Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble: True Stories and Their Lessons from Sea Kayaker Magazine [Paperback]

Matt Broze (Author), George Gronseth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1997

This riveting book offers 20 harrowing, real-life tales of sea kayaking accidents that will not only keep readers on the edge of their seats, but also instruct them with potentially life-saving lessons.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"For many of us a kayak is the means by which we can take in the full measure of the rich coastal environment. But the environment where air, water, and land meet is notoriously variable, and the intimate connection a kayak provides with that environment leaves us exposed and vulnerable to forces that can easily overpower us. . . . Paddlers who invest time and effort and fully engage their senses not only have a greater degree of safety--they discover more of the subtle textures of the waterways they travel."--from the Preface by Christopher Cunningham

Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble offers more than twenty harrowing, real-life accounts of sea kayaking accidents that will both keep you on the edge of your seat and instruct you with potentially life-saving lessons. These tales, drawn from Sea Kayaker magazine, are the result of interviews with accident survivors, witnesses, and rescuers. From capsizes and hypothermia to brushes with sharks and entrapment in sea caves, the situations are described in chilling detail and then subjected to expert analysis. Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble is rounded out by a comprehensive introduction to sea kayaking safety and three dozen sidebars offering tips on equipment, techniques, and improving your skills.

Sea Kayaker magazine reports on accidents and near accidents so its readers might learn from the experience of others rather than having to learn the hard way. Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble gathers more than twenty of the most compelling and instructive of these reports, outlining the circumstances of each accident and providing detailed analyses: What did the paddlers do wrong? What did they do right? Most importantly, how might the accident have been prevented? With a comprehensive introduction to kayaking safety and three dozen sidebars on gear, skills, and techniques, this book is a must for any sea kayaker who wants to paddle safely.

About the Author

About the Authors

In 1972, Matt Broze wrote Freestyle Skiing, the first book on the subject. Co-owners or Mariner Kayaks since 1980, he and his brother Cam have designed ten sea kayaks. Matt developed and promoted the now-common paddle-float rescues in 1981. His writing on sea kayak safety and rescues and experience in extreme conditions led to his becoming Sea Kayaker magazine's safety columnist in 1984. He's still a regular contributor on safety, paddling skills, recreational racing, and equipment. Matt has paddled over 400 sea kayak designs.

George Gronseth earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering and moved to the Northwest, where he took up kayaking and worked for the Boeing Company analyzing the strength and safety of airplanes. Before long he was teaching kayaking and leading trips for clubs and friends. He succeeded Matt Broze as safety columnist for Sea Kayaker magazine. George has published numerous articles on technique as well as safety and has given many presentations for kayaks clubs and symposia. In 1991, he founded the Seattle-based Kayak Academy in order to devote all his time to teaching and writing about kayaking.

Christopher Cunningham is the editor of Sea Kayaker magazine. His travels in small sailing, rowing, and paddling craft have covered over 7,000 miles of North American waterways. His longest cruise was a 2,500-mile paddle from Quebec to Cedar Key, Florida. He has been building kayaks and other small craft since 1979. He has published accounts of his small boat travels and articles on boatbuilding in Sea Kayaker, Nor'westing, and Small Boat Journal as well as two anthologies: Oyo and Seekers of the Horizon. Christopher occasionally teaches traditional kayak construction at The WoodenBoat School in Brooklin, Maine, and is a frequent lecturer at sea kayak symposia.

About the Contributors

Chris Amato (page 143) is a wildlife biologist who lives in New York City.

Alison Armstrong (page 94) lives in New York City and has kayaked extensively along the coast of Maine.

Deb Davis (page 22) is an author and former associate editor of Sea Kayaker magazine; she lives in Indianola, Washington.

Ken Kelton (page 100) is a building contractor living in San Francisco. He still goes surfing and kayaking on the California coast.

Tom Watson (page 173) is a kayak instructor in Kodiak, Alaska, and a member of Kodiak Island Search and Rescue.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press; 1 edition (May 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070084998
• ISBN-13: 978-0070084995
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #579,715 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #45 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Kayaking > Sea Kayaking

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most comprehensive reviews of sea kayaking, September 23, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Eureka, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble: True Stories and Their Lessons from Sea Kayaker Magazine (Paperback)

I have been teaching sea kayaking courses for 7 years ranging from 3 hour nature tours to 6 day self-contained trips. Teaching on the coast of Northern Califonia has presented me with many challenges and potentially dangerous scenarios. The safety intro in the beginning of this book is simply the most comprehensive I have read or heard from another instructor. It is a great jumping off place for beginners and experts provided they paddle with other experienced individuals. I also co-authored a boating safety instructional manual for California Department of Boating and Waterways and can therefore appreciate the power of word choice. Matt Broze has chosen his words carefully and with precision. The reader should pay close attention and learn all that is presented in the safety intro as well as the 'Tips" in each chapter. I look forward to another book by Broze if he should choose to write one.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cautionary Tales Hit Home, February 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble: True Stories and Their Lessons from Sea Kayaker Magazine (Paperback)

I just can't let the first posted review stand alone. This is a book I read twice. Not because it wasn't well written. It was. It is so densely packed with stuff I needed to know that once through was not enough.

The narratives are well crafted: concise, gripping - I felt like I was right there in the cockpit battling the waves, shaking off the salt spray, and bracing for dear life. The savvy sidebars are packed with right-on-the-mark stay/get out of deep trouble pointers...just the antidote for an anxious reader jarred out his complacency by these often harrowing cautionary tales.

The book suceeded in a way I believe the authors intended. It's made me a safer paddler. I make many fewer assumptions that things out there will go well. I prepare for the worst and cut a lot fewer corners. I paddle alone a lot less often. I DRIVE away from a launch site, when conditions look borderline too challenging. The book has improved my judgment, doing the right things at the right time, without my getting wet. As an advanced beginner sea kayaker, I know I am at a high risk interval in my development as a paddler. The authors have recalibrated my margin of safety. It's a good thing. It's a great book.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a compelling and educational "must-read"!, July 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Sea Kayaker's Deep Trouble: True Stories and Their Lessons from Sea Kayaker Magazine (Paperback)

I have kayaked for almost twenty years, and I read this book twice and will read it again. When paddling in the ocean or sea or Lake Superior, it is all too easy to "cut corners" and this book has served to focus my attention back to the essentials of basic safety. I have lent the book to many experienced paddling friends who are similarly impressed.