Rescue Vest Question

[DMG]

I'm planning to take a swiftwater rescue class this summer but may buy a rescue vest before then and just not use the towing feature until I get trained up. I can't find an Astral Green Jacket in town but I tried on a Willis which seems to be a similar platform and I didn't like the fit. I did like the fit of the Tempo 200. It's not a rescue vest, but you can use it with a quick release belt. The one obvious difference from the Green Jacket is that the shoulder straps are only rated at 400lbs. There may be other differences which I'm not aware of. Here's my question: For someone who aspires to be a Class III and occasional Class IV boater, is there a compelling functional reason to to buy the real-deal rescue vest over the Tempo which fits me more comfortably? The towing feature does seem handy, if only as a toy. Thanks!

~Dave

[Steve S]

Dave, the quick release belt is only used in a few types of rescues. And in those rescues, you should have several experienced SWR-trained paddlers involved. One of them will probably have a rescue vest with a quick release belt; let them take the role that puts them in the water. (A major theme in SWR is that you go into the water only as a last resort, and then only in certain conditions.)

And you don't need a quick release setup to tow a canoe or kayak. There are a couple techniques that will work in which you do not have to have the tow line attached to you or your PFD.

So buy the vest that is comfortable and that you can wear from put-in to take-out. And when you go to SWR class, try on every rescue vest you can. Remember. like all paddling gear, you probably are not buying the last PFD you will ever own.

[DMG]

Thanks to everyone who chimed in on this. It sounds like we might have lost a few posts. And Steve, my intuition was telling me the same thing: buy the vest that fits! Either one is a splurge; I'm only getting another vest so my wife can use mine if we rent a canoe or something. As for strong-swimmer rescues, if that's what you were talking about, I figure that would be a game-time decision and I would use or not use whatever gear I had available at the time. It's hard to imagine myself ever being in that situation given the stuff I run, but you never know, which is why I'm hoping to take some SWR classes. Thanks, Steve!

~Dave

[Cowper]

I'd suggest not assuming the Green Jacket won't fit, until you try one. Something that looks identical in a photograph, might still have a slightly different cut to it, so maybe you'll get lucky.

Since a serious entrapment is "possible" even on Class II, I personally really like having a fully rated rescue tail. Remember, it's not you the jacket is likely to help save; it's the beginning boater that joined you for a "step up" run.

But if the Green and other rescue jackets just don't fit you right, then yes, get something that does. Rescue jackets; elbow pads, full-face helmets, stonger-longer ropes - there are lots of things we can buy that add to our safety equation, but that doesn't mean each of us has to have every one of those things, and there is no sense in spending every day in a jacket that doesn't feel right.