Kayaking 3

Let us continue about kayaking. Today, I'll explain about PFD (Personal Floating Device). Before that, let us clear the confusion about life jacket or PFD or whatever the hell the thing is call by you common people. According to Lalizas (Lalizas Hellas SA, one of the leaders in manufacturing marine and safety equipment), 'buoyancy aid' is a garment or device with an inherently buoyant material that helps the wearer to remain afloat when in the water and 'life jacket' is a garment or a device that, when used in the water, will provide a specific amount of buoyancy so as to position and maintain an incapacitated wearer with his airways clear of the water, and increase the likelihood of his rescue.


Okay, let's go through the types of PFD

• Off-shore Jacket (Type I PFD)

Type I PFDs provide the most buoyancy, are designed for offshore and rough water conditions. They come in two sizes, adult and child. The child size is designed with at least 11 pounds of buoyancy while the adult size has at least 22. The main functional feature of the Type I PFD is that it is designed to float unconscious victims in the face-up position.

• Near-Shore Buoyant Test (Type II PFD)

Type II PFDs are intended for use in inland waters where there is a reasonable chance of a speedy rescue. These are your typical orange life jackets that are in the shape of a “U.” They fit over a person’s neck and come down on each side of the chest. Type II PFDs will usually turn some unconscious victims to a face-up position. These PFDs provide between 7 to 15.5 pounds of buoyancy, depending on infant to adult sizes.

• Flotation Aid (Type III PFD)

Type III PFDs are designed for inland conditions. These are usually the PFDs worn for specific activities such as fishing vests and kayaking life jackets. They are designed for comfort, continuous wear, and for maximum mobility. As such, they probably won’t turn the wearer to the face-up position in the water. Rather, they tend to float wearers in the vertical position. The definition of Type III PFDs usually contains the word “calm” to describe the water conditions they are meant for. This would be functionally incorrect as most whitewater PFDs, that is those worn by whitewater kayakers and whitewater canoeists, are Type III PFDs.

• Throwable Device (Type IV PFD)

Type IV PFDs are carried on boats as a device that can be thrown to a drowning person. These are either the circular rings found on commercial boats or around swimming pools. On recreational motor boats these take the form of seat cushion style devices. They are not meant to be worn.

• Special Use and Hybrid Devices (Type V PFD)

These are intended for specific activities and must be used in accordance with the specifications on their labels. Some of the features that may be included in these devices is hypothermia protection, inflatable portions, and work vests.

• Inflatable PFDs (Type I-III)

Inflatable PFDs are becoming more popular and prevalent. They are the most comfortable type of life jacket but they do have their downsides. Inflatable PFDs offer no flotation until they are inflated. They are not to be used where impact and high speeds are encountered as this can damage the inflation mechanism and in these conditions the person wearing the PFD may be knocked unconscious before they are able to deploy the inflation feature. These are also not recommended for use by children. Inflatable PFDs are great for use in recreational kayaking and kayak fishing. They come in Type I, Type II, and Type III PFD specifications and are intended for use following the same guidelines.

That's all. For the next blog, I'll probably write about my kayaking session.

Kayaking 2

Alright, I'll continue where I left. Today I will explain the size and the choosing of a kayak. It is quite important and you'll need to find a kayak that suit to your size and weight. You can refer to the kayak's catalogue for more information. I can't give any more information about the kayak's catalogue because I, myself is not an expert. For stability of a kayak, a kayak that is long and wide, the level of stability is high. Kayak's stability is divided into 2, Initial/Primary Stability and Final/Secondary Stability. Initial/Primary Stability describes how much a boat tips, or rocks back and forth when displaced from level by water movement or paddler weight shifts. Final/Secondary Stability describes how readily a boat capsizes. Initial/Primary stability is often a big concern to a beginner, while Final/Secondary matters more to experienced travellers who may frequent rougher waters. Initial/Primary stability increases as the boat's volume moves away from the centreline. Another thing to consider is Rocker. What is Rocker? Rocker is the amount the ends of the hull are curved upward in relation to the centre of the hull. The degree of curvature in the hull from the bow to the stern along the keel line defines the amount of rocker in a kayak. Longer kayaks usually have more rocker to help support the weight of the paddler when the kayak is halfway between wave crests. This improves the ability to manoeuvre the kayak, especially in rough water. While more rocker increases manoeuvrability, it also reduces the amount of waterline in the water, creating a less efficient hull. A kayak with little or no rocker will track very well, but can be more difficult to manoeuvre. We carefully control rocker to deliver the right combination of manoeuvrability, speed and seaworthiness appropriate for each kayak's purpose. You can watch this video to determine kayak rocker shape.

There are 3 types of kayak that I learned from my 'super-cool-and-calm-in-any-situation' lecturer, Encik Zainal : Mandesta, Ottersport and Slalom.

Mandesta

• V shaped
• Fast
• Hard to control
• Suitable for tournament
• Suitable for rivers and lakes that are wide and large

Ottersport

• U shaped/flat bottom hull
• Very stable
• Receive a lot of water resistance
• Suitable for long distance/expedition
• Suitable for rivers, lakes and sea
• Suitable for recreational

Slalom

• O shaped
• Curved hull
• Easy to control
• Fast but easy to capsize
• Suitable for training and exhibition
• Suitable for rivers and lakes
• Suitable for recreational

For the next part of kayaking subject, I'll show the different types of life jacket and buoyancy aid.

Kayaking

For today's subject in our Outdoor Recreation is about kayaking. What is kayaking? According to the ever reliable Wikipedia, kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving across the water. Well, what is a kayak then? A kayak is defined by the International Canoe Federation (the world sanctioning body) as a boat where the paddler faces forward, legs in front, using a double bladed paddle. My class was supposed to have a kayaking session at the Shah Alam Lake today, but due to 'technical' circumstances, which I really really don't want to elaborate, it was cancelled and most probably - I really really hope so - will be held next week. So, you will ask what did we do after the kayaking session was cancelled, we had a class in a class room of course! Our 'super-cool-and-calm-in-any-situation' lecturer, Encik Zainal taught us about kayak and kayaking in the class. I think he said something we hardly 'see' anything about what he taught us about kayak and kayaking unless we are out there in a kayak and of course, in the water.

Ok, ok. What did we learn today from our 'super-cool-and-calm-in-any-situation' lecturer, Encik Zainal? First we learn the history of kayak. The kayak was invented and first used by the native Ainu, Aleut, and Eskimo hunters in Sub-Arctic regions of north eastern Asia, North America and Greenland . The first kayak were constructed from stitched animal seal or other skins stretched over a wooden frame (made from driftwood, since many of their habitats were treeless).


John MacGregor a.k.a. the father of modern kayaking, is a British sailor of Scot descendants. Well, to make it easy, he is a Scottish. He invented the first modern kayak in 1865 and named it "Rob Roy". He then took Rob Roy to explore the Europe's rivers from 1865 to 1867. For information about John MacGregor, you can check out this page, http://www.paddleworld.com/mac-gregor.php.


The history of modern kayaking in Malaysia started in the 60-s by the British navy in Woodlands. The kayak activity was back in action in the 70-s especially around Penang and during the 80-s, the kayak activity was growing rapidly helped by the Malaysian Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Next subjects about kayak are about the size and how to choose a kayak, the stability of a kayak and types of kayak, which I'll write in my next blog.

P.S I'm still just a beginner about kayaking though! Better ask the experts for more information.