Hazard signals (lack of common consistency) are a real problem in signalling in these cases. In my local Scottish kayaking the general guidance is to avoid indicating the hazard, rather to actively indicate the safe route, though it's still hard to get the message across in sufficient time. If, while paddling one indicates to the hazard, then folks look at the hazard and naturally trend toward it. So we instead indicate the good line so they tend toward that. There are no rocks, only water filled gaps to paddle through ;-). Useful teaching/learning video.
Yes. We also always point positive. In this case, I felt they needed to stop progress and scout for themselves as there was a possibly a line there but it was very tight. I knew for a fact they did not see or know about the tree in play. I tried everything I knew from signaling to stop, closed rapid, to hazard, to tree, do not progress...etc. Finally, when the paddlers began to come through anyway, I simplified it to directing them to simply go far right. Subsequent paddlers did heed that signal and made it through but the guy that got trapped did not. They could not see the hazard from their vantage point and thought I was talking about a different less prominent tree they could see from where they were. Was scary for sure. I am 100% certain if they were anyone I normally paddle with, they would not have proceeded. Was very eye opening for sure as to just how difficult it can be at times to effectively communicate and esp so with strangers that may have different ways of signaling, different risk assessments and are unsure of the signaler's skill / prowess in making a call.
Did anyone else notice that the River Kings always are thinking family friendly… when the guy got stuck I believe I would have said something other than shoot… 👍 love the fact I can watch your videos and not have to worry about what my child hears
Thanks rooster r! That is I try to conduct myself on and off the camera...I'm glad it comes through! I honestly wasn't thinking about the audio...that is just what I said! LOL.
This is a great rescue! I love the breakdown and emphasizing you keeping him stable, not taking any big actions. Listening to the kayaker is definitely helpful. :)
I'm a DH MTB Hobby rider, kayaking for me, is bit too much not calculated risk. But I like to watch, how you guys manage the risks, and you got a lot of them! But I have to say, that was probably one of best, school book example like, rescues I've ever seen! Your acting and behavior, perfect! But, your professional talking and even more, your calm questions " what do you want? How you want to continue? What shall I do?" made a horrible memory to a learning lesson with happy survival ending😁😁👍👍‼️‼️
Thanks a ton Robert! There is always room for improvement and I wish I could have done a better job at trying to get them to stop before the rescue was needed. I tried everything I know but the miscommunication factor was high. In any case, it happens fast and you just got to be ready!
We did not. My folding saw had crapped out. Tony's had as well. Bryan only had a carpenters hand saw that stayed in the truck...I would like to think that it will be safely removed between releases...
Fantastic rescue guys, well done! It is great to know that there are folks like you on the river looking out for one another! Thanks for sharing. :) :)
Wow. Watched Tony's video previously and did not realize how close the boater was to being pinned upside-down or in some other worse scenario. Nor did I realize that was you on the bow in Tony's video, but from your perspective (camera), the whole scenario seemed far more under control. Mostly that's because I could hear and see that the boater was fine, stable, and the communication was totally on point. Great work. I can't imagine how much tougher that could have been if the pin was even 10ft further from the shore/eddy.
Great job on the situational recap. Only thing I would add that I noticed, was while you were signaling, there were 2 other guys just waiting behind you. It would have been good to have at least 1 of them waiting by the log (knowing the odds are high for a pin to accure) with a throw bag. Puts the rescuer in a more prepared mind set and gives that extra bit of time, already being in position.
Thanks topdog. That is always the case when you break down an emergency event such as this...There are so many things that can be improved. Mitigating real-time confusion is the hardest part.
Great Rescue! Good focus on maintaining the victim's stability throughout every step. The communication was awesome. Him wrapping the rope around hand and fingers makes me nervous though. And I wonder if it would have been a good idea to clip another rope into the stern grab handle for some extra security.
Thanks Adam! Yeah, he was wrapping that rope up. I was trying to determine if there was a loop for him to grab onto or not...but had my hands full otherwise. That is one of our takeaways...to discourage that in the future if it happens again... I was thinking going more technical if the push didn't work...but if I can affect a rescue with no extra ropes or loops and just hands on, I prefer that...
Pete - thanks so much to you and your fellow kayakers for showing this. A really powerful video and of course the message behind it. Really glad it worked out well. Stay safe buddy.
Potential for catastprophic internal injury was high with that "spear" under the drop. Good rescue. Lucky paddler. Your "after action report" was stellar. Videos like yours should be used in clubs and schools, as well as SWR cert classes for training purposes. I wish we had GoPros back in ancient times, if only for the "recurring memory function". 😁😁😁
i'd add without criticism that Peter repeatedly wrapped his right (free) hand in the rope to rescue and stabilize him .. in this situation, the close rescue worked but the "clean line" was lost .. Gadget, Ireland #gl2k
The upper part of the West Fork is released so rarely that it collects a lot of strainers. It amazes me there aren't more rescues in there. Then again, maybe there are and I just don't hear about them. Good Rescue.
Seem like you were saying they seen the tree across but not the hidden one? So 2 trees and people might say ya we can clear the tree, but the other one gets you pinned. Maybe a sign for 2 trees crossing? I think the first guys that scouted didn't see that hidden tree in the water like you said. I think you did the right thing for the rescue. Cheers
@@RiverKingsKayak have to also say you communicated well with the kayaker to let him figure out what he could do. The best thing you did was calm the situation and neutralized immediate danger. When you have time to think you can make good decisions.
Excellent, can I add one more piece of safety equipment to your list? A locking D ring such as use for repelling. And at least a 50 foot rope. My reasoning multi fold. 1. Hooked to his upper part of his vest he would have been able to use both hands for his extraction. 2. If he was broken away from you all he could easily retrieved back in. And the chances of de gloving his hands or burning his hands from holding onto the rope would be nil. Glad you all were able to help him.
I carry 3 locking carabiners, prusiks, pulleys, webbing loops, and 2 ropes. However, the fewer ropes etc you can use is preferable. I prefer hands on when that is an option. When you start attaching folks to ropes, the danger skyrockets...and that becomes a very technical rescue. We usually avoid that if at all possible. There is a place for it, and sometime that is needed but much expertise is required and extreme caution should be used there...
Locking carabiners are the only type to be carried in whitewater. Attaching a rope to someone via a fixed point like their life jacket is extremely dangerous and can lead to serious consequences. The only appropriate way to affix a rope to someone in whitewater is if they are wearing a rescue life jacket with a quick release safety harness and you attach the rope to the quick release harness that can be released with a quick flip of the latch. A cinch could have been made around this paddlers torso but given the proximity to shore I think unnecessary.
Where's this guy from (the pinned boater)? I couldn't dial in the accent. German or Swiss maybe? I've only watched the first few minutes (so far) so I'm going off very little here but I'm curious. For what it's worth, fantastic job all the way around!!!
Glad it turned out well. Maybe one other takeaway. I'm not sure I would have understood the hand signal for "log". What I would have understood is a horizontal paddle over head or arms forming an 'x' for stop or eddy out immediately so they can scout to assess the risk for themselves. Not criticizing at all. Just a suggestion from what I can see from the video and all of this may have been going on behind the camera anyways.
Multiple and different signals for things is a definite obstacle at times. I did throw the crossed arms x, the horizontal arms and the old log signal. I think they assumed I was talking about a different log they could see that was hanging over the rapid but wasn't in play. I have since added to my signal vocabulary the newer log/tree signal of the right elbow on left hand with wiggly right fingers. We never used that one years ago...though I'm not sure it would have helped in this case. There is always something new to learn!
It's easy to miss that log at quick glance. It has a strong distraction working for it. This section and many others can easily become dangerous any given release year. I've seen many people sucked under logs on this run including myself. Glad all went well for Pete.
What happened after that? Did he get back in? That'd be hard for me to do after all that. Amazing how calm he was through the whole ordeal. Well done and thanks for sharing.
The most fault of "victim paddlers" is a passive paddling strategy. If the accident paddler would give a right bow stroke on the middle section and a full stroke on the left to get right, nothing would have happended. He.s much too passive. You need a relative speed on behalf of the water to be the captain on your own boat. All in all I think, the whole section in general ist too rsiky, everywhere you can see logs and branches in the water. Either you watch that section carefully to the end, or carry the boat - thtat's no shame!
It seems no one had a propper saw?!? It seems this tree could be easily removed bevorehand with a propper saw and the spot would be save for any following KAyaker. On a River with so many trees i always carry a saw in my boat (foldabel; SHARP, 30cm blade)
Hazard signals (lack of common consistency) are a real problem in signalling in these cases.
In my local Scottish kayaking the general guidance is to avoid indicating the hazard, rather to actively indicate the safe route, though it's still hard to get the message across in sufficient time.
If, while paddling one indicates to the hazard, then folks look at the hazard and naturally trend toward it. So we instead indicate the good line so they tend toward that.
There are no rocks, only water filled gaps to paddle through ;-).
Useful teaching/learning video.
Yes. We also always point positive. In this case, I felt they needed to stop progress and scout for themselves as there was a possibly a line there but it was very tight. I knew for a fact they did not see or know about the tree in play. I tried everything I knew from signaling to stop, closed rapid, to hazard, to tree, do not progress...etc. Finally, when the paddlers began to come through anyway, I simplified it to directing them to simply go far right. Subsequent paddlers did heed that signal and made it through but the guy that got trapped did not. They could not see the hazard from their vantage point and thought I was talking about a different less prominent tree they could see from where they were. Was scary for sure. I am 100% certain if they were anyone I normally paddle with, they would not have proceeded. Was very eye opening for sure as to just how difficult it can be at times to effectively communicate and esp so with strangers that may have different ways of signaling, different risk assessments and are unsure of the signaler's skill / prowess in making a call.
By the grace of God. It’s always easier to learn from case studies ... so thank you for posting this
Thanks Fayley! for sure!
Glad there are still people in the world that care enough to look out for and help others, great job!
For Sure Jamie!
Did anyone else notice that the River Kings always are thinking family friendly… when the guy got stuck I believe I would have said something other than shoot… 👍 love the fact I can watch your videos and not have to worry about what my child hears
Thanks rooster r! That is I try to conduct myself on and off the camera...I'm glad it comes through! I honestly wasn't thinking about the audio...that is just what I said! LOL.
Yeah I noticed that too. Nice.
Great rescue!!!!! The paddler needs to be thankful that you and your team were in the right place at the right time. Again great job Pete
Thanks Robert! I'm just so glad his final pin was in that position and so close to the bank!
This is a great rescue! I love the breakdown and emphasizing you keeping him stable, not taking any big actions. Listening to the kayaker is definitely helpful. :)
Thanks crimsonraen!
I'm a DH MTB Hobby rider, kayaking for me, is bit too much not calculated risk. But I like to watch, how you guys manage the risks, and you got a lot of them! But I have to say, that was probably one of best, school book example like, rescues I've ever seen!
Your acting and behavior, perfect! But, your professional talking and even more, your calm questions " what do you want? How you want to continue? What shall I do?" made a horrible memory to a learning lesson with happy survival ending😁😁👍👍‼️‼️
Thanks a ton Robert! There is always room for improvement and I wish I could have done a better job at trying to get them to stop before the rescue was needed. I tried everything I know but the miscommunication factor was high. In any case, it happens fast and you just got to be ready!
He must have recognized you and didn't want to ring The Bell....
LOL! Im sure that was not the case, but if that is what it takes to get someone out, I'll take it! LOL
That look and head shake at 12:32 just about says it all
there is a reason I carry a folding saw in my kayak, great rescue and great awareness and calmness
Agreed... Pete, did you guys end up removing that log?
That's a great idea.
@@mikeemmons4062 actually most of those that kayak with me do, we make a few cuts and water pressure takes over
We did not. My folding saw had crapped out. Tony's had as well. Bryan only had a carpenters hand saw that stayed in the truck...I would like to think that it will be safely removed between releases...
Thanks Scott!
He's lucky you knew what you were doing. I really appreciate the run through you gave on this, very educational.
Thanks BtB! SWR training is so important!
Thanks for sharing and walking us through the steps and potential hazards and ways to improve
Thanks K Z!
Fantastic rescue guys, well done! It is great to know that there are folks like you on the river looking out for one another! Thanks for sharing. :) :)
Thanks! That is one thing that is amazing about the whitewater paddling community...everyone looks after one another.
Think you boys might have been part of a little divine intervention...it just wasn't Peter's day to go. Well done by all!
For sure Austin!
Wow. Watched Tony's video previously and did not realize how close the boater was to being pinned upside-down or in some other worse scenario. Nor did I realize that was you on the bow in Tony's video, but from your perspective (camera), the whole scenario seemed far more under control. Mostly that's because I could hear and see that the boater was fine, stable, and the communication was totally on point. Great work. I can't imagine how much tougher that could have been if the pin was even 10ft further from the shore/eddy.
Thanks Todd! I agree! super stoked that it all ended up like it did! could have been much much worse!
Great job on the situational recap.
Only thing I would add that I noticed, was while you were signaling, there were 2 other guys just waiting behind you. It would have been good to have at least 1 of them waiting by the log (knowing the odds are high for a pin to accure) with a throw bag. Puts the rescuer in a more prepared mind set and gives that extra bit of time, already being in position.
Thanks topdog. That is always the case when you break down an emergency event such as this...There are so many things that can be improved. Mitigating real-time confusion is the hardest part.
Great Rescue! Good focus on maintaining the victim's stability throughout every step. The communication was awesome. Him wrapping the rope around hand and fingers makes me nervous though. And I wonder if it would have been a good idea to clip another rope into the stern grab handle for some extra security.
Thanks Adam! Yeah, he was wrapping that rope up. I was trying to determine if there was a loop for him to grab onto or not...but had my hands full otherwise. That is one of our takeaways...to discourage that in the future if it happens again...
I was thinking going more technical if the push didn't work...but if I can affect a rescue with no extra ropes or loops and just hands on, I prefer that...
Thanks for going over this here. You guys are great people!
thanks Chris!
Pete - thanks so much to you and your fellow kayakers for showing this. A really powerful video and of course the message behind it. Really glad it worked out well. Stay safe buddy.
Thanks Ed n Dave! It happens fast!
Potential for catastprophic internal injury was high with that "spear" under the drop. Good rescue. Lucky paddler. Your "after action report" was stellar. Videos like yours should be used in clubs and schools, as well as SWR cert classes for training purposes. I wish we had GoPros back in ancient times, if only for the "recurring memory function". 😁😁😁
Thanks K9er!
i'd add without criticism that Peter repeatedly wrapped his right (free) hand in the rope to rescue and stabilize him .. in this situation, the close rescue worked but the "clean line" was lost .. Gadget, Ireland #gl2k
Yes. that is a good point that has been mentioned a couple times. Better not to wrap!
The upper part of the West Fork is released so rarely that it collects a lot of strainers. It amazes me there aren't more rescues in there. Then again, maybe there are and I just don't hear about them. Good Rescue.
Thanks Kelly! Yes, Lots of wood! Im sure there are rescues of varying degrees of intensity that happen at every release...
There are rescues in that section quite often. Always wood
Nice job, Pete! And great commentary of what's going on.
Thanks Scott!
Seem like you were saying they seen the tree across but not the hidden one? So 2 trees and people might say ya we can clear the tree, but the other one gets you pinned. Maybe a sign for 2 trees crossing? I think the first guys that scouted didn't see that hidden tree in the water like you said. I think you did the right thing for the rescue. Cheers
Yeah, it gets murky sometimes! Thanks KM!
@@RiverKingsKayak have to also say you communicated well with the kayaker to let him figure out what he could do. The best thing you did was calm the situation and neutralized immediate danger. When you have time to think you can make good decisions.
@@Adventurekm for sure!! Thanks!
Outstanding Pete and gang.
Thanks Tim!
That was excellent, well done all.
Thanks!
Awesome rescue 🙏🥰
Thanks for this video & detailed info.
Thanks Trish!
Excellent, can I add one more piece of safety equipment to your list? A locking D ring such as use for repelling. And at least a 50 foot rope. My reasoning multi fold. 1. Hooked to his upper part of his vest he would have been able to use both hands for his extraction. 2. If he was broken away from you all he could easily retrieved back in. And the chances of de gloving his hands or burning his hands from holding onto the rope would be nil. Glad you all were able to help him.
I carry 3 locking carabiners, prusiks, pulleys, webbing loops, and 2 ropes. However, the fewer ropes etc you can use is preferable. I prefer hands on when that is an option. When you start attaching folks to ropes, the danger skyrockets...and that becomes a very technical rescue. We usually avoid that if at all possible. There is a place for it, and sometime that is needed but much expertise is required and extreme caution should be used there...
Locking carabiners are the only type to be carried in whitewater. Attaching a rope to someone via a fixed point like their life jacket is extremely dangerous and can lead to serious consequences. The only appropriate way to affix a rope to someone in whitewater is if they are wearing a rescue life jacket with a quick release safety harness and you attach the rope to the quick release harness that can be released with a quick flip of the latch. A cinch could have been made around this paddlers torso but given the proximity to shore I think unnecessary.
Where's this guy from (the pinned boater)? I couldn't dial in the accent. German or Swiss maybe? I've only watched the first few minutes (so far) so I'm going off very little here but I'm curious.
For what it's worth, fantastic job all the way around!!!
I was guessing possibly German as well...though, not sure.
Glad it turned out well. Maybe one other takeaway. I'm not sure I would have understood the hand signal for "log". What I would have understood is a horizontal paddle over head or arms forming an 'x' for stop or eddy out immediately so they can scout to assess the risk for themselves. Not criticizing at all. Just a suggestion from what I can see from the video and all of this may have been going on behind the camera anyways.
Multiple and different signals for things is a definite obstacle at times. I did throw the crossed arms x, the horizontal arms and the old log signal. I think they assumed I was talking about a different log they could see that was hanging over the rapid but wasn't in play. I have since added to my signal vocabulary the newer log/tree signal of the right elbow on left hand with wiggly right fingers. We never used that one years ago...though I'm not sure it would have helped in this case. There is always something new to learn!
Way to stay calm and get the job done!
just glad I was around to help out!
Nice job. Thanks for sharing. I really need to take a class.
For sure Jamie!! Thanks!
Awesome hustle! Great job!!
Thanks Paw Sao!
It's easy to miss that log at quick glance. It has a strong distraction working for it. This section and many others can easily become dangerous any given release year. I've seen many people sucked under logs on this run including myself. Glad all went well for Pete.
For sure Robert! Thanks!
Nice work. Scary situation for sure! I would want you in my corner any day man!!
Thanks DO! We all need a good corner from time to time!!
Great rescue boys right place right time !!!
Thanks Jp!
A folding saw might have been useful?
I would be hesitant to try to implement that...but Im sure there is a situation where the folder may be the right tool.
What happened after that? Did he get back in? That'd be hard for me to do after all that. Amazing how calm he was through the whole ordeal. Well done and thanks for sharing.
Oh yeah! take a minute, get back in and head down river!
Good rescue. 👍🏻
thanks PAW!
Great moving
thanks rooster!
The most fault of "victim paddlers" is a passive paddling strategy. If the accident paddler would give a right bow stroke on the middle section and a full stroke on the left to get right, nothing would have happended. He.s much too passive. You need a relative speed on behalf of the water to be the captain on your own boat. All in all I think, the whole section in general ist too rsiky, everywhere you can see logs and branches in the water. Either you watch that section carefully to the end, or carry the boat - thtat's no shame!
Yes, this river has tons of wood...
Great job!!
thanks TO!
Wide eyed WOW!!!
Was tight there for a minute!
Anyone else tense their butt hole watching him wrap the line around his thumb?
I did! LOL
It seems no one had a propper saw?!? It seems this tree could be easily removed bevorehand with a propper saw and the spot would be save for any following KAyaker. On a River with so many trees i always carry a saw in my boat (foldabel; SHARP, 30cm blade)
A saw is always a good idea!! The tree has been removed btw!
Why i Stick to class 1-2. No thanks to the big water you boys can keep it
I hear you TPF85!
👀 good save boys...👍👍
thanks canajian!
Holy smoke
Crazy!
👍
Thanks Joshua!
Time to get out the chainsaw
For sure Gatpig!
Geez
Crazy right!?
😦😬😬
For sure!
Whaou
crazy!
@@RiverKingsKayak not,hot the passage.
Thank you for it’s great video ,I. I’m a fan