Sorry if re-post, Outfitter swamped at sea

I looked but did not see this incident posted on the Hobie site. Sorry if this is a re-post.

Serious incident reported that should stimulate discussion re safety measures:

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/bb/in ... pic=5985.0

Incident and safety measures discussed:

http://topkayaker.net/cgi-bin/TopYak/ul ... p=1#000011

Particularly taken with idea always use floatation bags plus this from Prowler Les on the TopKayaker site:

“What is needed is some kind of screw hatch slightly larger than the diameter of the bilge pump with a rubber seal that the pump is pushed through so that the rubbers seals around the outside of the pump. This way the water can be pumped out without more water getting in.â€

Thanks for posting that -- we should all think about the unthinkable.

Come to think of it, I should fill my Revo hull with water and see how difficult it is to paddle/peddle. I have six pool noodles in the hull "just in case" but have no way of knowing, short of experimenting, how well they would help.

Jon

The pump hatch idea has been posted before. CRS on where; possibly the same guy.

A "plug" should be easy enough to built into the current hatch. Possibly just a large (believe on order 1.5-2 inch diameter) plastic screw device. The hatch seems thick enough to acomodate the few threads needs to keep the "plug" in place.

A rubber seal may not even be required. Most pumps I see (the one I have is so equipted) have a soft float device for the pump itself. It slides so could be pushed down against the hatch after the pump is inserted.

In the meantime your shirt might do the job on a temporary basis as long as the top of the center hatch is above water. Wrapped around the pump stem it should shed most incoming splashes.

I have a pice of rubber carpet flooring approx 12'in diameter with a hole cut out for the pump to cover up the center hatch hole if I ever have to pump. Knock on wood I won't.

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