SCUBA For Whitewater Kayakers

[Dive Kayak]

I’m a certified diver and new to this forum. I began whitewater kayaking seven years ago. Every year, whitewater kayakers drown from being trapped in sieves and recirculating holes, flush drowning after swimming out of their boat in big rapids, and various other hazards. I believe that in most of these situations the kayakers would survive if they had just a few of minutes of air to enable a self-rescue or rescue by others.

Standard Pony tanks are too big and impractical for kayaking. There is a product on the market, which I own, called Spare Air that provides about 25 breaths, but it is cumbersome to use, mainly due to the absence of a hose connected regulator, but also because of its cylindrical shape.

I read another thread on this forum about alternative shapes for scuba tanks. The consensus was that there are carbon fiber and other high tech materials from which scuba tanks are made, but are very expensive and not widely needed. What would be ideal for kayaking is a scuba tank shaped like a fanny pack that is worn below a kayakers flotation vest either on his stomach or the small of his back. The regulator would be velcroed to the flotation vest for quick access. I do not know much about tank manufacturing, but since most kayakers drown just below the surface, the strength of the tank and pressure requirement would not need to be the same as a regular scuba tank that is manufactured and certified for much deeper use.

The key to safety in kayaking is scouting and avoiding hazards. Nevertheless, it’s a tragedy that so many kayakers drown unnecessarily. Does anyone have any thoughts about a fanny pack shaped tank that would use a standard regulator?

Thanks very much.

 

[Doc Harry]

There are a variety of emergency air products for whitewater kayaking that have been around for many years.

The Spare Air is, at best, a clumsy product for this application.

One of the best emergency air products for whitewater kayaking is the Rapid Air.

The Rapid Air is similar to the Spare Air in its capacity but the Rapid Air sits inside of a standard kayaker's PFD and the mouth piece projects up towards the paddler's mouth.

Rapid Air also makes a simple breathing tube that is routed through the kayaker's spray skirt and into the kayak. In an emergency the kayaker can breath the air that is inside of the kayak.

Kayaking on the famous (infamous?) Gauley River, West Virginia

 

[g1138]

There's a public safety diver BC from Zeagle that's very minimalist and comes equipped to carry a small pony across the chest.
Might get some inspiration from their design.

Rapid Diver - Specialized BCs - BCs - Zeagle Dive Systems

 

[Mud&Rox]

I've been a class 4 paddler for about 3 years and a diver for 4. ive tried several different ways to carry air down river with me and my fav has been a small pony (40) under my stern float bags (center divider is cut to accept it with foam on both the top and bottom of the tank) with just a 1st stage with a 6' line to a 2nd stage that I run up my skirt and clip to my green vest. works great and I have actually ran several sections of my home waters upside down just to switch it up a bit......great for finding lost gear! knock on wood Ive never had to use it in an actual emergency but as a diver I believe I have enough muscle memory to go for the octo clipped to my right side in the event that I needed it.....dont think my way would work out to well for the squirt boater pic on the gauley tho......

happy boatin' and divin'