For those of you who love to boat there are some things you need to be wary of. For example if you plan on boating, hunting, or fishing in the early morning cold you could be exposed to nature in a terrible way. It is important when boating in cold weather or water that you be prepared in case you fall in.
Clothing is a major factor in how your body will function and survive if you get cold and wet. One major factor is to wear layers. Body armor is a popular clothing article that I favor. They usually aren’t cotton which is a good thing. Since they lay so close to the skin they cut the cold breeze you would get with jeans halfway out.
You should avoid cotton if at all possible. I know around 90% of our clothing is cotton but there are some choices out there. Even if your clothing is half spandex and half cotton that’s better than all cotton. Cotton is dangerous when you’re around cold water because if you were to fall in the cotton makes it hard to stay warm. It really doesn’t retain body heat when wet. A good type of fabric to wear is wool, which insulates your body. Even when wet wool will retain your body’s heat. Another fabric is polypropylene which repels moisture. When your clothing holds in your body heat and repels the water it helps to keep you from getting water logged or weighted down.
Always wear a life jacket. It is important not only for if you fall in. A life jacket is a huge factor in your survival because even the best of swimmers can’t float forever. A life jacket also keeps you warm. It helps to hold in your body heat. This is most important in a life jacket because it covers our vital organs. You may think that it’s silly to get a life jacket for an animal, but if you take your dog out with you it is just as important for you animal as it is for you.
Oh no your boat capsized! What do we do?! Well it all depends on how far you are from shore. It is best to just sit on your capsized boat and wait for help to arrive. Swimming cools your body down 35% faster than if you’re just sitting in the water. When you’re engulfed in cold water you body heat reduces 25 times faster than if you were just sitting in the cold air (yes, even if the water and air are the same temperature). It is best to wait outside of the water on top of your boat because continuing exposure to cold water will cause hypothermia. If the only chance you have for survival is to swim you will be most likely to survive at these lengths:
With a Life Jacket——100 feet Without a Life Jacket—-50 feet
Here again the life jacket helps keep you alive. Due to the fact that a life jacket is a floatation device it keeps your body elevated in the water. This makes it so you don’t have to work so hard to keep your head up. If there are multiple people that fall into the water huddle together for warmth. If you fall in by yourself try to keep your arms and legs close to your body to retain body heat.
If you don’t capsize and you just fall in go change your clothes and warm up slowly. Oh, and if your will allows try not to drink alcohol because it will induce hypothermia, and make it harder to swim. Be safe and have Fun!!!!
Source: Personal Experience
Times New Mini-Cassia Edition 9/29/11
www.enter.net/~skimmer/coldwater.html