Boating Safety

Deb and Ed M wrote:
Another good tip from the Coat Guard Aux folks: if you have kayaks/canoes/paddlebboards or any other small boat-type of thing, be sure to put you name and phone number on it. That way, if your paddleboard blows off your dock in a storm, the Coast Guard can call and make sure you are actually quite safe, before they launch a search for a body....

Great idea. Etch the info into the plastic with a woodburning tool or soldering iron. Permanent marker eventually wears off.

Much cheaper for the CG to make a phone call than to launch a search costing thousands per hour.

Doing simple things make a big difference.

Another good tip from the Coat Guard Aux folks: if you have kayaks/canoes/paddlebboards or any other small boat-type of thing, be sure to put you name and phone number on it. That way, if your paddleboard blows off your dock in a storm, the Coast Guard can call and make sure you are actually quite safe, before they launch a search for a body....

"Our kids never did wear PFDs onboard"

If you were under way and they were under 13 in age, then you were breaking the law

Guy

US law does not apply here. This is an example of where we carry our own responsibility.

It is not surprising that when a child is allowed to learn at a very early age to respect the dangers of water they are much more careful around it.

Both of our kids, under very close supervision, were permitted when only able to crawl, to crawl into the water to a point where they sucked up a bit of water & got into trouble where hands quickly snatched them up. That done a few times & lesson was learned, don't crawl into the water so far. From that point we had kids perfectly happy to be floating around out of their depth with arm bands before they could walk.

Onboard the boat underway safety was strict & uncompromising. Child PFDs are hot & scratchy from the salt. If they wanted to stand at the side in the cockpit they had better not lift a leg onto the cockpit combing. It got SLAPPED down. No verbal warning. It only took a few good slaps. Lesson learned. Old school child discipline. It works.

Here is an example of the boat. Not exactly a 40mph skip across the water runabout. More of a 27'slow going camper.Albin 27 Family cruiser

Veebyes wrote:
I am all for PFDs when riding jet skis, water skiing, wake boarding, operating a small fast boat but where I live PFDs are not mandatory, not even for small children.

Before the RV & while our kids were growing up we were very avid boaters. Our daughter was 6 days old when she spent her first night on a boat, a 21' cuddy cabin on anchor. We had one heckuva thunderstorm that night.

Our kids never did wear PFDs onboard. We had safety rules for them & they were enforced. No walking along side decks while underway. No sitting with feet over the side unless a handrail stanchion was between the legs. As soon as they could swim we had MOB drills in open water so that they would know what it was really like to be out in the open watching their boat get smaller.

They learned that water is a dangerous thing from an early age & to respect it. We never did have one of them accidently go overboard. They know that the coastguard is not going to rescue them just in time as seen on TV.

People do dumb stuff on the water. Kids bow riding is one of the worst. That PFD won't be much use if they go overboard & the boat runs over them striking them with the running gear.

"Our kids never did wear PFDs onboard"

If you were under way and they were under 13 in age, then you were breaking the law

Guy

Instead of a lifejacket (which I always wear now, because now my life may depend upon it - where it didn't when I was young and invincible around water) ... if I could afford it, I'd much rather wear the harness that auto-inflates if you ever fall into the water.

Other than cost, what's the downside(s) to those harnesses instead of a lifejacket?

I am ready for this trips. I bought all the equipment and tools from Ritecoupons by using ***Link Removed***Money saving coupons. They have a huge collection of boating equipments and safety tools. Highly Recommended.

I have been a river rat all my life. Canoes, kayaks, rafting, and sailing all over the US. On flat water with a stable boat I SOMETIMES go without a my PFD. Any rivers or white water or when sailing-I ALWAYS wear my life jacket. I have saved several people on the water when I saw them having trouble. I pulled my god-daughter's mother out of whitewater because according to her, she had been swimming her whole life. It is very difficult to swim if you are knocked out, which can happen easily in whitewater or a sailboat boom hits you upside the head.

Enough preaching, this is an RV site.

I am all for PFDs when riding jet skis, water skiing, wake boarding, operating a small fast boat but where I live PFDs are not mandatory, not even for small children.

Before the RV & while our kids were growing up we were very avid boaters. Our daughter was 6 days old when she spent her first night on a boat, a 21' cuddy cabin on anchor. We had one heckuva thunderstorm that night.

Our kids never did wear PFDs onboard. We had safety rules for them & they were enforced. No walking along side decks while underway. No sitting with feet over the side unless a handrail stanchion was between the legs. As soon as they could swim we had MOB drills in open water so that they would know what it was really like to be out in the open watching their boat get smaller.

They learned that water is a dangerous thing from an early age & to respect it. We never did have one of them accidently go overboard. They know that the coastguard is not going to rescue them just in time as seen on TV.

People do dumb stuff on the water. Kids bow riding is one of the worst. That PFD won't be much use if they go overboard & the boat runs over them striking them with the running gear.

I never wore a life jacket but they were available. But then I had a big boat. One thing I always objected to was how the cops could pull you over and board your boat for no reason, which is against the US Constitution. Highway cops can't pull you over for no reason but the the water cops can? Bucket of worms has been opened.

I was raised on the water and have been running rivers for 60 years. Wear a lifejacket. Wear it in canoes, kayaks, SUPs. etc. Kids should wear one all the time.

Look out for cold water. Dress for immersion if you are in a craft that can get you wet.