Personal Flotation Device

From Hornet Mainsheet Nov 2007
If you have attended any international events in
the last couple of years you may have undergone
the buoyancy test. No, not a dunking stool for
crews, a check of your buoyancy aid by event
measurers. And like most things this practice
may well filter down to domestic events very
soon. So how do you avoid falling foul of the
rules?
The aid must conform to the correct Standard. In
Europe this is EN393, introduced in 1994,
superceded by the more rigorous BS EN ISO
12402-5 in 2006.
The standard requires the aid to meet a 50 Newton
requirement but in the wacky world of standards
a 50 Newton aid is not necessarily 50N.
The standard permits a reduction in buoyancy for
lower body weights—too much buoyancy can be a
hindrance in dinghy sailing. A size Small will be
40N or 45N depending on manufacturer and their
recommended weight for that size.
The ISAF website says: RECOMMENDATION - EN
393, 50N - BS EN ISO 12402-5
Typical SIAll
competitors shall wear personal flotation devices
at all times whilst racing. The devices
should be in good condition and in accordance
with the current specifications issued or approved
by a National Authority affiliated to the International
Sailing Federation, or a Standards Organisation
or Certification Authority recognised for
that purpose by its respective government.
Some older aids may just say CE 50 Newton
buoyancy aid. This appears to be currently accepted
by measurers. The aid must also be in
reasonable condition ie. still function properly and
the label must be legible showing the above info.
So check your equipment and add it to your
birthday pressy list if necessary.
Just one more thing; flexible foams, like all manmade
plastics including neoprene in wetsuits and
tyres, and polyesters and nylons in ropes, have
plasticizers which degrade over time and so the
product goes hard; In the case of foam, it starts
to crumble. So, if you have a buoyancy aid or
trailer tyres more than 5-6 years old, especially
if they’ve been used in warm, sunny conditions,
they will have reduced flexibility and performance,
so that’s another reason to extend your
pressy list!
I am amazed by the number of people I see still
sailing with the old air-filled aids with the sausage
strings of air cells [ banned for racing. Ed] all totally
deflated from rolling their boats on them or
using them for cushions on the beach, or so old
they’ve gone hard and cracked, (the aid that is),
but still expecting them to do the job they were
designed for!