Unbelievable Ribbers!

[willk]

Alcohol plays a very large role in drownings here in Ireland. All of these victims drown just at the waters edge, often in front of their friends and family on nice sunny days. Currently, we lose around 150 a year to drowning. Of the remaining non-alcohol related deaths (once suicide is allowed for) the vast majority are due to boaters not wearing life jackets.

My advice:

Stay sober on/in the water. Always wear a life jacket when afloat.

[Mollers]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

This is wandering into familiar "done to death" territory, no pun intended

I agree, but yer man is a newb.

[ShinyShoe]

Originally Posted by ncp

It just gets the stupid ones out of the gene pool....

Trouble is by the time they can afford to buy a boat they've usually been breeding already

[Smithyyy]

The hot weather brings out the prats in all areas. Driving back from the coast on Sunday the 150 mile a year bikers were out in force in the South Downs. Overtaking at speed on blind bends and brows, pulling in 6 inches in front of your bumper and then slamming the brakes on to get into the gap, all that sort of stuff. I ride myself, about 15k miles a year commuting into London, and do my share of "making progress" as the immortal phrase in the bike test put it. When in a car I usually make an effort to give room to a bike, but even I was getting pretty p***ed off with these clowns. Completely clueless riders. I was expecting any minute to see some car driver simply not bother to brake hard to avoid another one and just let the nudge happen. I guess what we get on bikes we get on the water as well

[lewsimm88]

I was on windermere not long ago and I noticed that there is a new style of wearing a wetsuit with the top half dangling around your legs and no BA. I know from experience if you fall in the wetsuit WILL take you down. I see this on windsurfers wake boards. Something that stood out to me was a stand up paddle board in the middle of the lake doing this alone with no other people around. I understand that if people want to put there own safety on the line it is up to them but someone will have to come and look for them.

[keg]

Smithyyy, we get the same on the way up to the Lakes with bikers. The infamous "Devils Bridge" at Kirby Lonsdale is notorious.

Most of them are BABs ( Born Again Bikers) and they sadly cart 1 or 2 a weekend off in the blood wagon.

On a lighter note it was my first trip since i bought the Searider and even in the rain on Saturday i was grinning from ear to ear.

[Landlockedpirate]

Originally Posted by lewsimm88

I was on windermere not long ago and I noticed that there is a new style of wearing a wetsuit with the top half dangling around your legs and no BA. I know from experience if you fall in the wetsuit WILL take you down. ..

Help me out, how is this dangerous ?

People have been wearing wetsuits with the top pulled down since one piece suits appeared in the early 80's. I have been in the water hundreds of times without the full suit on and amazingly I havent drowned.

When sking, I know very few people that actually keep the full suit on all the time if its warm, most simply pull it down and stick a T shirt on between skis. Since neoprene floats on its own, I fail to see how wearing a wetsuit this way could be dangerous. but I'm willing to be educated.

[Lee argyle]

Originally Posted by Landlockedpirate

Help me out, how is this dangerous ?

People have been wearing wetsuits with the top pulled down since one piece suits appeared in the early 80's. I have been in the water hundreds of times without the full suit on and amazingly I havent drowned.

When sking, I know very few people that actually keep the full suit on all the time if its warm, most simply pull it down and stick a T shirt on between skis. Since neoprene floats on its own, I fail to see how wearing a wetsuit this way could be dangerous. but I'm willing to be educated.

I'm a little confused also, wetsuits are buoyant? So inherently there going to help you float.................

[beamishken]

Originally Posted by Lee argyle

I'm a little confused also, wetsuits are buoyant? So inherently there going to help you float.................

yeh but if the buoyancy is mostly below the waist you will float feet up so unless u can breathe through your ar$e then its dangerous

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Landlockedpirate

Help me out, how is this dangerous ?

People have been wearing wetsuits with the top pulled down since one piece suits appeared in the early 80's. I have been in the water hundreds of times without the full suit on and amazingly I havent drowned.

When sking, I know very few people that actually keep the full suit on all the time if its warm, most simply pull it down and stick a T shirt on between skis. Since neoprene floats on its own, I fail to see how wearing a wetsuit this way could be dangerous. but I'm willing to be educated.

Originally Posted by Lee argyle

I'm a little confused also, wetsuits are buoyant? So inherently there going to help you float.................

"IF" it's the second full moon after the third Sunday after Septuagesima, an unconscious casualty so attired could feasibly float legs up, due to the extra buoyancy provided by the neoprene in the lower regions. Akin to a inversion in a drysuit, hence why you should wear a 275N lifejacket when wearing a drysuit. It's not so much a case of wetsuits being buoyant, it's where the extra buoyancy is.

[Landlockedpirate]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

"IF" it's the second full moon after the third Sunday after Septuagesima, an unconscious casualty so attired could feasibly float legs up, due to the extra buoyancy provided by the neoprene in the lower regions. Akin to a inversion in a drysuit, hence why you should wear a 275N lifejacket when wearing a drysuit. It's not so much a case of wetsuits being buoyant, it's where the extra buoyancy is.

OK, so the physics make sense (As long as its a steamer at least 4mm thick ), but basically you are saying that if you go into the water unconscious without a lifejacket with a half fitted wetsuit you will drown. Agreed

But if you go into the water unconscious without a lifejacket NOT wearing a half fitted wetsuit you will drown as well.

Therefore no extra risk from wearing a half fitted wetsuit.

As we all know, dry suits are a different kettle of fish.

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Landlockedpirate

but basically you are saying that if you go into the water unconscious without a lifejacket with a half fitted wetsuit you will drown. Agreed

.

Nope, absolutely not, you are twisting my worms I put enough caveats in my statement to make it pretty clear that's not what I was saying. Maybe I was being too subtle, which would be a first

Originally Posted by Landlockedpirate

As we all know, dry suits are a different kettle of fish.

Not necessarily, buoyant is as buoyant does, regardless of the source.

[Landlockedpirate]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

Nope, absolutely not, you are twisting my worms I put enough caveats in my statement to make it pretty clear that's not what I was saying. Maybe I was being too subtle, which would be a first

I'm agreeing with your logic



With my "comfortable frame" a wetsuit doesnt provide any where near enough buoyancy to flip me, but a drysuit can turn me into an inverted Weeble in seconds

[kerny]

If you go to the beaches of Cornwall and Devon this summer you will see loads of kids and adults boogie boarding / surfing with the top half of their wetsuits or shorties rolled down and as yet.... I have not seen anyone bobbing about in the water inverted against their wishes because of this. Drysuit is a different matter IMO.

[beamishken]

if you're conscious and a reasonable swimmer then ulikely to be a problem but if for some reason you are debilitated then it increases risk
so for me & my kids if were in the water or likely to be then its wetsuits on & ba's on even then the recommendation is ba's only to be worn when rescue is close at hand became a ba wont turn a casualty face up
all other times its full lifejackets that will turn a casualty

[Lee argyle]

Originally Posted by lewsimm88

I was on windermere not long ago and I noticed that there is a new style of wearing a wetsuit with the top half dangling around your legs and no BA. I know from experience if you fall in the wetsuit WILL take you down. I see this on windsurfers wake boards. Something that stood out to me was a stand up paddle board in the middle of the lake doing this alone with no other people around. I understand that if people want to put there own safety on the line it is up to them but someone will have to come and look for them.

'I know from experience if you fall in the wetsuit WILL take you down' - This is the quote i'm struggling with, I say struggling, its total BS

Any floatation device or clothing worn inappropriately could affect the WAY you float, but wet suits are buoyant!! Wet suits don't 'take you down', chuck one in the sea................they float ( something to do with the millions of tiny air bubbles trapped in the wetsuits material )

[Lee argyle]

Originally Posted by beamishken

yeh but if the buoyancy is mostly below the waist you will float feet up so unless u can breathe through your ar$e then its dangerous

Bit extreme, you going to be playing in/on the water with your wet suit either round your knees or feet............really?

[beamishken]

Originally Posted by Lee argyle

Bit extreme, you going to be playing in/on the water with your wet suit either round your knees or feet............really?

well if its round your waist and you go in head first or you fall from a moving boat then it could easily end up round your ankles
whilst the post was extreme it was meant light heartedly
the point is if equipment is worn as intended then people would be much safer & that can only be a good thing

[Lee argyle]

Originally Posted by beamishken

well if its round your waist and you go in head first or you fall from a moving boat then it could easily end up round your ankles
whilst the post was extreme it was meant light heartedly
the point is if equipment is worn as intended then people would be much safer & that can only be a good thing

Maybe if the wetsuit was 8 sizes too large
I'm 100% with you on boat and user safety , which is why is annoys me so much when you read misleading crap on the internet, the naive can get easily mislead

[gtb]

Originally Posted by Lee argyle

... which is why is annoys me so much when you read misleading crap on the internet, ...