Paddling Antarctica Be prepared! Speights Coast ... - Canoe & Kayak

Product Focus
Get maximum life out of your dry bags.
In simple terms a dry bag is made of a waterproof material
that rolls over itself to seal.
There is plenty of choice, with varying quality and price.
I have put together a simple breakdown of styles, types
of construction and how to get a long life out of your
dry bags.
Dry bag construction and materials.
Dry bags are made of PVC, Polyester or Nylon, with or without woven
threads and with electronically bonded waterproof seams. That’s the
technical stuff out of the way.
How to destroy your dry bag as quickly as possible.
This is easy. Stuff it over-full. Force the top to roll 3 times as tightly as
possible and then push it around a 90 degree corner to get it inside the
kayak. You’ll win the prize for the world’s greatest dry bag destroyer.
Things to remember to increase the life of your dry bags.
DO NOT OVER FILL – buy a bigger size than you need. It will last
twice as long and cost only a few dollars more. A dry bag that is only
75% filled will easily mould to the odd spaces inside your kayak hatch
allowing you to carry more. Normally we would say that more small
Modern dry bags can last many years,
possibly for your entire kayaking career.
bags are easier to pack into a kayak than a few large bags. This is true,
unless the large bags are only 75% filled.
Most dry bags fail either because the fabric rips or the clear window
cracks.
So keeping things simple here are a few things to remember.
1/- the clear PVC window has no woven threads in the plastic and is,
therefore, the weakest part of a dry bag.
2/- lighter more flexible fabric is less likely to catch and rip going in and
out of sea kayak hatches.
3/- Ripstop is a woven fabric that has an extra thread added to the
weave, which stops a tear or rip from travelling across or down
the fabric.
4/- When tramping, heavier weight plastic increases abrasion resistance
but this is not usually needed when kayaking.
5/- Most commonly failure occurs where the clear plastic window joins
the more flexible bag fabric. The strongest bag has Ripstop construction
with no window. But who wants to go without a window?
The next most common failure is cracking of heavy weight fabric where
it rolls to provide a seal. Lighter weight fabrics often last longer.
Making life easy. How to purchase the best dry bag for your needs.
All dry bags keep their contents dry, but many make it difficult to find
the thing you are looking for without empting the entire bag. It helps to
have a big window in the bag. Completely clear dry bags are available,
as long as you don’t mind displaying their contents to the world. My
personal emergency kit bag is one of these, which I do not access often
and can visually check the contents.
For other stuff, especially clothes, I prefer a dry bag which opens along
its length. It is easier to find things in a shallow bag with a big opening.
This style of bag is a little more expensive but is so much easier to use.
The value of a small auto purge valve. It lets air out of the bag!
Award Scheme
The NZKI Award Scheme was formed in response to a
growing need in the Kayaking Industry to have more
people with Kayaking qualifications, to encourage more
kayakers towards expanding their skills and knowledge
and to continue to increase the safety of our sport.
The NZKI Award Scheme is structured around the
assessment of skills and knowledge that are required for
the type of activity to be undertaken by the Instructor
or Guide.
A star is awarded for each level achieved, starting off
with the NZKI One Star for personal paddling skills and
knowledge and moving up to the NZKI Five Star for
an Assessor.
For more information phone 0508 5292569
www.nzki.co.nz
20 I S S U E F I F T Y • 2 0 0 9