concussion with non c.g. approved vest

ever happened to anyone? i just bought my first non approved vest and im kinda wary of it. Ive gotten a concussion riding before and it probably would have been a bigger deal if i wasnt floating

I think you should be more concerned with being knocked unconcious than a concussion, granted the two often go hand in hand. I concussion is no big deal as long as you have the wherewithal to keep your head above water. Now if you get knocked cold and are face down, indeed, you will have a problem on your hands. If you must wear a non-cga vest, make sure those in the boat understand that if you go down hard they need to get back to you ASAP!! Work out some hand signals for after you stack to signal you're ok. That being said, I've been using a non-cga vest for about 14 years, so far so good.

yeah no worries about concussions with the vests .... been there done that a few times and havnt had a problem, i stacked myself once and blacked out and having good friends jump in and get you is really important.. you will be fine and you will love the new freedom

I just got my first comp best and I love it but it is definatley more scary when u fall cuz u stay under a lot longer. I'm actually thinking about getting a USCG approved vest for when I wanna go bigger and try new stuff ! But yeah I got slight concussion in my comp vest def scary but everything worked out all right

It is probably good to be wary. A KO can be fatal. Yeah the chances are probably pretty small but with the new CGA vest the gain in mobility with a non CGA is getting smaller and smaller.

i guess i should have said knocked out instead of concussion. Like you said stephan they normally go hand in hand and that has been the case with me and being knocked out is what i was really meaning to say

I have been knocked out twice in a non USCG Vest, it turned out fine. They got me on the boat and I am still here to type about it. I would just suggest making sure that the vest floats you, I had an old O'neill vest that did not hold me up. I discovered this by floating in the vest and holding my hands above my head, soon as they went up i sunk, not all the way to the bottom but enough that my head was under water. Any way just make sure that you stay above the water and you should be okay.

Just my two cents.

it's good you are wary...because you should be!
I just hate when I hear of a fatality that did not have to be because of a poor vest. Leaving it to good friends to get back to you in time to save your life...come on...and if they don't? Go out in your new vest and blow the wind out of your lungs and hold your arms up and see what happens. sorry...just my .02

What you need to be concerned with is a face down KO'd situation with the wind knocked out of you. If both happen at once, you could be in trouble. The air in your lungs helps keep you afloat. If it's forced from your body on impact, you'll be less buoyant.

My friend Andrea had this exact situation, briefly. The CWB Faction vest (a comp vest) did float her well, but that doesn't mean it would work for everyone.

I would stay far away from those super thin vests, like the Oneill impact, the Flack jacket, and others with very little foam. Get something that still has some meat around the waist at least.

the vest has nothing to do with how hard you hit your head. You can get a concussion just as easy with an approved vest. Just like everyone said above, the only difference in the vests is you will sink deeper in the water with a non approved and won't come up as fast.

Why would you want to place the burden of dragging your dead body out of the water on your "friends" or family if they didn't get to you in time?

That's a great way to put a head screwing on someone for the rest of their lives.

This is the "Me" generation at it's best.

I don't know about you guys, but my board offsets a chunk of the buoyancy lost by using the billabong sanford vest. The vest does float me some, but if I didn't have any air in my lungs, I'd sink, but that's also without the board.

any way comp vest or not. They arn't made to float you face up, soooo if you are out and face down the boat just better get back to you FAST. The only vest that are made to float you face up are the little kid ones and the ones that the off shore guys and the coast gaurd wear.

I know of at least one instance where a guy was knocked out, sank and drowned with a non-approved vest on. He and his friends on the boat were all search and rescue guys and the water was only eight feet deep. Unfortunately, I spoke with his widow.

Also, please don't put forward the notion that anybody can "test" a comp vest to see whether or not it floats you. Unless you're willing to inhale enough water to fill your lungs and then sit out in the water with that vest on, you have not done a proper test. The Coast Guard has an elaborate testing procedure for a reason and I can assure you that it consists of more than "blowing the air our of your lungs."

And the idea that CGA vests are to bulky and restrictive is just complete crap!

Very true Dave. Water in the lungs is what it's about.

I didnt read all the posts but The Helium SWAT line of vests in my opinion are D shiznits!!! There non CGA if you want. Super mobile! easy on and off! If your worried about concussion and want to float I would get one because mine floats me like an approved vest and its non cga. I dislocated my shoulder last summer and aside from a ton of screaming i was pretty much limp in the water and the vest kept me up! Just a thought.

any notion to keep someone away from one of the vests you know I am talking about is good to me.
Use a decent vest with some flotation...at least give me a chance to get back to you.

Dave's right, you can't truly test a comp vest for buoyancy, but you can see how buoyant it is when you have and don't have air in your lungs, and make your decision from there.

Frankly, if you're concerned about it, wear a CGA vest, and call it even.

Jesse, I have worn a SWAT vest and had a very different experience. If I breathed out in that vest, I sunk. I was talking to the crew in the boat when they came around and as I talked, I sunk in the SWAT vest. I am wearing a CGA vest and don't notice a difference between mine and a non-CGA as far as comfort/mobility.

FWIW: here is my personal experience with USCG and Non-USCG vests.

I used to rock an A-10 and switched over to the Oneill Law a few years ago. The main reason was that I was riding with different people (thus not a consistent "crew") and quite frankly I did not want to put my life in a strangers hands if I did get knocked out with a non-uscg vest while riding (yes I have gotten knocked silly a few times, none requiring the help of someone in the boat though. Most times I was conscious by the time the boat got back to me, like a quick K.O.).

I have been rocking the oneill law for a few years now and am riding with people I would trust with my life if it came to it. I still rock the Law simply because the amount of movement and comfort I gave up was minimal. Just this past weekend a buddy had the new Oneill Revenge in the USCG platform and it rocked! By far the best USCG vest I have worn, I ordered one that night from wake-space as a result.

I also took a trip to lake shasta a few weeks ago and compared a few non-uscg vests to mine for flotation. I put each vest on, jumped in the water, waited until I stopped "bobbing" and blew all the air out of my lungs. I was very suprised about two things: One that my Oneill law floated me a LOT less than I thought (as did other USCG vests I tried on), and two that the non-uscg vests were far worse than I had imagined.

I have heard stories of people saying specific vests float them better than I have ever had them float me. My theory behind different opinions on the flotation supplied by vests rests on two general concepts: mineral deposits in the water (salt, etc.) and the amount of muscle mass, fat and bone density of different people. I would imagine a female floating in mineral heavy water would float a lot better in a given vest, than a ripped young guy in non-mineral rich water (extreme opposites). This is based on a very loose understanding of science and if anyone has any information supporting or refuting this I would love to hear about it.

Also: the decision you make is your own and I my intentions are simply to share my experiences with you about this. Good luck either way.

i have a 2 year old swat vest that doesnt float at all. I use it only for winching since its so light and mobile but for usual riding i just use a CGA vest because ive been hearing theyre cracking down on non-cga vests and requiring proof that your are practicing for a comp.

I think the Jet Pilot Falcon is the best floating Non Coast Guard Approved vest of all. I swear it floats me like a CGA vest. But then again, I'm 135-140 soaking wet.

-Nate

If i blow the air out of my lungs on a JP falcon i sink...I think I'll wear a USCG when i learn raleys...

Brett, that's exactly what I was thinking... When I finally do go after a raley, I'm def. wearing my CGA vest. Until I have gotten those things down, I won't be wearing my Billabong vest at all...