Painter bags...
Posted: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:46 pm
I've ben off line for a while and just found this post. I think it's a really important one to think about and there are always going to be different opinions. I knolw many who use painters and many who don't. I'm halfway, using a well secured (more later) bow painter, but no stern painter....here's a couple of stories.
When I was just learning to paddle OC1, I took a club boat out on the Hudson in April at 6ft. It was an easy section, class II-III, but running fairly high and fast. The Hudson is wide. I was paddling with one friend in a kayak. I entered a kneeling too high and managed to flip the XL13. Noting that it had no painters I had attached my 70ft throwbag to the bow grab loop and tucked it under the deck plate. When I flipped I tried to swim to shore, but it was cold enough that I had to get my friend to assist and only then could he catch the boat (which was in the middle of the river of course). With the 70ft throw bag he *just* managed to get the end of the rope to shore before it came tight. Painters wouldn'tve have been much use here (too short), but the throw bag worked great. Better would have been to be paddling in a bigger group.
The main reason I know use a bow painter is after an incident 2 years ago when I was teaching. At the time I had no painters nor grab handles on my boat (Esquif Detonator). If I recall accurately things went as follows. We had a beginner class of 7 students with 4 instructors, myself in OC1, a pair in an OC2 and a friend running safety boat in a kayak. This was on the Mongaup in NY, a class II-II+ rockgarden run. Lots of fun, but one I normally reserve for very strong beginner classes (canoe or kayak) This weekend we had no other choice for water. Running one rapid I lead and caught an eddy partway down. The rest of the class and instructors passed me by, excluding the last student, who also happened to be my wife. Instead she took a channel on the other side of a large rock. She didn't immediately emerge and then waved her paddle in a distress signal. The only way I could reach her (she was slightly upstream and in the other channel) was to make an attainment to the bottom of a small eddy with a tree trunk sticking into it and climb up the tree trunk to the rock. You better believe I was motivated to get there fast too. The eddy wasn't big enough to hold my boat without me and there was nowhere to pull it up out of tyhe water. Without painters, my only option if I wanted to get to where I could see and help the student was to climb the tree trunk and let my boat drift down river, hoping the other instructors (who I had whistle signalled) would catch it. I did this and fortunately they got the boat (although I didn't know this until later). I climbed onto the rock and found my wife safe, but solidly stuck on a submerged rock. We got her off and then tandem paddled her boat (a Flashback outfitted solo) down to the rest of the group (note we were on a rock island in the center of the river).
After this incident I decided painters were required, but I also didn't like the idea of just stuffing rope under the bow plates where it could come out and tangle me. I've seen it coming out of drifting boats too often. I then discovered the MEC painter bag on a trip to Canada. This is a small bag you attach to your front thwart which contains 15ft of 1/4" polypro floating rope. The rope stays secure in the bag until you need it and I don't think I've ever had it come out unintentionally. It's fairly easy to access, although definitely not as easy as just stuffing the rope underthe deck plates. It's also pretty cheap - about $15 canadian I think. I can't find it right now on their website, but if you give them a ring (888 847 0770). I think it's just called the MEC Painter Bag and I know they recently had them in both the Vancouver and Ottawa stores when I visited them.
I also really like having the bow painter for tying the boat to trees when it is difficult, impossible or just annoying to drag it onto shore for lunch, scouting or something similar.
CHeers
Matt
PS. Don't forget to remove the knot from the end of the rope if you buy one of these! I agree that that is a safety hazard.
When I was just learning to paddle OC1, I took a club boat out on the Hudson in April at 6ft. It was an easy section, class II-III, but running fairly high and fast. The Hudson is wide. I was paddling with one friend in a kayak. I entered a kneeling too high and managed to flip the XL13. Noting that it had no painters I had attached my 70ft throwbag to the bow grab loop and tucked it under the deck plate. When I flipped I tried to swim to shore, but it was cold enough that I had to get my friend to assist and only then could he catch the boat (which was in the middle of the river of course). With the 70ft throw bag he *just* managed to get the end of the rope to shore before it came tight. Painters wouldn'tve have been much use here (too short), but the throw bag worked great. Better would have been to be paddling in a bigger group.
The main reason I know use a bow painter is after an incident 2 years ago when I was teaching. At the time I had no painters nor grab handles on my boat (Esquif Detonator). If I recall accurately things went as follows. We had a beginner class of 7 students with 4 instructors, myself in OC1, a pair in an OC2 and a friend running safety boat in a kayak. This was on the Mongaup in NY, a class II-II+ rockgarden run. Lots of fun, but one I normally reserve for very strong beginner classes (canoe or kayak) This weekend we had no other choice for water. Running one rapid I lead and caught an eddy partway down. The rest of the class and instructors passed me by, excluding the last student, who also happened to be my wife. Instead she took a channel on the other side of a large rock. She didn't immediately emerge and then waved her paddle in a distress signal. The only way I could reach her (she was slightly upstream and in the other channel) was to make an attainment to the bottom of a small eddy with a tree trunk sticking into it and climb up the tree trunk to the rock. You better believe I was motivated to get there fast too. The eddy wasn't big enough to hold my boat without me and there was nowhere to pull it up out of tyhe water. Without painters, my only option if I wanted to get to where I could see and help the student was to climb the tree trunk and let my boat drift down river, hoping the other instructors (who I had whistle signalled) would catch it. I did this and fortunately they got the boat (although I didn't know this until later). I climbed onto the rock and found my wife safe, but solidly stuck on a submerged rock. We got her off and then tandem paddled her boat (a Flashback outfitted solo) down to the rest of the group (note we were on a rock island in the center of the river).
After this incident I decided painters were required, but I also didn't like the idea of just stuffing rope under the bow plates where it could come out and tangle me. I've seen it coming out of drifting boats too often. I then discovered the MEC painter bag on a trip to Canada. This is a small bag you attach to your front thwart which contains 15ft of 1/4" polypro floating rope. The rope stays secure in the bag until you need it and I don't think I've ever had it come out unintentionally. It's fairly easy to access, although definitely not as easy as just stuffing the rope underthe deck plates. It's also pretty cheap - about $15 canadian I think. I can't find it right now on their website, but if you give them a ring (888 847 0770). I think it's just called the MEC Painter Bag and I know they recently had them in both the Vancouver and Ottawa stores when I visited them.
I also really like having the bow painter for tying the boat to trees when it is difficult, impossible or just annoying to drag it onto shore for lunch, scouting or something similar.
CHeers
Matt
PS. Don't forget to remove the knot from the end of the rope if you buy one of these! I agree that that is a safety hazard.