Leash self to kayak?

OK, I know this has been discussed before and the consensus is that it’s a bad idea to leash yourself to your kayak. But it’s winter and people need something to get their mind of recent events, so I thought I’d post the question again...

Actually the reason I thought of this now is because I stumbled across a surfski forum, where there was universal agreement that a paddler must leash themself to their surfski. In fact, it was generally agreed that such a leash is as important for safety as a pfd—if not more so. While I’ve never paddled a surfski, they look a lot like a cross between a sea kayak and the SOT kayaks most NCKA’ers use.

So, why is a self-leash essential safety gear on a surfski, yet a bad idea on a SOT? Of course, you don’t want to be leashed to your kayak in the surf zone, but I think it would be a good idea when away from shore, especially on a windy day. 

Good Points
I don't surf, but watching people surf well is as enjoyable to me as listening to a good song. 
Surfers, Wind-surfers, Kite-surfers, Bodyboarders all use leashes. 
While the conventional surfers were legends of the left-hand break @ Davenport Landing, the Surfskis really took advantage of the inside-rights on the other side of the cove.  Different wave I guess, the surfski group even put on a tournament annually there. 
Back to the subject...
I've read too many reports of sinking kayaks and a leash probly isn't good then

Not me. Wear PFD with knife and radio attached, proper immersion gear as conditions warrant, and don’t strap yourself to something that could sink to the bottom in event of a hull failure or risk the leash itself wrapping you up and drowning you.

   One reason surfers leash is to protect others in the lineup from runaway boards, another is that is a pain to have to swim to retrieve a board heading riderless on a wave headed toward what are often rocky shores.
    I don't leash to my kayak because I think it would be easy for the leash to get tangled in unpredictable ways on the kayak and its protrusions, especially if the yak is upside down.  I just accept the risk of it drifting away as being less than the risk of getting tangled. 
   

Thanks for the info, opinions, and great stories.

I probably should have been clearer about one thing. By “surfski”, I mean these skinny SOT things:

I’ve seen this one YouTube video of two paddleboarder out at sea and one didn’t leash and one did. The one who didn’t fell in to the water and waves and wind blew the board away faster than the swimmer could swim. The second person with the leash went to get the board and couldn’t paddle correctly while trying to hold onto the extra board so she took off her leash and tied it to the other board as she paddle back to the other person. She also fell in and both boards floated away, they both were swimming in the open water I forgot for how long or till they got to safety.

It would seem good to attach something just in case a flip or crazy waves knocks one off to still be somewhat attached. I’ve have seen guys come back to shore with leashes to everything and it looks scary.
Maybe a long rope to a float so even if you did take a dive it would take a while before the rope catches up to the kayak?

Not a bad idea to think about something different for a moment. A few points from my experience:

• When you're alone on a boat powered by a motor or a sail you need to tether yourself to it or it may sail on without you. Many a sailor have vanished this way.
• Never wear a tether while in the surf zone as NowhereMan already mentioned, it may kill you in various ways.
• In a sea kayak you don't have this issue since you would roll back up in case you go over and never exit unless you want to.
• In a sit-on-top the tether can give you additional margin of safety while at sea.

Related to this topic, and perhaps a better option than a tether, are thigh-straps. If you want to navigate surf in a sit-on-top they are a must have. Thigh-straps keep you locked in and you won't 'forget' to disconnect a tether in surf. On the other hand, you can always exit from thigh-straps.

Here's a video by paddleguy. Look closely and you'll see the value of thigh-straps.

Not a bad idea to think about something different for a moment. A few points from my experience:

• When you're alone on a boat powered by a motor or a sail you need to tether yourself to it or it may sail on without you. Many a sailor have vanished this way.
• Never wear a tether while in the surf zone as NowhereMan already mentioned, it may kill you in various ways.
• In a sea kayak you don't have this issue since you would roll back up in case you go over and never exit unless you want to.
• In a sit-on-top the tether can give you additional margin of safety while at sea.

Related to this topic, and perhaps a better option than a tether, are thigh-straps. If you want to navigate surf in a sit-on-top they are a must have. Thigh-straps keep you locked in and you won't 'forget' to disconnect a tether in surf. On the other hand, you can always exit from thigh-straps.

It seems to me that thigh straps in the surf zone is a different issue.

In any case, I agree with the points above, with one important addition: Carry a knife that you can access in a heartbeat, and be sure that you could cut your leash quickly, if need be. In fact, I'd say that carrying  a knife that is immediately accessible is an essential piece of safety gear, whether you leash anything or not.

Nice vid, thanks for posting that!

In any case, I agree with the points above, with one important addition: Carry a knife that you can access in a heartbeat, and be sure that you could cut your leash quickly, if need be. In fact, I'd say that carrying  a knife that is immediately accessible is an essential piece of safety gear, whether you leash anything or not.

Agreed, and I'd add that you should be able to reach and use it with either hand.

A little insight on the surfers, kiteboarders, windsurfers, and the like.

Surfers and others with similar gear have lightweight foam core boards covered in epoxy or fiberglass. They're light enough that they will blow away in the wind really quickly, even tumble on the water in enough wind. They're gone!

Windsurfers have similar boards, but the sail acts as a brake in the water. They never wear leashes as they would tangle with their rigs.  Kiters are different, because they have a kite and can't just swim for a board as easily. They have to keep the kite up and running, so having the board leashed helps. It's been a few years but I think most still do.

I've been lucky in a kayak, [knocks on wood] but I would imagine having all of the gear associated with a fishing kayak gpoing overboard would anchor it in the water if you flipped. I for one would rather get free and then start working to sort it out. Others here have undoubtedly had that experience. I already have 4 leashed gear items to worry about getting tangled in. Not sure if I'd want another. I carry two knives, both on my person, one clipped to my pfd. Any insight or correction to that logic is welcome.

I do not leash myself to my kayak. Never have.

What I DO leash is my radio. It stays attached to me (not my kayak) 100% of the time.

If you ever get separated from your kayak, you’ll be glad you have a radio attached to your PFD.


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Agreed, and I'd add that you should be able to reach and use it with either hand.

Good point.

I do not leash myself to my kayak. Never have.

What I DO leash is my radio. It stays attached to me (not my kayak) 100% of the time.

If you ever get separated from your kayak, you’ll be glad you have a radio attached to your PFD.

I totally agree that leashing self to radio is a must. I'd say the radio should be a floater too, as I recall somebody on here talking about being forcibly ejected from their kayak (presumably, by a shark, but they didn't see it), and becoming separated from their radio in the process.

Many good points you're all making about the different boat styles, about always leashing your VHF radio to your PFD and about the importance of a safety knife (which should also be leashed to the PFD in case you fumble it when it really counts). For what it's worth, I also carry a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) securely attached to my PFD.

When you tether yourself to a boat you need something that is fairly strong so it won't break under your weight. The downside is that it may not be possible to cut the tether with a knife fast enough. For that reason a proper tether comes with a quick release shackle on the end which attaches to ones body (via a harness or similar).

The pictures shows a proper tether with a quick release shackle. This type of shackle is strong and yet releases easily by pulling the pin, even under heavy load. Another important feature of a proper tether is the elastic section.

I personally never tether myself to kayaks and use thigh straps on SOTs to navigate surf.