Pumps

[gumpy]

"rather missed the point" ?

The point of climbing is to get to the top without falling.

The point of canoeing ww is to find the dry line.

Using pumps is "rather missing the point"

[magicmike]

For those of us who are only halfgnarlz, Pumps Rock!

[TheKrikkitWars]

"rather missed the point" ?

The point of climbing is to get to the top without falling.

The point of canoeing ww is to find the dry line.

Using pumps is "rather missing the point"

No, the ultimate point of doing any of these things as a hobby is to have fun... when you impose some kind of ideological barriers upon yourself that limit your options to have fun, you're starting to loose sight of that original motivation...

[PAC]

...are only useful for old men.

Guilty and darn happy to be so!!!!


Still think Tommy needs to spend some time in a C1. Maybe we'll see him at Riversport!

[gumpy]

Sorry, should have said old guys!

[Pea Pod]

I'm not going to knock any bloke that wants to wear a skirt, or use a pump.

Whatever floats your boat, I say.

[ian123]

It's just sad to see open boaters giving up.

[Bob P]

Maybe we should also restrict how much volume your floatation bags can be too. </snark>

(For the record, I don't use a pump, but I don't run really hard stuff any more either...)

[solo_konoe]

For those of us who are only halfgnarlz, Pumps Rock!

^^ and TOG!

[fez]

I like to have it all: I paddle a cataract as dry as possible, in the next eddy I put on the pump. Much more confortable for me then climbing out if that is possible at all. If it is possible to hop out easily - then I hop out and empty the boat in the classic way, that`s faster anyway.

[TommyC1]

i think your all electrically challenged.

Yep, that's me. Tommy the electrically challenged Electrician.
Installing and maintaining a pump in my boat is too much like work.
Nope don't want to.
Besides the guy's I learned from always taught me to look for the dry line. It's elusive, that dry line. But so long as I have no deck (and maybe no pump?) I keep looking.
No pump.

[DougB]

Like the airbag is to the inner tube, so is the electric bilge pump to the bleach bottle with the top cut off. Most people have always used something to bail water. Now there is something half decent to do it. (GASP technology). Don't get your paddles in a knot.

[ian123]

[ian123]

No pumps.

[djutzi]

First off: I don't use a pump. I find they're a pain to set up, maintain, etc., and I have no problems jumping out of my boat to empty it out.

I generally don't begrudge other people using them, except when it means extra time standing around at the put-in waiting for them to get their pump all set up.

However, on a recent run down the Montmorency River near Quebec City, I came to see how it could be useful. The river is completely continuous class III (occasionally building to IV) for about 6 km (nearly 4 miles). There were small eddies along the banks, but no slack/flatwater at all. We ran it after a ton of rain, so it was really pumping. Staying dry indefinitely wasn't really possible (at least not for me ).

Eventually, in the middle of one of the tougher sections, we had a swimmer. This wasn't really a 'stand up and get back in your boat' kind of river, so assisted rescue was the order of the day. I was already swamped and heading to shore to empty my boat, so of no help to the cause. Same deal for another boat on the trip. Luckily we had a couple of boaters with pumps in the group. They were able to switch on their pumps and pursue the boat and paddler. Paddler made it to shore fairly quickly, but the boat kept going for another 500m or so. Finally the 'pumped' paddlers caught up to it and the situation was resolved.

Could I or others, full of water, have continued the chase? Of course we could have. But our probability of success would have been much lower than that of somebody without the same water management issues.

My lesson was (and I've observed this on other occasions as well) that while I might not need a pump to take care of myself, having the option of switching on a pump can enable you to help others more effectively.