A friend of mine got a bit of a surprise Wednesday morning when he went out to West Neck Marina and climbed in his boat to go fishing. As he started to put on his life vest, he noticed it was completely open.
"It had inflated (I'm assuming) in the boat," he said. "I checked the bobbin, and it was red. I then checked the date, and it was 06. I have to wonder how many people, like me, don't check them regularly."
Then, as luck would have it, when I opened Jay Kumar's latest electronic issue of BassBlaster last evening, what should I find but an article entitled "Inflatable PFD doesn't open...again." I knew this coincidence warranted a blog post.
In that case, angler John Cox (see right) and his marshal, Bryan New, were thrown from the FLW-issued Ranger driven by Cox. He was moving to another pocket in the mid-section of the lake to do some sight-fishing, traveling about 45 or 50 mph, when the boat suddenly cut hard left.
Both Cox and New were launched into Smith Lake's 52-degree water, but their inflatable PFDs did not deploy. As a result, they quickly dropped to the bottom in approximately 10 feet of water because both were wearing foul-weather bibs and extra layers of clothing. This gear, according to Cox, may have saved both of them from suffering additional and possibly more severe injuries.
Cox ended up with a gash on his head that required staples, as well as a possible concussion. New, who already was nursing an unrelated collarbone injury, suffered a bump on his forehead.
"As he (Bergen) zoomed into the mouth of the shipping channel," wrote Kumar, "the bottom of his boat struck a large pipe protruding inches above the water off an underwater break wall. The heavy pipe shredded the fiberglass hull of Bergen's 21-foot Ranger boat on impact and ejected both men into the lake.
"Both anglers were jettisoned across the front deck, over the bow, and into 30 feet of water. 'It happened so fast neither of us had time to react,' said Bergen, who was knocked temporarily unconscious when his face slammed into the console on his way out of the boat.
"Fortunately for both men, the boat turned sharply away as they were tossed over the nose, and neither man was struck by the propeller. The boat came to rest against channel rocks.
"Bergen had the outboard 'kill' switch attached to his life vest but had forgotten to attach it to the throttle connector. Otherwise, the engine would have shut off as he was thrown from the cockpit. Because he uses a foot throttle, the boat did slow to idle speed when his foot came off the gas.
"Both anglers were wearing life jackets. Boston had a traditional foam-filled jacket that covers the back and chest; Bergen was wearing a harness-style vest designed to inflate when submerged...but it didn't."
As Bergen subsequently related, "I just bought it a few weeks ago, and even had the Coast Guard inspect it before I used it. I'll never wear one of those inflatables again."
Kumar added that he hasn't used or carried any inflatables since the earlier FLW incident. "A PFD has to work when you need it to...period!" he explained. "Not saying all inflatable PFDs are bad--just for me, it's a confidence deal."
Another angler who quit wearing inflatable life jackets, as noted by Kumar, is Scott Rook. The last time the Elite Series came to Lake Champlain in 2007, Rook was wearing an inflatable while fighting 5-foot waves to get back to the weigh-in site.
Said the Elite Series pro, "I thought, if I go down here, it's 400 feet deep and 2-3 miles to the bank. If that life jacket fails to inflate, I can't swim that far in these waves. It was as scared as I've ever been."
Checking out your brand new vest. We recommend that the first thing you do with a new vest is to unfold and inflate it, using the oral inflation tube, to be sure it has no leaks in the bladder and is safe to wear. Leave it inflated overnight. If it still is holding air the next day, deflate it, refold it, and use it with confidence. If the new vest won't hold air, return it for replacement.
Regular inspections when you put on the PFD. Check the exterior for abrasions, loose thread, or other signs of wear. Make a habit of checking the service indicator that is visible inside the clear plastic window to make sure the status is green, which means your PFD is armed and ready to inflate. Red means the vest only can be manually inflated and needs service.
Detailed inspection. At least once a year, at the beginning of the boating season, inflate the PFD and go over the CO2 cylinder, the bobbin, and any other of the various pins or parts that make it work. Perform this inspection every two or three months if you wear your vest regularly, or if your boating location is hot and humid, since the inflation mechanism may be subject to corrosion.
This time, unfold the vest and carefully remove the CO2 cylinder and the bobbin. Check the bottom of the cylinder and make sure it has not been punctured or discharged, and that it does not show any sort of damage. Check the date that is stamped on the bobbin (note that some vests, like the Mustang models with the Hammar hydrostatic inflators, have the expiration date printed on the exterior of the inflator). If the bobbin is more than three years old, get a new one, regardless of how intact it appears. Bobbins have to dissolve like an aspirin pill when they come in contact with water, which is how the device activates itself, so don't mess around with out-of-date equipment.
If your vest has a safety harness, check the stitching, inspect the D-ring that clips to your tether, and be sure the whistle is still present (as well as an operational strobe light, if you've installed one). Be sure the bladder is intact, without tears or holes, and the oral inflating tube and reflective tape are in good shape.
Most vests have "care instructions" sewn inside the fabric cover that will cover all of these points in detail and, especially important, will provide the part number for the rearming kit you may need to purchase that will contain the cylinder, bobbin, and other replacement parts. Cylinders come in a variety of sizes, diameters, and thread patterns specific to each model of the jacket. Some vests also need pins or "pills" to activate. Always use the exact model of rearming kit intended for your specific model of vest.
Inflate the vest, as before, with the oral inflation tube. Leave it inflated for at least 16 hours. Consider giving the vest a quick wash in warm soapy water, followed by a rinse with fresh water, especially if you're a saltwater boater, since salt is just as gritty and corrosive to life vests as to other boating gear. You also can perform the leak test by submerging your vest in a bathtub or sink, and check it for pinhole leaks.
When you've finished, hang the vest up to dry in a well-ventilated location that's out of direct sunlight. After it dries, deflate it, using the small tool attached to the oral inflation tube, carefully squeezing out all the air so the device will fold compactly enough to fit back into its cover. Then rearm your PFD with the bobbin and CO2 cylinder (both of which have not yet reached their expiration dates) and repack the vest according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Now, with the service indicator showing green, you can wear your life vest with confidence. The point of inflatable life vests, and what makes them worth these extra maintenance chores, is their comfort, light weight, and ease of use. The best life vest, after all, is the one you will wear whenever you're on the water.
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