: Y'know folks, this is America... at least for the time being...
: remember, freedom and all that? I never wear a pfd when I'm on
: flat water and the weather's warm. I'm a good swimmer, and it's
: always right behind me under the bungie. I do wear it when I'm
: on the ocean or a large lake, I wear it when the weather's bad,
: I wear it when it's cold out, and I wear it when I'm on moving
: water.... every time. The point is, I take responsibility for
: assessing the risk of what I do, and I take the accountability
: for my decisions and actions. No NannyStatism required! And for
: the inevitable, "but the children..." argument, well,
: they have parents to make their risk decisions for them. If not,
: that's a much larger problem than not wearing a pfd.

I never go on the water without a PFD. I paddle 99.9 percent on open ocean where the water temps at the height of summer rarely go above 13 celsius. The very rare times I paddle on warm fresh water, I still wear PFD. The only time I don't wear a PFD is at the pool sessions because I don't want the chlorine to destroy it. Even at the pool, a number of paddlers choose to wear PFD's because they are practising their rolls and they want to have the same buoyancy levels as they do when on the water.

There are any number of reasons to wear a PFD but I think the most important is to keep you afloat when you least expect the need for that assistance. You can suffer a medical emergency (heart attack, stroke, seizure) at any time but, unlike on land, if you have one on the water, you can very easily drown. This is especially true if you solo paddle. The PFD can be that helping hand to keep you afloat until assistance arrives or your recover enough to get to shore. A medical emergency can happen on any type of water and no matter what way you look at it, water is water and it can drown you - no matter if it's flat, rough, deep or shallow.

In cold water conditions is has been well documented that most people will succumb to drowning BEFORE hypothermia. Cold water saps your strength very quickly and if you have to swim or tread water due to a lack of PFD, you will become exhausted very quickly and subsequently drown. Swimming, even a short distance, in cold water without proper thermal protection is not a very good idea. Also, the PFD will not only keep you afloat but it also helps retain heat in your core region.

A PFD with pockets is also a great place to put your GPS, radio, EPIRB, snacks, keys, camera etc etc.

If you find that your PFD is too warm, then a quick roll or static or sculling brace is a great way to cool down.

Of course people should have the right to choose whether or not to wear a PFD. I just see it as a no-brainer for myself. My kids won't go near a boat without a PFD, just like they won't go near a bike without their helmets. I'm very glad that they I have instilled this in them. Of course "thinking of the children" is another reason why I always wear a PFD because I want to take all necessary precautions to make sure that I come back safely from every paddle.

Below is a picture of my standard gear for spring paddling (This picture was taken on April 22, 2010). At the height of the summer I'll shed the mitts and balaclava but will stay with the drysuit and PFD,

Sorry for the rant but I feel very strongly about safe paddling.

Sean