# It's apparantly illegal?!



## JT (May 25, 2006)

So I went and visited the new Anaconda store last weekend. What a great, nay awesome shop that is. To my utter amazement I actually left without buying something.

One thing I was looking for was a product designed to tether myself to my yak. Nothing in store at all so the nice chap at Anaconda promised to get one in for me the next day. Called me the next day and told me it was actually illegal to tether yourself to a yak. I can get you a paddle tether non a person tether. They actually don't exist as they are on the wrong side of the law. This actually astounded me! Is it true and what is the logic behind banning something designed to keep you in close proximity to your yak in the event of a spill?

Anyone know?

John


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## Phoenix (Jan 12, 2006)

Don't know. I don't know if I see the different between a tether like you describe and a surf board leash.


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## victor-victor (Jan 12, 2006)

I wonder if the law(?) was made for SIK?

If you can do it a Surf board why not a SOT ... I surpose there are other dangers when flipping where you can get tangled, you have lines from rods, anchors systems and any other things that are leashed.

I suppose a having a tether attached to yourself might not sound like a very sound idea ... I surpose that is why people suggest in keeping a knife handy (on you), if you every get tangled you can cut your self free.

Food for thought ... hmm


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## andybear (Jan 15, 2006)

Bloody politicians, bloody academics, and idiots who make up laws..... reminds me of the time I had to get my pistol lengthened, because it was 1mm too short. Now they are saying we cannot tie ourselves into kayaks. I don't have a problem with advice, but soon there will be no choices about anything :evil:

Cheers all Andybear :lol:


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

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## YakAtak (Mar 13, 2006)

:lol: YOu beat me to it Red


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## Naki Man (Aug 30, 2006)

Over here on the Capital Island, we've had many discussions about whether or not you should tether yourself to your yak or not. There was never any mention as to whether it was illegal or not however I think that most agreed that a tether would make sense in high winds as the yak would blow away quite quick. The real debate started when the topic of where you should attach the tether started. Commercially it is being pushed to tether yourself from the back, the theory being that if you were being pulled by your yak you would be pulled up on your back. In my opinion (and others) this is suicide, as you would never be pulled fast enough and it would be difficult to cut yourself free, especially if you fell out the opposite side to the roll. I use a simple attachment that works well


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## PoddyMullet (Aug 29, 2005)

The powers that be maybe worried about a yak sinking... :wink:


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## ScottLovig (Aug 7, 2006)

When you fall out of a boat, yak or catamaran in high wind and sea they can drift damn fast. On big PPB days my Tiger catamaran drifts on its side way faster than I can swim and I'm no slouch in the water. I've been keeping a surfboard leg rope handy for a while for those big days just in case. Stuff the bureacrats, use common sense and ignore the desk jockeys when they dont make sense.

cheers

Scott


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## troppo (Feb 1, 2006)

Good idea Naki Man.


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## Russ (Feb 24, 2006)

Hobie Vic said:


> When you fall out of a boat, yak or catamaran in high wind and sea they can drift damn fast. On big PPB days my Tiger catamaran drifts on its side way faster than I can swim and I'm no slouch in the water. I've been keeping a surfboard leg rope handy for a while for those big days just in case. Stuff the bureacrats, use common sense and ignore the desk jockeys when they dont make sense.
> 
> cheers
> 
> Scott


Couldn't have said it better myself Scott, Cheers.

 fishing Russ


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## Billybob (Aug 29, 2005)

I don't think that a tether is illegal, regardless what the guy from anaconda says.
But why would you want to?
Your paddle leash will keep you in contact with your yak in the event of a spill.
It's an instinctive reaction to hang on to the paddle if you get dumped so as long as it's leashed you should be fine.


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## Dodge (Oct 12, 2005)

Has to be nonsense, yachties have been tethering to the boat in big seas for years, and have never seen one before a court and well documented to make a case.

Whats required by law for safety is one thing, but beyond that its your own affair what you do on your own boat.


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## Fishmatics (Feb 9, 2006)

Greetings All

I have read several posts on leg straps, tethering etc etc. IMHO...if you going to do a surf launch that carries a medium to high risk please do not attach yourself to your yak with any form of cable/rope/leash (via paddle or directly). Always wear your PFD and if you get tumbled, relax and float back to shore. Trust me you will not be the first to take a hiding in the surf, or the last. Rather right of the cost of yak to school fees than your life.

Going out: once I'm passed the back line I will tether my paddle.
Coming in: I will untie my paddle.

The above only applies to surf launches that carry a medium to high risk. If in doubt always wear your PFD and do not have any physical cable attached between you and your yak.

As mentioned elswhere you do not want to be attached to a sinking craft. On flat water tether your paddle only and always where your PFD.

Regards
Andrew


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## Fishmatics (Feb 9, 2006)

Greetings All

I have read several posts on leg straps, tethering etc etc. IMHO...if you going to do a surf launch that carries a medium to high risk please do not attach yourself to your yak with any form of cable/rope/leash (via paddle or directly). Always wear your PFD and if you get tumbled, relax and float back to shore. Trust me you will not be the first to take a hiding in the surf, or the last. Rather right of the cost of yak to school fees than your life.

Going out: once I'm passed the back line I will tether my paddle.
Coming in: I will untie my paddle.

The above only applies to surf launches that carry a medium to high risk. If in doubt always wear your PFD and do not have any physical cable attached between you and your yak.

As mentioned elswhere you do not want to be attached to a sinking craft. On flat water tether your paddle only and always where your PFD.

Regards
Andrew


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## Fishmatics (Feb 9, 2006)

Greetings All

I have read several posts on leg straps, tethering etc etc. IMHO...if you going to do a surf launch that carries a medium to high risk please do not attach yourself to your yak with any form of cable/rope/leash (via paddle or directly). Always wear your PFD and if you get tumbled, relax and float back to shore. Trust me you will not be the first to take a hiding in the surf, or the last. Rather right of the cost of yak to school fees than your life.

Going out: once I'm passed the back line I will tether my paddle.
Coming in: I will untie my paddle.

The above only applies to surf launches that carry a medium to high risk. If in doubt always wear your PFD and do not have any physical cable attached between you and your yak.

As mentioned elswhere you do not want to be attached to a sinking craft. On flat water tether your paddle only and always where your PFD.

Regards
Andrew


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## shayned (Jul 12, 2006)

andybear said:


> Bloody politicians, bloody academics, and idiots who make up laws..... reminds me of the time I had to get my pistol lengthened, because it was 1mm too short. Now they are saying we cannot tie ourselves into kayaks. I don't have a problem with advice, but soon there will be no choices about anything :evil:
> 
> Cheers all Andybear :lol:


Has the silencer affected the accuracy on the pistol at all? :lol:


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## couta1 (Sep 10, 2005)

from having to go through some hectic surf launches.it is advisable never to tie yourself on to your yak or your paddle to your yak when paddling out or coming in on a surf launch.it can be dangerous.always were pfd and tie your paddle on to your hand ,once behond the breakers then tie you paddle onto your yak


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## Sunhobie (Jun 22, 2006)

I don't understand the problem with using a paddle leash unless the surf is monsterous, in which case I would choose the bodysurfing option to come back in . 
If you get rolled you have a choice of hanging on to the paddle or letting go. Sure the paddle may be wrenched from your hands, but its better for it to be tethered to your yak, than for it to be in your hands while you are trying to swim.
I would never connect myself to my kayak and i always wear a PFD in open waters.
NB. yachting safety harnesses have clips at each end so that yachties can disconnect from sinking lead mines.


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## Naki Man (Aug 30, 2006)

Agreed, you should never tether yourself to your yak in any surf or when fishing around reefs where unexpected surf can be generated. (that is suicidal) However I do believe that your paddle should always be tethered to your yak. A yak without a paddle is useless and a paddle without a yak is useless. The only time I tether myself to my yaK is in extremely windy conditions, where if you fall out you would very quickly loose contact with your yak. The tether should only be strong enough to keep you in contact with your yak and you should always have a knife strapped to you in case you need to cut your self free. I have 2 knives, a dive knife strapped to my thigh and one in my vest that is also connected with a cord in case i drop it. Both of these knives are dedicated safety knives and are not used for any thing else.


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## Daveyak (Oct 6, 2005)

I always have myself tethered to my kayak, with a 5 metre long cord, when not paddling in sheltered inshore waters. I figure the most 'at risk' time would be when fighting a fish & therefore not holding my paddle. If I was tipped out then I can forsee it being difficult to get hold of the yak (especially with my level of swimming fitness) if caught by a gust of the stronger winds that have sprung up while I had my attention focussed on the fishing. I know it's a lot of 'what-ifs' but tethering is such a small and simple task to do.

I keep the cord, with a clip on each end, stuffed into pocket on seat backrest with both ends clipped to said seat. Then when I get outside I just have to clip one end to my PFD & other to yak. I keep a knife stowed in the PFD if I needed to cut myself free from tether cord, anchor rope of fishing line. I onclip the tether when close to shore.

I guess it's about peace of mind after weighing up the potential risks and still getting out there & feeling comfortable within that environment. Ouch, now my brain(?) hurts - too much thinking :roll: not enough fishing.


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## andybear (Jan 15, 2006)

Hi all, 
I guess I should seriously consider tethering myself the the yak. The conditions that I go out in are normally quite reasonable, and I always wear the PFD, but my ability to swim to the yak, if needed, is somewhat doubtful. Most of my stuff is tethered, so I think the next thing for me to do, is to make that arrangement, with say 4 or 5 metres of (the thin strong stuff I use for anchor rope), and secure the slack in a bit of 40mm PVC pipe, and duct tape it all up, to deploy in emergency only. A new PFD is in order as well. ( I think mine has "White star Line" markings )

Cheers all Andybear :lol:


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## Gator (May 10, 2006)

when I got flipped over recently  I was not teathered; however, I did have a surfboard type leash on board but had not connected it up yet. I was lucky that when I went over I instictively grabbed for the yak and held on, coz if I had not the wind would have had her out of swimming distance quick smart. Billy Bob says hang on to the paddle - I must be doing something wrong coz my paddle is hooked to my wrist - would just be me and the paddle waving goodbye to the yak  I really like the NZ idea with the rope coiled into the bit of PVC - less obtrusive than my current surfboard leash.


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## Fishmatics (Feb 9, 2006)

Greetings All
As the forum will have noticed I have been fairly vocal against tethering your paddle during a surf launch or landing, I'm sad to report that champion angler Stu is out for 2 weeks with a dislocated shoulder because a paddle leash wrapped around his ankle whilst coming in through surf on Tuesday. Stu enjoy the light duty!
Regards
Andrew


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## JT (May 25, 2006)

Bummer. Hope you recover fast Stu. Post and tell us what happened when you are a little better.

Go well.

JT


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## PoddyMullet (Aug 29, 2005)

Sorry to hear that Stu, hope it recovers OK and doesn't give ya too much grief. :shock:


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## spottymac (Aug 29, 2005)

Thanks for the kind words of a fast recovery.
It looks like l have done a bit of damage to my rotator cuff and tendonitis on my left shoulder.
l'am back to the physio tomorrow and will get a better idea when l can get back into the paddling again.
l recommend for anyone who dose a lot of paddling to read [ Get in Shape for Kayaking ] by Tony Kramer l found it on the post last week [ Gym training for yak strength ] http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?256.
l have been getting a bit of soreness in my shoulder for sometime now which was proberly a pre warning, so listen to you body and get it checked out before it gets much worse.

l 100.% back what Fishmatic had to say about surf launch and surf re entry Do Not Attach a rope or leash from your paddle to your kayak.

l have been caught twice now and it wont be happening again.
Six months ago l got rolled coming in through the surf, l have always make a habit of letting go of the paddle and getting clear of the yak untill the wave has past, then swim up and climb back on, the paddle is allways there attached to the yak, But this time it wrapped around my wrist before l could get clear and within seconds l was being dragged at a ungodly speed through the surf,l was sure the rope was going to cut off my hand, the pressure was so great, all l could do was try to grab the rope with my other hand and pulled back on it to release some of the pressure, it all happened with in seconds.
l couldn't even get to my diving knife which was strapped to my leg, there just wasn't enough time.
l had a bad burn mark cut into my wrist and it was numb for days.
But old habits die hard, you tell your self it will never happen again it was just a fluke.
The same thing happened to me last week, the paddle leash wrapped around my ankle. Very, Very dangerous.
Just imagine if it got wrapped around your neck,
DON'T under estimate the power of big surf
l know l have gone on a bit, but l was so lucky to get off so lightly


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