Whitewater Forum: Helmets

Helmets

Printed From: ProfessorPaddle.com
Category: General
Forum Name: Whitewater Forum
Forum Discription: Open Discussion Forum. Whitewater related subjects only
URL: http://www.professorpaddle.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=15523
Printed Date: 16 May 2024 at 4:23am

Topic: Helmets

Posted By: PaddleGirl
Subject: Helmets
Date Posted: 31 May 2016 at 6:22pm

I want to ask you guys for your opinions regarding helmets for rafting specifically. Most rafters on the wenatchee river don't wear helmets nor do commercial rafting guests. What do you guys think about that? Do you think they should? What about at low water? In all my years of kayaking I have always worn helmets and have replaced three of them due to hard hits and cracks. I wouldn't think about not wearing it while going through rapids. What about you guys?

Replies:

Posted By: BrianP
Date Posted: 31 May 2016 at 8:10pm

Most rafting head injuries I've seen don't come from rocks but from other people and paddles inside the raft. I doubt that an average commercial customer can adequately gauge the risks involved and make an informed decision for themselves. They should almost always be in a helmet. I've taken enough headshots either guiding from a kayak or the back of a raft to know I'm sure as hell wearing one. We require all customers to wear it. Even if we didn't feel like they were necessary, it's just too easy for a judge to toss out your liability waiver when they look at the other 95% of the industry wearing helmets. The lawyers will scream negligence all the way to pay day.

Edit: I guess the Wenatchee is kind of a unique case. You'd have to try pretty damn hard to hit a rock. Still though, you can fu*k someone up pretty good by bashing heads together with heads and or paddles and it's mostly preventable with a helmet.

Posted By: PaddleGirl
Date Posted: 31 May 2016 at 9:11pm

Originally posted by BrianP

Most rafting head injuries I've seen don't come from rocks but from other people and paddles inside the raft. I doubt that an average commercial customer can adequately gauge the risks involved and make an informed decision for themselves. They should almost always be in a helmet. I've taken enough headshots either guiding from a kayak or the back of a raft to know I'm sure as hell wearing one. We require all customers to wear it. Even if we didn't feel like they were necessary, it's just too easy for a judge to toss out your liability waiver when they look at the other 95% of the industry wearing helmets. The lawyers will scream negligence all the way to pay day.

Edit: I guess the Wenatchee is kind of a unique case. You'd have to try pretty damn hard to hit a rock. Still though, you can fu*k someone up pretty good by bashing heads together with heads and or paddles and it's mostly preventable with a helmet.

As far as the bolded goes, not true at low water. There are tons of rocks and customers tend to fall out from unexpected bumps. No one should swim snowblind at low water without a helmet, imo.

Posted By: Slackkinhard
Date Posted: 31 May 2016 at 9:32pm

We only run two rivers without requiring helmets for paying passengers....Wenatchee play run and the Methow....everything else helmet is mandatory.

Posted By: waterfire
Date Posted: 31 May 2016 at 11:30pm

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/1a/b3/b1/1ab3b13c7bf3b860accf0c1e54b41fc4.jpg

Posted By: irenen
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 5:07am

I have a big gouge in a helmet from a rock in Snowblind at 7K. Anyone falling out of a raft backwards at the wrong time could hit it. Unlikely, I realize, but even on the Wenatchee I would always wear a helmet - I'm sure that hit would have required stitches without one and why risk TBI.

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It's all fun and games until someone loses a paddle.

Posted By: mprussak
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 5:23am

I don't sweat it too much if I forget, but I definitely try to wear a helmet every time, and even though our outfitter doesn't require them either I still tell customers I recommend it.

No matter how unlikely, sh*t happens. I got my kayak wedged against the bottom for a few seconds right in the middle of our rowdiest surf holes, it ain't deep...

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Marek Prussak 206-465-2055

Posted By: erikSANDSTROM
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 5:57am

Figure making them wear helmets would scare them more, making the trip that much scarier.

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This river don't go to Aintry. You done taken a wrong turn.

Posted By: Jed Hawkes
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 8:30am

"we've been soaking these rocks for thousands of years but they just don't seem to be getting any softer". I've always made my trips wear helmets and when they ask why they have to wear them and no one else does my reply has always been; Why don't you take your helmet off and go head butt your friend over there". This has always been met with an annoyed glare or a sudden understanding. Either way they get the point.

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The line will become apparent
978-273-7723

Posted By: paddlemonster
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 9:56am

I did some guiding on the Wenatchee for a company that did not offer helmets to the clients. As guides many of us had swam quite a few of the rapids and one or two of us bumped our heads hard enough to realize that it was probably a good idea to wear a helmet. That being said, we ran the river down to some pretty low levels (700 CFS) and had plenty of clients swim and never saw or heard of a single one bump their head. While it only takes one serious incident to make helmets feel like a necessity, for the most part the Wenatchee is fairly safe. At higher water there aren't many rocks. and at lower water it is slow enough that you likely wouldn't hit one very hard. I think most rafters are playing the odds in this case and considering the amount of people that go down that river versus the injury rate it just doesn't seem to be a necessary investment.

Posted By: PaddleGirl
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 10:25am

I think playing the odds like that is dangerous. Wearing helmets is one simple proactive thing we can do to protect people. All it takes is one bad accident...

I also think that "we've been doing it this way for 40 years" is backwards thinking. We know the risks and we should wear helmets. In my opinion. I did start this hoping to get more opinions.

Posted By: paddlemonster
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 10:30am

I'm not saying I don't support your idea and I agree (as someone who wears their helmet), but I think convincing commercial operations to invest will be difficult. We as guides have had that conversation and it didn't go anywhere.

Posted By: PaddleGirl
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 10:46am

Yes, it is proving to be very difficult. I'm trying to gauge just how self-righteous I'm being about this. One of our customers hit their head in snowblind last summer, but it wasn't serious. I always wear mine and it freaks out the guests sometimes, "why didn't we get one of those?"

Posted By: paddlemonster
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 10:51am

Yeah...I would get the same question quite a bit. I always just said that with being on the river every day I was much more likely to hit my head trying to save someone or do something dangerous. You aren't being self righteous at all. Safety comes first in any sport. I'm always baffled when I see climbers or cyclists without helmets. I think the only way to pose it tactfully to a guiding company is to lay out the cost of one lawsuit versus the cost of buying helmets.

Posted By: irenen
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2016 at 3:33pm

Plus the personal cost of traumatic brain injury. I can't believe anybody rafts even the Wenatchee without a helmet.

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It's all fun and games until someone loses a paddle.

Posted By: megspk
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2016 at 8:31am

Drool is not cool, helmets rule!

I have broken and cracked several helmets myself between bikes and boating. Rafts are like the ultimate bouncy house, I think helmets protect you from your fellow paddlers, paddles, oars, and rocks of you have a swim.
There was footage from a couple summers ago of a guy that got knocked out because he hit heads with another guest in the raft. You never know....it's better to protect your head in the first place.

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“A strong person and a waterfall always channel their own path.” -Unknown

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