How often do you wear your life vest?

[Nippissinger]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

And if you love to fish, and like the comfort and freedom as most do. They also have this one on sale for $20...

This one will NOT support your head in case of an injury...

Nipper

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

90% of my boats usage is me solo fishing, so I always wear it. If it's really calm and super hot I will go without so I can get a tan, but do not have it stowed away, it will be on the seat beside me, and I always have spares under the bow of the boat as well.

Ian

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Hey RickV. Bass Pro Shops. They have a cheaper version of their own(not camo) for $100 less....

Fo Less than $100 you can get a manual inflator and for another $10 you can get an automatic inflator...Definately worth the coin..

Nipper

Thanks for that info, I wear one of the vests when fishing, but that looks much better and safer....headed to bass pro today!

Ian

 

[bekosh]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

When we had a 12ft fishing boat, we wore them all the time.

When we had our 15ft trihull, we wore them when we were running.

Now that we have the 21ft v-hull, we only put them on if it's really rough out.

Boat size has a lot to do with it.

A word of caution, if you go with the Type III inflatables, the Coast Guard only counts them when they are actually worn. If it's the only style you have on the boat and you take it off to fish, you could be cited for not having enough PFD's on board.

 

[Biggems]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Interesting poll....

I keep the life vests' stowed in the livewell. We only go out on lakes and mild rivers when the weather is nice so we never wear them.

 

[cwhite6]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Here in Louisiana they changed the law this year for boats with tiller handles. All people in a boat with a tiller handle operated motor must wear one while underway. I was raised always wearing one while big motor is running, not wearing one while fishing, but having it close by. Little girl always wears one regardless. So does wife as she is not to swift of a swimmer. To me it is kinda life safety harnesses and tree stands. My safety harness is attached to the tree from the second I leave the ground. Some don't connect until they finish climbing and some not at all. My little girl loves her Daddy too much for me to be stupid.

 

[cbavier]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

I wear mine all the time when on the water. I have an inflatable and often forget I even have it on. Sometimes I'm half way back to the Camper before I realize I still have it on. That's about 3 or 400 yards . So I have to take it off and walk back to the boat and put it away. You buy Insurance just in case. Well a PFD is a cheap Insurance Policy. I had every kind of PFD you have ever seen and the Inflatable is definatly the best. I wish they would become cheaper. I would have them available for all my passengers.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Here in Louisiana they changed the law this year for boats with tiller handles. All people in a boat with a tiller handle operated motor must wear one while underway.

This is the second time that I have heard/seen a reference to a new law in Louisiana requiring a boat operator to wear a PFD, at any time that the boat is underway. The first version that I heard was for the operator to wear one, no matter what kind of steering system.

The difficulty that I am having is that I can't find any reference to such a law in the places where it should be posted. The Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries web site has nothing on this, nor do any number of other state specific web sites. In each case, the requirement printed is that CG approved PFDs must be on board for each person in the boat and they must be readily accessible. That's it.

Help me out - where did you see this new law?

 

[RickV1955]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Nipper......
Thanks for the info!!

Have to check out Bass Pro Shops.....to be honest, I don't think they have any up here in Mass. Know they have some all around Florida.

Guess I could order them from the catalog also.....lol

 

[Mark_VTfisherman]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Kids, teens: they always wear life vests when underway or aboard in compliance with Vermont law. And everyone towed on the tube wears one.

Me? Fishing buddy? I almost never wear one. I have put one on when I felt at risk maybe twice in the last ten years, and I have worn one in fast water on the Connecticut River once. I am a strong swimmer, so unless it is really bad water for some reason, I don't wear one. I have never come close to capsizing my Niagara. If another boat ever creams me then maybe I will be in trouble...

The best day fishing to me is well ventilated shorts and no shirt, just sandals or bare feet. Life jacket doesn't fit that dichotomy. I worry more about skin cancer than drowning.

 

[capt sam]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

lots of good posts, any non-adult including my 13 year old son always wear one when boat is underway, I have auto inflate suspender styles on the boat, so they're not too cumbersome. Mine is usually within arms reach, it's a bad habit and it's wrong.

I work for the local FD and am in charge of our Fireboats and related equipment. I have a standing SOP that anytime operators are on the vessel they must wear the auto inflates suspender style vests. My issue with the waist worn ones is that if you are unconcious for whatever reason and ejected, you may not be able to get the vest around your neck, the suspender style takes care of that. Just this week, one of the PD boats, while underway, lost it's transom and the two brand new Verados hanging on the back. It happened within minutes literally, the officer had his vest on and went in the water with only his cell phone and handheld radio, it was a catastrophic failure that happened very quickly and this was a maintained vessel operated by a veteran boat officer.

 

[Benny1963]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

always in my area and the speed that i like to run out its safer to wear all the time underway, but also do it because the waterpatrol around here
always wantto see im

 

[Nippissinger]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Here in Ontario, Canada the law requires anyone under 16 MUST wear an adequate PFD at all times while on the water...

Not a bad law. Takes care of ALL our little boaters..

Nipper

 

[ilovekingfish]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

When I'm in a motor boat, I usually don't unless I'm tubing or in rough water. In the kayak, I always wear mine, it's too easy to tip over unexpectedly in those things, even in calm water.

 

[CAVU V]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Don't wear them on the boat but all the time on the waverunner.

 

[north40]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Anytime my outboard is running I have my life vest on. When I stop to fish, I put my inflatable on. Please wake up guys if you don't wear yours.

 

[Boss Hawg]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

Anyone , including me- WILL wear a lifevest when my boats moving
When stopped doing whatever they can come off but never more than a arms length away!!

 

[BUHurricane]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

I have really noticed that a lot of people rarely wear their life vest. I was wondering why? I seems to me that a good comfortable vest can be a goood thing to have on.

1. i run on a pretty small lake
2. i have a deckboat with pretty high rails, i couldnt hit a wave big enough on the lake to make me go overboard
3. i have my lifeguard certification


if i was on a bass syle boat, i would consider wearing it all the time if it was truly comfortable.

cold water situations is when you should wear it...

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

1. i run on a pretty small lake
2. i have a deckboat with pretty high rails, i couldnt hit a wave big enough on the lake to make me go overboard
3. i have my lifeguard certification


if i was on a bass syle boat, i would consider wearing it all the time if it was truly comfortable.

cold water situations is when you should wear it

I don't mean to be rude, but your response is absolutely classic - its called the "it can't happen to me rationalization." If you think that it is impossible for you to go overboard and to be knocked unconscious in the process, you are in a state of denial that is repeated over and over in rescue situations.

If you just don't want to wear a PFD, so be it. Just understand that none of us has "superman status." You can end up as a statistic as easily as anyone else.

 

[CAVU V]

Re: How often do you wear your life vest?

I think it depends on the size of the boat/ship you are on.