: Julie, I don't know if you ment for your sling to be used this way,,, you may
: have a great idea. If the sling was attached to the opposite side of your
: entry into the cockpit and was somehow pulled under the hull to your entry
: side, as you put your foot into the sling it would want to roll the yak
: away from you, countering your weight from your entry side that is wanting
: to roll the yak towards you. That may be a delicate balancing act but I'll
: bet it could work even with the narrowest of Yaks. That could be another
: safty rescur feature that might be added to a yak along with the paddle
: float. If it did work, only the rope sling details would have to be worked
: out.

: John

What you describe is not what I had in mind... as I picture your idea (while sitting at my computer and holding a salt shaker sideways to visualize the idea), I think it would be very hard to get back in the cockpit if the sling is on the OTHER side of the boat, because you'd have the hull in the way --wouldn't it be the case then as you push against the sling, you would be pushing yourself further under the hull, instead of being able to use the sling to lift yourself into the cockpit? There would also be the risk of trapping your foot because the effective length of the loop would be getting smaller as the sling would be pulled against the hull as you used it this way.

What I'm suggesting is to try deploying the sling from the same side on which you intend to enter. Make the sling long enough so it will raise you up about 12 inches or so when you step in it -- if it's way too short you'd be sure to capsize, if it's too long, it won't help you -- so that as you use the sling, you can immediately grab the opposite side of the cockpit with your hands and pull/heave yourself across and then slither into the cockpit. The boat will tip toward you, but if you're aiming for the far side and not just pushing down on the near side, you should be able to get in before the boat tips to the point of capsize. The key is to keep your weight LOW and, as Shawn suggested earlier, to conceptualize it as pulling the boat under you.

You may need to play with the sling length a bit, depending on how much lift you need to get yourself back into the cockpit.

Julie Kanarr