Robert Sminkey wrote:
RS>Peter,  It takes me approximately one-half hour, from start to finish,
RS>to break out my Avon Redcrest Inflatable boat, inflate the three
RS>sections, rig the attachments, and get her in the water.
RS>     I inflate my Avon Redcrest with a bellows pump operated with the
RS>hands or a foot. It looks something like a blacksmith's bellows pump.
RS>     If my boat was sinking real fast, I would not have time to
RS>inflate it...for lifeboat use...with the setup and rig that I have.
Bob,
    I have a rubber dinghy that I keep partially inflated and usually
    carry it on deck in case something goes drastically goes wrong.  I
    sail in Georgian Bay and am usually not that far from land.  I have
    an E.P.I.R.B. and usually file a "sail plan" and I do have a GPS so
    in case of an emergency I hope that I can broadcast my position a la
    GPS, grab the watertight box where I keep the EPIRB and the flares
    and get into the "rubber dinghy" which I can top up by good old lung
    power.  At the next boatshow here in Toronto (in January) I will
    give the Avon Redcrest a look.  My next purchase though is going to
    be a handheld VHF and either a wetsuit or a drysuit.  The water in
    the Great Lakes is pretty cold all year round.  Ideally I would like
    to have a "liferaft".
Peter
peter.deppisch@canrem.com
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