Tragic Kayak Accident......

[MediumMouthBass]

4 hours ago, Susky River Rat said:

I never said you were uneducated. I said that the statement was. You said helmets protect but, not really.  That’s a pretty good word salad.

I wouldnt call it that, i would call it the hard truth. As with any protective gear there are limitations.

 

Helmets only protect to an extent, whether on street or dirt. They arent 100% effective and wont give a 100% guarantee that if a person gets hit by a train everything in the world will be rainbows and sunshine.

 

In most cases will they protect and save your life? Yes obviously. But they dont perform miracles.

And they dont give immortality to the user as long as its worn....

Helmets can only do so much, and will only hold up to so much force. And then theres whats inside it, our heads. This mans head swelled up to the point they could no longer remove the helmet, and it had to be cut off. Now this is all small percentages but still a percentage.

Hitting something hard enough can lead to brain bleeds, brain injury, brain damage, and brain swelling like you mentioned above. A helmet wont prevent all of this, as your head is still taking that force. Although the helmet reduces it, it doesnt eliminate it. Ceramic/steel armor plates come to mind, they can take a certain projectile at a certain FPS, will the armor stop it? Yes, but that pressure and force along with backface deformation causes cracked/broken/bruised ribs.

For this is the reason why there arent more ballistic helmets being produced, because that force to the head would cause so much damage to the brain, even if it stopped the projectile.

 

Even a few light hits with a helmet whether it be motorcycles, football, etc, can still lead to brain damage and other issues later in life. Not wearing a helmet would lead to horrible outcomes, but even with one theres no guarantee. Just reduced risk.

4 hours ago, Susky River Rat said:

helmet safety with motocross has been a huge priority for me since than.

I too have tried increasing safety being a priority in just regular riding, sold off most the MX bikes and stuck with dual sports and trail bikes/XC alternatives. They can still go fast, but they arent the wild animals, nor do they need rebuilds every 40 hours.

I also paid about 3x more for a helmet compared to what i did when i was younger, got to say im impressed with everything but their designs. What ever happened to the cool colors, sick patterns... The technology like you talked about for helmets is definitely better than what it was a decade ago, but im not sure if its improved in the cheaper ones. Which when it comes to life jackets and helmets are what most people buy.

Like ive said many times on here, im pro helmet, pro seatbelt, pro lifejacket. And i wear all three religiously. But these things have limitations.

[Bird]

On 12/24/2024 at 10:32 PM, VolFan said:

I’d like to challenge everyone’s decisions back to being teenage males. I made some terrible decisions as a teen, as I’m sure several (not all) people did. Hindsight has an more extensive view from the height of a high horse. Maybe ease up a little. 

This hits the nail on the head.

I look at myself now at 64 always putting safety at the forefront whether it's on a boat or operating equipment..... safety 1st.

Rewind back to my teens and into my mid 20's, I was an idiot, risk taker, thoughtless and downright dangerous.

Thoughts and prayers to those effected by this tragedy.

[river-rat]

 

At 72 my balance is not as good as it once was so I keep my Mustang inflatable on all day.

 

And, I have two rules if someone wants to fish with me in my boat.

#1 - You will wear a life jacket when the outboard is running.

#2 - There will be absolutely no alcohol of any kind in the boat while fishing. No exceptions. 

 

[Crow Horse]

7 hours ago, Cuivre said:

I also think that many people don't realize what a fully rigged tournament kayak looks like.  I routinely have 9 rods/reels in holders behind me/staged beside me, with exposed treble hooks.  The rods behind me have coiled trimmer cord tethers on them.  I also have a throttle beside my seat for my Torqeedo, an Anchor Wizard, depthfinder, DonkeyLeash and anchor trolley.  Even my Ketch board has a tether on it.  If I were to ever flip my kayak (knock on wood, it hasn't happened), I can be very sure it would be nothing like jumping off an uncluttered dock in the summertime in swim trunks-there are far more risks of entanglement involved with what surrounds serious kayak fishermen with a rigged kayak. You could be snagged by hooks, clothes snagged on a gear fitting, etc.  (happened to me when getting out of my yak in shallow water).  Your "I'm an excellent swimmer" status goes out the window very quickly when you instantly become unable to move freely due to these hazards.

THIS is so very important to consider. It could be a very significant hazard to add to the equation.....

[WRB]

Using this particular tragedy pontificate your view point in PFD’s doesn’t help to support the family in their grief and loss of the 2 young adults that were duck hunting.

We who survived our youthful mistakes should be in support grieving family during this Holiday  this tragic loss.

I was that age and survived not because of making good decisions but good luck.

Tom

[Crow Horse]

58 minutes ago, WRB said:

Using this particular tragedy pontificate your view point in PFD’s doesn’t help to support the family in their grief and loss of the 2 young adults that were duck hunting.

We who survived our youthful mistakes should be in support grieving family during this Holiday  this tragic loss.

I was that age and survived not because of making good decisions but good luck.

Tom

It's not my intention  to bring solace to the grieving family. In the final analysis, nothing will truly bring them comfort. They will always carry that void in their hearts. My personal hope is that maybe someone might reassess their safety protocols and maybe another family won't have to endure the pain of losing a loved one.