Use Lumo stickers on your paddles!

Yesterday we had an uneventful rescue here in Cape Town...  or at least as "uneventful" as a rescue can ever be.

I'll be writing the story up in detail, but in summary, two guys on a double were doing a reverse Miller's Run in 20-30kt of wind.  They capsized and struggled to remount - one paddler would remount, then fall off when the other one attempted to get on too.  (Another topic will be "How to remount your double").

They did everything right - recognised they were in trouble early, called for help before they got too cold to use the phone.

But...  one key fact that emerged was that the search and rescue folks spotted their paddles before anything else.  So I'm going to be putting lumo stickers onto my paddles.  They don't weigh anything, but they add significantly to the visibility of paddle blades when you wave them in the air.

There are other lessons from this rescue and we'll share them in due course.  But they had multiple comms options and NSRI picked them up within about 25min of being alerted, which is truly incredible.

I did the reverse yesterday as well and felt the conditions were about as easy as they get.

When I heard there had been a rescue I was wondering what could have possibly been the issue. Thanks for the update. 
On a side note I have often wondered how one gets back in a double. That is why I have to date not done a DW in a double.

Looking forward to your more detailed posts on the matter.

M

Maybe paddle manufactures need to think about making blades high-vis instead of across the board drab black finish.

What are lumo stickers and how do I get them?

I have lengths of standard hi viz tape on the back of my paddles. Always have had, started in the days of being anchored kayak fishing and wanting something to wave around if a boat looked like it was going to run you over. If fact Hi viz tape attached to any small watercraft is a smart idea. Get rolls of the stuff from worksafe or builders supply stores.

I use the hi vis orange on the upper section of the front paddle blades and a couple of bands on the shaft. It was leftover vinyl wrap from the boat tips. For my case, it's for oncoming boaters.... good idea.

Maybe you could use spray varnish?
www.urban-zweirad.de/fluo-yellow-fahrrad...EfcV7oBoCL2IQAvD_BwE