Fitting your helmet and life jacket correctly
Author: Marieke Vogt, Team Leader at SOURCE TO SEA
Life jackets and helmets are essential safety equipment in white water. But even the best helmet and the best life jacket won't help if they are not used correctly. Here we summarize what you need to look out for and how you can adjust your helmet and life jacket.
Adjusting the life jacket
Your life jacket needs to be tight enough so that it can't slip out of place when you're swimming. Above all, it must not slip upwards. Of course, you should still be able to breathe - after all, you're doing sport! Different life jacket models have different adjustment options. Here we show you the Palm FXr life jacket as an example, which we have been using for our courses for years.
Adjusting the chest strap
The black chest strap is used firstly to attach a cowtail for rescuing kayaks. Secondly, you will need it if you want to secure yourself, e.g. if you need a safety harness for jumping. It is threaded differently for different applications:
The chest strap must not be too long so that you don't get caught on it. When you buy a new lifejacket, the chest strap is often very long. Adjust the vest and then cut it off (preferably with a rope cutter) so that it only protrudes about two hands wide over the plastic buckle. Don't have a rope cutter? No problem, we do. Just let us know and we'll be happy to take it with us to the course/camp!
Customize helmet
A helmet only provides protection if it is correctly adjusted.
This blog post explains how you can adjust your helmet and life jacket. If you're wondering why this is all necessary, just give us a call (+43 512 546710) or take part in our safety training! If you have any questions about your specific lifejacket or helmet model, please don't hesitate to contact us!
