is enough, if they even have that.  In the past I would mention it, now I don't.  Occasionally I'll make the observation, "Cold water kills", but then I'll get "the look". 

My buddy just bought a small fishing PB.  Flotation is a given, but I'm going to feel exposed and vulnerable if I'm on the water not wearing my drysuit.  It's something I'm going to have to figure out.  Maybe I can count on him coming back to pick me up in time.

I've been noticing quite a few stand up paddle boarders paddling around in shorts and t-shirts around Olympia. One wake or wind gust away from a very long, cold swim without any floatation or insulation of any kind...

Most sea kayakers I've run into at least wear a PFD and many wear immersion gear. I guess its a pretty diverse group ranging from the recreational crowd to the roll-practicing, dry-suit donning folks.

It seems most folks view the Puget Sound as a giant lake especially in the warmer months. To be honest I've gone out in less than immersion wear in the Sound but always at least wear splash gear and a PFD. The splash gear isn't a substitute for immersion wear, but it does offer some insulation in a swim and does not hold on to water so you can readily reenter. Yes I've swam in them too, not ideal but a lot better than nothing.

There was a guy jogging yesterday without his rape whistle or helmet. I stopped him to make sure his mom wrote his name in his underware ....

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

I ran into a guy in PC on Friday who was fishing around the rock wth me, great guy named Paulo.  He mentioned that a few years ago he was in MT and flipped in his sit-in kayak  on Flathead Lake and  he was not wearing any immersion gear and he could not get back in, he was wearing a PFD but all he could do was hold on to the boat and it took nearly 4 hours for people to realize he was missing. he suffered from exteme hypothermia, despite the air temps being in the 60's water temps were still low. He is lucky he is alive.  Last weekend  He was wearing a surfiing wetsuit and the biggest PFD I have ever seen. It just reinforces the idea that it can happen at anytime anywhere.   

I also had a friend who died of hypothermia in 87 degree water, granted she was immersed for over a day as her dive boat capsized and her and several others were swept away in a stong current created by a passing hurricane. BUT it is water and it has the ability to sap the heat out of a person and a drop in body temp by just a few degrees can be absolutlety deadly.  I know I am preaching to the chior here, but be careful out there!!!

I'm torn on this topic.  I don't want anyone to tell me what I HAVE TO do.  I'm a thinking animal and I take my chances.  If I screw up and die so be it. 

Here's the rub:  If enough people leave their common sense at home when venturing out on the water, to the mountains, into traffic, crossing railroad tracks, etc, the government will step in.  Areas will be closed.  protective equipment will be legislated and hours of access will be limited.

Personally, I believe that we've done a disservice to humanity by errecting so many obstacles to natural selection.  It's just one more step toward Idiocracy and a failure to thrive society.

-Spot-   

I'm torn on this topic.  I don't want anyone to tell me what I HAVE TO do.  I'm a thinking animal and I take my chances.  If I screw up and die so be it. 

Here's the rub:  If enough people leave their common sense at home when venturing out on the water, to the mountains, into traffic, crossing railroad tracks, etc, the government will step in.  Areas will be closed.  protective equipment will be legislated and hours of access will be limited.

Personally, I believe that we've done a disservice to humanity by errecting so many obstacles to natural selection.  It's just one more step toward Idiocracy and a failure to thrive society.

-Spot-

So in essence, if you're gonna be dumb you better be tough?

It's an interesting topic. I wonder what safety cops' motivations are. Are they truly because they care about the well being of others, or because it gives them an opportunity to feel like they are smart and others are stupid. I suspect more the latter, but it's possible both are true at the same time. 

I catch myself thinking this way fairly often on the water (like others are idiots). But ultimately, who frickin cares.

I'm sure others would think that bring four miles from camp in a boat that needed constant emptying b/c it was leaking so bad would be unsafe.
I felt perfectly safe and my partner didn't feel his safety was in jeopardy either.

Demonick ... Let others do as they please. If you feel unsafe just wear bigger water wings next time you are crabbing and might encounter a boat wake.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

What did John Wayne's character in The Sands of Iwo Jima say? "Life is hard, It's even harder when you're stupid." Something like that.

Look all we can do is lead by example. By all means take any precautions you deem appropriate for your own safety.  If you show up at a launch and the guys you're there to fish with creep you out because they aren't taking the safety issue as seriously as you'd like or you practice, you can always pack up and leave.

But, if someone shows up under equipped and shows an interest in getting better, do you really have a responsibility to help them by making reccomendations or loaning them gear? I know some of us have extra stuff that we graciously loan to others, and that's commendable but I don't think we should have to be the sports policemen.

If he went in the water right there and the wind pushed his boat out of reach, he was a dead man just a few hundred yards offshore. 
Please don't be that guy.

The issue for those who are safety minded is that if/when he goes in the water, you are expected to render aid.  He's stupidity could put you into a dangerous situation trying to save him.  Been there....