Thanks you! Looking foward to getting back to Canada in July.

Thank you. I need to get back to making a few more of these.

I did and that was the last part of the skills requirement. I had to be able to paddle and continue on.

There was a slight moment of concern as I hoped my stern would clear that last piling.

Thanks! This was just practice. Unlike a turtle roll to avoid a breaking wave, once upside down....you go with the current.

Not in my experience when you consider that I was in my kayak and paddling with a kayak that, while I still wanted to get the rest of the water out, was mostly dry and stable to the point I could have continued paddling or turned and done assisted rescues. In my current kayak, with better skills, I have done this in bigger sea states now in less time and not needing to empty the kayak at all. In every instance I have tried, I am always faster and drier with a scramble than a re-enter and roll. As a skill, this is still vital to practice. If you exit, it would generally mean your roll failed. If it failed, that means there is a risk your re-enter and roll may fail. As an instructor, having multiple options is the best bet. And yes, for some, the re-enter and roll will be faster but that has never been the case for myself and most I know.

I think it is easier since you can see the waves coming and make sure you are braced or closer to the deck. The challenge is that we don't always get to make that choice. At 36 seconds you can see a wave push my bow and that forced the decision to be facing down wind/wave. Since I was holding on behind the cockpit, the stern was 'anchored' but the bow was free to move - so it turned downwind. That trimming the stern is also how we turn downwind as an aside.

We did have some rain. Air temp was around 45 °F and water temp was about 48 °F

It's a great spot for teaching too!

Thanks! I need to get a few more of please demonstrated in real conditions

Thank you

Thank you

Given that the scale generally applies to open water and larger craft, it is a moderate breeze. For most sea kayakers, 16 knots is more than a breeze. The entire Beaufort scale though applies more to open water than our inland sea (Puget Sound). I was just out in Force 7/8 conditions (gusts actually to 35) and we had at best 4' waves - not "Sea heaps up, waves 13-19 ft, white foam streaks off breakers" or "Moderately high (18-25 ft) waves of greater length, edges of crests begin to break into spindrift, foam blown in streaks"

I have done this in the sea with wind and waves...this though is the best example out there: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_B2c5ZneOvQ.html

It's a pretty incredible place

Thanks. My wife gets all the credit for picking the music. I live paddling in fog, especially on crossings. Challenging but satisfying

@@robertnissenbaum Nice. It's not that common around where I normally paddle, unfortunately. My most vivid fog memory was a winter night paddle with a friend where we headed back after a large night light kayak parade and suddenly ended up in kind of a black hole due to the fog. Got trickier as we had to navigate through ice in the fog - we ended up getting up on shore in the wrong location for safety after a km of crushing light ice.

Ha! It's a regular navigation aid

Thank you! The shore there does set up some nice waves. especially at higher tides.I tend to play off Point Defiance (adds the current) but on a more Westerly wind I don't need to paddle as far to have some fun.

It's extremely useful, but it needs to be practiced over and over again, and in conditions. A roll is still the best option but they can fail so I practice the scramble every chance I get.

Most of it was emptied and I can paddle it about half full of water....and it's a good thing to be able to do.

@@robertnissenbaum OK, thanks for your video and personal answer.

I can do thisd in up to 5' seas and 25 knots of wind - it's something I routinely practice. I will get more video demonstrating that. I can also roll reliably in those same and bigger sea states. I have also know rolls to fail and thus one should have a back up method. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-WFqEXXZ8vMA.htmlsi=U_fYJERkWkFC-lEF

Well you are a better man than me I started canoeing in 1963 in a lath and canvas pbk 14. I then spent forty plus years canoeing in all sorts of weather I certainly could not use your technique in most of the rough water crossings I did ( I canoe camped most of the Hebridean Islands and North Sea trips) there again I would never end up out of my boat.

I don't think it's being a better man @@john-wq8kfand I am sure I likely couldn't get back into a canoe. I am also a firm believer in rescues being secondary to learning how to stay upright. The best rescue/roll is the one we don't need.

Thank you! On this kayak I have 1/4 x 20 marine stainless steel inserts set into the deck at the bow and stern when it was built. The 2 on the way will have the inserts in the bow only. Another in my fleet has it only on the stern. For the others I use an all aluminum version of the traditional GoPro mount. I have 4 lengths of aluminum poles each with aluminum connectors on each end - one to thread into the deck fitting and the other into the camera. I'll swap out the deck side to a GoPro style when I switch kayaks.

It was!

It can. This self rescue was done on purpose to demo the skill since rolls can and do fail. I did roll the kayak on both sides prior to this rescue

The only real difference is that I will put the blade in a bit deeper because I don't have to worry about it getting yanked out of my hands the same way a Euro blade would.

You're welcome. Attaching the spray skirt faster is mostly a matter of practicing it - and even then, tighter fitting skirts can be a challenge. Start at the back behind your hip and pull the skirt around the coaming toward your hips. I find it best to lean forward to keep tension on the back of the skirt once my hands get to my hips allowing me to slide my hands to the front of the skirt and pull it over the rest of the coaming - I'll get a quick video on my technique.

@@robertnissenbaum Thank you so much for the reply!! I will wait for that video! :) Time for dry land drills again!! 😁💪

You're welcome!

It is one of his Petrel Plays (one of 2 in my fleet). I'll have a Petrel here at the end of April

@@robertnissenbaum You could not own a more meticulously crafted sea kayak. Congratulations!

No reflective deck lines as I find them to affect my vision when lights do hit them - easier to see me but harder for me to see The headlamp I have includes a red light and 3 brightness levels of white - I can quickly adjust it to be seen. While reflective stickers on the paddle would be best for visibility, tbey only work when light hits them - so passive. A light I control means I can actively announce my presence/position. Plus, the light illuminates the paddle enough to make movement visible even in the distance. If I was purposely on a big crossing or through a shipping channel - I would be active on/monitoring my radio and I would and a glow stick on the bow and stern (again, actively visible, not just when light pointed at me). There were only 2 of us and easy to keep track of each other. In a larger group, unless my headlamp is on bright which affects my night vision, reflective stickers and lines are less effective than glow sticks for quickly locating another paddler. In the event of a capsize, the glow sticks tend to be better at locating the swimmer as well. I won't say this is the safest/best/recommended practice - likely isn't - but I have found it best for me. Others will have different results so thinking about why you need to be visible (to avoid a collision, to find others in your group), what works best (passive, active, or a combination), and what has the least impact on YOUR ability to see will help you find the best solution for you.

Currently there are a couple of pool sessions scheduled with the Mountaineers (Bremerton and in Tukwila). They have up to 19 in the pool so space is a bit limited. I rent the pool in Bremerton and have pool sessions all winter (usually 2x per month) and limit the pool to 10 including myself and another instructor to make sure there is room to practice skills. I post the session on my website rnissenbaum.com/sea-kayak-classes/ and announce them through email (rnissenbaum.com/subscribe)

I find the stroke more natural without giving up any power. I find it provides more support and because the blade is deeper in the water, I find more control in dynamic conditions.

Thank you. The demo on flat water is great for showing how it's done, but it doesn't demonstrate that the individual can actually do those rescues when it's really needed.