Brian Nystrom

When replacing skeg cables, one thing I always do is round over the end that I'm feeding into the housing so it doesn't snag. This generally requires a minute with a Dremel tool with a stone attached. If the end of the cable has sharp burrs on it, it will dig into the soft housing material at every turn. Twisting the cable as you install it helps, but make sure that you're twisting in the direction that will not unravel the cable.

If you're reinstalling a used cable that has crimped spots from being installed in the skeg and slider, it can be more challenging, since the cable will be flattened, expanded and possibly bent at those points. You may need to reshape the cable slightly with pliers with smooth jaws in order to get it to thread through the housing properly.

The bag stuffing was a bit of and effort until I loosened the belt enough to make the bag easier to access. When I pulled the bag in front of me it was hard very hard to stuff it with the waist belt snug. I then turned it back loosened the quick release and brought the pouch back around in front of me. I was then able to fairly easily stuff the bag. The line was pulled in and sitting in a pile on my spray skirt while I was doing this.

I always keep the belt loose enough to allow me to pivot the bag to any position I need to. In addition to making it easier to work with, it also allows the bag to adjust itself to an off-center tow, which can occur in crosswinds and currents.

Once the line is stowed in the bag, it's secure and there's no need to worry about rolling it up until you get to a convenient place to do so. I'm not sure about the Sea-Tec rig, but the Quick Release Rescue Tow has a second velcro patch that's exposed when the bag is unrolled, so the top of the bag can be secured if necessary.

I've never had any trouble stuffing the bag, but that may be partially due to the fact that I wear an akuilisaq rather than a spray skirt/deck. It has enough slack in it to allow the bag to hang open for stowing the rope.

Whenever I have to do a re-entry, I hook the carabiner on my grab loop to the top of my PFD, which keeps the skirt and tow rig out of my way (I always wear the tow rig with the bag forward when I'm not using it).

and this is EXACTLY part of my towing strategy....stuff the line in the pfd and then get it sorted back into the bag when things aren't quite so exciting.

If you can stuff it into your PFD, why can't you stuff it into the bag? That's what I've always done, at least since I switched to a Northwater tow rig with the large bag. Other than that, I agree with everything you've said.

The only draw back is that it has a small mouth so will take a minute or so to reload, when I'm done with a tow I just stick all of the line in my PFD. My second choice would be the North Water rig.

That's a big enough drawback to be a deal-breaker for me. Being able to re-stow the line one-handed is critical in rough conditions. Stuffing the rope in one's PFD should be a last, temporary resort, not a part of a towing strategy. I've seen and experienced the problems created when the rope inevitably starts falling out of the top, bottom and arm holes of one's PFD. IMO, small tow bags that require two hands to stuff - or any rig that requires two hands to stow - are a hazard.

Although not mentioned by anyone, what's wrong with a coaming tow line? I bought one last month and used it once (towed a tandem for over a mile). Worked fine for me and I appreciated having the line pull on my boat instead of my waist.

I guess there are two possible disadvantages with the coaming system:

1. Time to deploy is probably a little longer than a waist mounted system.

2. The line is low on the deck so there's more chance of interference (although when I towed, the system didn't even interfere with a deployed rudder).

And if it pops off the coaming and ends up around your waist, arms or neck, it will be a lot of fun! Coaming tows are a bad idea and completely unnecessary given that there are better, proven options.

Someone's idea of putting a spare Greenland paddle on deck to grab is not a bad idea. It is not difficult to free it from the deck rigging, as long as you keep your cool and can hold your breath long enough.

I can tell you from personal experience that it takes about a half second to pull a GP "storm" off your foredeck in an emergency situation. I've needed to to it twice and it worked perfectly both times. I carry it as a spare paddle anyway, so there's no extra gear or expense involved. I don't like the idea of extraneous single-purpose gear and prefer to carry as little on the deck of my boats as possible. Generally, I have the spare paddle, a contact tow, a chart and that's it.

Rolling with the Greenland paddle is far easier than using any other type of paddle. The only problem is that you would have to relinquish control of the other paddle and then retrieve it after you were up. That could be difficult if conditions were rough.

If you have your main paddle in your hands, why wouldn't you roll with it instead? The only times I've ever found it necessary to use my spare was when my primary paddle was ripped from my grasp.

Brian,

Yep, the bag on the Sea-Tec is identical in size to the one on the QR Rescue Tow system. Supposedly the Sea-Tec is 'a more advanced design with the input of BCU coaches, blah, blah blah...' (i.e. SS biner, reflective tape, etc.) than the older Northwater tow system, but for some reason they chose to shorten the darn line by 20'!

Yeah, I kind of wondered about that myself.

Suggested sources for braided polypropylene line?. As usual I have no local suppliers.

I know West Marine used to carry it, but they only had it in purple, of all colors. Perhaps Northwater will sell it to you if you contact them. Who knows, if you complain that the stock rope is too short, maybe they'll replace it for you. It's worth a shot.

Brian,

I have to ask. What sort of line is ideal for a sea kayak tow? Sources?

I am considering the replacement of the 35' of line that came standard on my NW Sea-Tec tow system with something closer to 50'.

Thanks, Joe

The same type of rope that came in your Sea-Tec is probably the best bet (braided polypropylene). That's what they use in their Quick Release Rescue Tow, which comes with 55' of line. Doesn't the Sea-Tec have the same size bag?

Anyone know the best place to buy spectra rope (3/8”)?

NRS sells it at 0.99 /foot. Any where better to buy?

Does spectra stow more compactly than the equivalent dia. standard tow rope?

Can spectra be eye-spliced?

Spectra (a.k.a. "Dyneema") rope is not the ideal choice for a sea kayak tow rig because:

- It's MUCH stronger than you need

- It doesn't hold knots well

- It's very expensive

NRS and similar outfits sell it primarily as rescue rope for whitewater situations where Z-pulley systems and such are used and high strength is critical.

All 3/8" diameter rope is going to take up the same amount of space, since it's the same size.

Spectra's strength would allow you to use a much smaller diameter rope that would be more compact, but it can become difficult to handle, especially with gloves on. Unless it has a Nylon or polyester sheath, it's very slippery. I seem to recall seeing some special knots and splicing techniques for use with Spectra, but I don't recall where. You might check climbing sites, as Spectra is sometimes used as accessory cord and Spectra webbing is used in other climbing gear. Sailing sites may also have some info, since it's used for some types of rigging.

The fact that green flares cause confusion here is probably a good indication that you should avoid them. Everyone knows that if they see a red flare, it means it's an emergency, so why mess with another color that might not be recognized as a distress signal in an emergency situation?

Thanks for referencing this thread, Bill. It answered both of my questions. For those of you with a similar situation, I have come to the conclusion to gently scrap off the pieces of foam that still remains and then use lacquer thinner and perhaps some sanding to help remove some of the glue. Whatever glue remains, I will simply glue right over the top of it when I put in my new foam knee/thigh braces.

Bryan

That sounds like a plan, although sanding shouldn't be necessary unless the foam was glued in with polyester resin or epoxy, which is fairly common practice on British boats (especially older ones), but I haven't seen it used on North American made boats. Weldwood gel contact cement is the best product I've found for installing foam.

Does anyone know the statistics on this? I recall hearing something like 10% of victims who have compressions performed on them are successfully revived (I don't know if this is the right statistic, but it sticks in my mind). I'd imagine that this is because whatever injury/trauma/illness caused the cardiac arrest or fibrillation in the first place is something that is irreversible.

As I recall, the CPR success rate for anyone suffering a heart attack or stroke is near zero. OTOH, it's quite favorable (over 60%?) for drowning, electrocution and inhaled poisons.

persons already dead if you do nothing....can't hurt, can it?

While that's certainly true, the cardinal rule of rescues is not to create more victims while attempting to save someone. In anything but truly benign conditions, there would be a significant risk of someone else getting hurt when you're rafting up, clambering over wet, slippery decks, straddling boats, etc. Whether to even attempt any type of resuscitation and what method to attempt is going to be completely situation-dependent. No matter what you do, it's going to be a difficult decision and the biggest challenge may be maintaining emotional control and making rational decisions based on what's best for the safety of rest of the group. Hopefully, none of us will ever face such a situation.

When Linda and I took it, we were told that there really isn't any practical way to perform CPR on the water. If you happen to be in flat conditions with a large group that could raft up quickly to create a platform of sorts, you might be able to do something useful. Otherwise, forget it.

Your best bet would be to hook up with one or more people here who has significant towing experience and do some actual on-water work. Towing is a great topic for a skills session.

I've found that a bungee in the rig makes a big difference in comfort, especially when towing on a short line or with a long line in rough water. I wouldn't be without one on my tow rig. It adds a little bulk, but I can live with that for the comfort it provides.

Here's my latest setup:

The quick draw has one end that fits tightly on the 'biner to keep it from shifting. It also makes a nice handle. The rope is attached to the larger loop of the quick draw with a fisherman's knot pulled very tight, with a short tail that won't snag. The float has been tapered at both ends to eliminate snagging and it's held captive between two overhand knots, though I actually don't need the one between the float and the fisherman's knot and may untie it.

the problem is more one of unseasoned, unknowing, uncaring or just plain dumb sea kayakers getting in the way of working lobster boats. you know that's what drives this...

While that's certainly true, that's hardly the whole story. You've spent a lot of time up there so you know that a big part of the problem is lobster boat owners who act like they own the water and don't pay any attention to anything other than their pots. While kayaker certainly need to avoid confrontations with them as much as possible, it can be damn near unavoidable with the number of lobster boats running around unpredictably.

This kind of legislation should be pushed back against. Lobstermen that hit kayaks should be treated no differently than truck drivers that hit other cars. The fact that they're on the public waterway making a living doesn't absolve them of their responsibility to look out for other vessels, whatever they may be.

I agree with the use of stainless steel snap hooks. com/products2.cfm?product=S0175

I like the concept of stainless steel carabiners, but the issue I have with them is that if you get one that's large enough to operate easily with gloves on, it weighs a ton and will sink floating rope. Many of them also have very small gate openings, which are a liability in an emergency situation. The ideal product for towing would be a stainless steel, all-wire carabiner, as it would be light weight, simple and amply strong for the purpose.

In a simple direct tow I suppose this would not occur, but once you have a rope winding through various points and not running in a straight line; then these factors would come into play.

Winding through what "various points"? Worst case, the rope goes under the deck rigging on one boat and clips to another and the connection is essentially direct. There is no comparison between this and a typical climbing situation (I'm a climber, btw) where a rope may zig-zag or run over edges and abrasive surface, nor is there even a remote comparison between the forces generated in a leader fall and those involved in towing. While a leader fall can generate thousands of pounds of force, the forces involved in towing are in the tens of pounds, not even the hundred of pounds that many people surmise. Forces in the hundreds of pounds would rip deck tows off boats and injure paddlers using waist tows. Considering that the average paddler exerts only ~10 pounds of force per paddle stroke, there is no way one would be able to tow a boat if the forces involved were more than a few pounds. The only reason we use tow lines as thick as we do is to make them easier to handle, particularly if you need to haul on one with bare hands; the ropes themselves are typically much stronger than they need to be. When you get down to it, you could tow a kayak with 1/8" nylon or polyester cord.

Not sure about the status of the law but I think this happened a few years ago too and it was defeated.

A flag law was proposed either in ME or MA a few years ago by someone who knew nothing about kayaking. After a write-in campaign explaining that a flag would make a kayak less stable in wind and inhibit kayakers' ability to roll, the proposal was withdrawn.

Oxidation. To be fair to the un-named manufacturer, it got left in Osprey's van during NSPN/ACA l2 trip leader training and took a circuitous route back to me last summer. By that point I barely managed to rehab it, but the oxidation caught up over the winter.

Phil

You might want to give rehabilitation another shot. I've taken 'biners that were frozen to the point that the gate wouldn't move at all and returned them to usable condition. Start by flexing it under fresh water until it moves freely, then lube it well and it should work fine. I prefer to use aluminum 'biners as they're lighter than stainless and don't drag the float down on my tow line.

As Brian has told us you can't glass over silicone or fully remove it. Nothing will stick to it and it won't stick to it's self.

-Jason

That's close, but not exactly correct. Silicone leaves a residue that is difficult to remove. Unless it's completely removed, nothing will bond to the affected area other than more silicone. The residue can be removed with solvents such as Hexane, but that's not something that's commonly available. Additionally, silicone bonds poorly and has little strength compared to more suitable products like Lexel or GOOP. Bottom line, save silicone for caulking your bathtub and keep it away from your kayak.

...even on a keel edge? Seems like its strength and stiffness at a corner would be beneficial, as you don't want ANY flex there. Isn't that the point of reinforced keels? I can understand that it would pop out or cause an adjacent fracture because of excess rigidity along a flexy wall or deck face, but I surmised that ultimate strength is useful at joints and edges...hope it works for my keel.

I can't see any harm in using it on a keel edge, particularly at the bow or stern where the hull is very rigid. It would probably be much more durable than gelcoat, since it's much harder.

Hi Brian,

Since you're reading this and we're on the topic of coamings, I'm going to hitch on to this post with a question.

I've got some cracks -- nothing deep but clearly noticible -- on the coaming of my RomanyLV. Additionally, there's a chip or two. Do I repair this with epoxy if possible? Not worry about it?

There aren't any other leaks, just these dings and cracks. They've been there for awhile too, but I haven't noticed anything adverse.

Help will be greatly appreciated.

Deb M

Cracks on coaming rims are pretty common and typically just cosmetic, but if it flexes excessively or creaks at the crack site, it would indicate a structural problem. Personally, if it's just cosmetic, I don't bother with it as it's likely to crack again after being repaired. For minor chips, I just sand the area smooth so it won't damage my skirt or other gear. If you want to repair chips, thickened epoxy or gelcoat will work.