Buoyancy aid for boat handling - advice please

[Paulo]

We just zip up our drysuit before leaving the harbour

Oh wow! That really isnt sufficient! On a RIB you want somethig that will face you right way up if you fell in. Imagine the impact of hitting the water at 20kn

[Mikael]

Oh wow! That really isnt sufficient! On a RIB you want somethig that will face you right way up if you fell in. Imagine the impact of hitting the water at 20kn

I wonder what the split among clubs that RHIB dive is on wearing additional buoyancy over the drysuit?

It's only since moving to England that I have joined a RHIB owning club. That said all the other times I have been out on a RHIB (privately owned or as a charter) I don't ever recall being asked to put on a life jacket.

[Energy58]

A normal automatic life jacket won't inflate with spray. I have had plenty of drenchings without it firing.

Some are pressure activated, which generally don't go off, others rely on a dissolving bobbin thingy which most certainly do - the standard as far as I remember is deployment in 30 seconds of immersion so if you are getting wet it WILL go off after using it for a while on most RHIBs: they are not designed for people who are getting wet regularly.

[MikeF]

Oh wow! That really isnt sufficient! On a RIB you want somethig that will face you right way up if you fell in. Imagine the impact of hitting the water at 20kn

Having fallen / been pushed out of a rib on a few occasions and having done a fair bit of water skiing in my youth I can assure you that hitting the water at 20 kts is bracing but not generally life threatening.

[WFO]

Oh wow! That really isnt sufficient! On a RIB you want somethig that will face you right way up if you fell in. Imagine the impact of hitting the water at 20kn

That's what pretty much everyone does though.

If you fall off you bounce a bit, worst thing is the water going down your neck seal

[Paulo]

That's what pretty much everyone does though.

If you fall off you bounce a bit, worst thing is the water going down your neck seal

Not over here and we have a far more lax attitude to H&S compared to the Brits.

No one gets on our RIB without a lifejacket not a PFD. Mind you, we have them available for those without.

When I used to do a lot of sea angling, no one was allowed onto the pier to start loading their boat without a life jacket.

Life jackets are dirt cheap. Lives are not