Brian Nystrom

It's been known from the beginning that buffs are way too porous to do much. Anything that stretches is not going to work. Plus they don't seal around the edges. Now, if we could only educate the idiots who are wearing good masks, but not covering their noses...

Thanks for the heads-up Jason. I wasn't so concerned with the safety aspects, really just with what the solvent is. You're correct that this data isn't always available and I've seen a few where you really couldn't identify key components of the product. Fortunately, the Aquaseal MSDS is explicit.

If you want to make it even more comfortable, angle it forward ~15 degrees.

According to the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) for Aquaseal, the solvent in it is toluene. It's available at some paint and hardware stores, but the Big Box stores don't carry it. BTW, if you ever want to know what's in something, just search for the MSDS. In this case, I Googled "Aquaseal MSDS".

Christopher, the issue is that neoprene becomes porous over time in areas where it's creased, compressed or stretched. Scotchguard is a water repellent, but not a waterproofer. It will cause water to run off of surfaces, but it's unlikely to stop it from penetrating in areas where it pools. Before using it on a neoprene spray skirt, I'd test it on a piece of scrap to make sure that it won't cause the fabric to delaminate. To really seal your skirt, you'll need to apply a waterproof coating to it, but unfortunately, I don't have any recommendation for a product that's thin, flexible and stretches enough to work.

If you allow people into your state, you can't force them to stay for 14 days. Period. There is no way that can possibly stand up in court. Hopefully, this is nothing more than an anomaly caused by a monitoring system that was rushed into use without proper development and testing. If this is actually what they intended, your friend should return their fine paperwork without payment and include a note telling them where to stick it. It's beyond stupid. So in a time where there is already incredible tension between the public and the police, we now have them acting like Gestapo at state borders? That's just brilliant! This pandemic has caused enough stress without piling on government overreach and heavy-handed police tactics. You can travel between states and still be safe and responsible, simply by monitoring your health, limiting your contact with other people, and following social distancing and mask recommendation. There is no valid reason or need for this other crap.

I just read this today and it provides a lot of good information. The bottom line is that outdoor exercise is very safe and the risks of getting sick are extremely low. https://www.velonews.com/training/qa-dr-michael-roshon-chief-medical-officer-for-usa-cycling/?utm_source=Pocket+Outdoor+Media%3A+PodiumRunner%2C+Triathlete%2C+VeloNews%2C+VeloPress%2C+VeloSwap%2C+Women's+Running&utm_campaign=a24ed9c063-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_06_25_03_41&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fd870bf0b5-a24ed9c063-81038113&mc_cid=a24ed9c063&mc_eid=0c3704f645

IIRC, this was Derek's first commercially produced boat design. It's definitely a piece of history.

This happened in South Africa, in case that matters.

It doesn't matter, because unless you can violate the laws of physics, it's impossible to quarantine for 14 days if you're only going someplace for a few hours.

I recently saw an article specifically about the possibility of spreading the virus outdoors and the conclusion was that it was highly unlikely, unless you were close to an infected person and downwind (or in their draft, as in cycling) for an extended period of time (an hour or more). If I can find the link, I'll post it here. With the rapid dispersal that occurs outdoors, it's quite difficult to get an infectious dose. Walking, running, or riding past someone is not going to do it. It seems even less likely while paddling, as you're rarely close, the air is moving. As I pointed out, even in a rescue situation where you are close, it's still really unlikely. It's something that I wouldn't worry about, certainly not when someone is in immediate danger and in need of rescue. I don't worry about it when I'm out riding, either, but I've curtailed riding in large groups (actually, the group rides I used to do have been cancelled until we're past this outbreak).

Well, actually not so much. As the video makers stated, some of their techniques simple won't work in rough conditions. That's probably true of all of them, plus they're adding the risk of broken paddles and other injuries to the mix. There's also some really important points that people need to understand about COVID-19 and infectious disease spread in general. You have to receive an infectious dose of the virus. In the case of COVID-19, that's somewhere between 1000 and 10,000 virus particles (based on the latest information I've seen). Receiving an infectious dose requires a combination of exposure and time. That's why the majority of infections occur indoors, where people are in a room with someone who's infected for an extended period (the best estimate I've seen is 15 minutes or more). In an outdoor environment, receiving an infectious dose is much less likely, since the air around you changes constantly and the virus is dispersed; it's not recirculated and concentrated as it is in a closed room. Windy conditions disburse the virus even further. Let's extrapolate this to normal assisted rescues: They take place outdoors. They're most common in rough conditions, which usually means there will be significant wind. Even if the wind speed is low, the moving water (waves and swell) also moves the air above it, so there is constant air circulation. Experienced rescuers can have a swimmer back in their boat in a minute or so, and their actual close contact time is even less. If pumping out the cockpit is necessary, the rescuer can slide down the deck lines to gain some distance. Given all of these mitigating factors, there doesn't seem to be much to be gained by attempting to use techniques that put the paddlers and their equipment at increased, immediate danger of injury or hypothermia. The first order of business is to get the paddler back in their boat and away from any immediate danger. Anything the compromises that goal for the sake of the highly unlikely possibly of contracting an infection from someone who may have the virus, seems more risky, rather than less so.

FWIW, MA requested that visitors quarantine for 14 days; at least that's what it says on the highway signboards. However, it's pretty pointless when a substantial number of visitors won't be staying that long. Do they honestly think that anyone who's going to MA, NH or ME for a day or a weekend is going to do nothing once they get there? No, they're going there to engage in a specific activity, probably one outdoors. Fortunately, that's one of the least likely places to get infected.

Seriously, even if the Governor calls out the National Guard, there's no way they'll ever be able to enforce this so-called quarantine. It's aspirational at best and a joke at worst. If you stay away from people as much as possible and wear a mask when you must be around others, I seriously doubt that anyone is going to give you a hard time. The truth is, if the tourist season is a complete bust, the state is in deep trouble. The same is true here in NH, but at least our Governor is taking a more sensible approach.

The only things keeping me from getting outside are work and the weather. Otherwise, it's business as usual on the recreation side for me. Getting out and away from home alone (or with Linda) and getting exercise in the open air and sunshine is the healthiest thing I can do for both my body and mind. When you're out in nature and alone, you're not going to catch anything and you're not going to give anything you do have to anyone else. These "stay at home" orders are useless BS if you're not trapped in a city. We're not on lockdown up here yet, but even if we were, it wouldn't matter to me. If you're not congregating with other people, you're not doing any harm and the benefits to your health are huge. Be smart and take care of yourself. Take care of others by avoiding them as much as possible for now. That's the responsible thing to do, IMO.

Yeah, those were fun sessions and we got a lot done, too! I still have some of the foam I bought for them.

I remember well, Christopher. That space was in the same building as Richard's business and he actually rented it for the workshops.

Check the area where you want to hold it for vacant commercial space. Owners/Landlords are often willing to rent it inexpensively just to generate some income from it. That's what we did back when I was organizing outfitting workshops for the club.

What do you know? Maybe there's a semblance of sanity and a grain of intelligence in the legislature after all.

So, the same stupidity has been introduced again? How many times in years past has this gone down in flames? This shows how lazy our politicians are that they don't even look into the history of this kind of nonsense before reintroducing it. Moreover, who introduces a bill based on "a constituent concern"? How many people complained about this, just one? More than likely, it was a wealthy donor or friend he was trying to appease. If he's getting mostly negative feedback and doesn't think it has any chance of passing, why doesn't he do the right thing and withdraw it? Moron!

This has been an ongoing battle for the better part of two decades. The real issue is that NH Fish and Game is not funded from the state's General Fund and they have huge pension costs that they can't support, so they're always looking for new revenue sources. I learned this directly from the Director of Fish and Game. Don't let the smokescreen about other uses fool you. The ultimate solution to their problem is not to tax paddlecraft users, it's to get the legislature to do the right thing for the agency. Fees on paddlecraft are misguided and will only serve to hurt tourism, which we can't afford. They're going to hire someone to administer the program for $59,000, which means that they would have to register 5900 canoes and kayaks just to cover the salary costs. Good luck with that! While it appears that this only applies to boats launched at public ramps and not beaches, it's a classic "slippery slope". Once they have a fee in place, it will be relatively easy for them to expand it's scope to include all paddlecraft, regardless of where they're launched. There is no doubt in my mind that this is exactly their strategy. They've never been able to pass full registration of paddlecraft, so they're going to try to nibble away at it, bit-by-bit. If they want to impose a launch fee at boat ramps or create a state "boat ramp access pass", that's fine, but there is no valid reason to register paddlecraft.

Can you provide a link, Paul? I'll definitely get on it...again.

Nah, who in their right mind would want to be me??? I'm still "keeping the rubber side down", but Linda had a mishap recently and is currently recovering from some minor injuries. I finished refurbishing all of our boats recently and we're still planning to get back on the water, but unfortunately that can't happen until Linda is back to "ship shape".

Yes, the warranty is from Gore, not Palm. If you contact Gore, they will take care of you, even if Palm won't.

I can't find my notes regarding who I spoke with, but if you just search online for "Gore-Tex Warranty", you should find plenty of information on how to contact them about a warranty claim. I don't recall the name of the person I dealt with, but he was great. After I sent the suit back and he checked it over, he contacted me and told me to pick any suit from the Kokatat catalog that I wanted. It arrived within a week or two. The suit I wanted was actually a slight upgrade from the Stolhquist in terms of features and I offered to pay the difference, but they refused to take any money and just sent me the suit. This is why I have been such an ardent supporter of Gore-Tex; their warranty is the best in the business and they absolutely stand behind their products. Their fabrics also perform exceedingly well and are more durable than anything else I've owned. So far, I've had three Gore-Tex garments replaced free of charge. Just to be sure here, your suit is definitely Gore-Tex, right? It should be tagged as such, if it is.