Through my many years of life I’ve enjoyed participating in a wide array of activities, both at work or enjoyable recreation. I’ve come to realize that wearing the right pieces of equipment always improved my personal safety and bettered my performance abilities. Just think about any sport you’ve participated in or look at what the pros are wearing. You’ll soon understand what I mean. If we are talking golf or court sports, it’s not just about the club or racquet; it’s also about wearing the proper footwear. If it is hockey, football or baseball then for certain it’s the helmet.
Then I realized professionals outside of sport do the same thing as well. A dentist or doctor knows when to put on their protective gloves and a mask. Every construction crew member dons their hard hat when going onto a worksite. In this day and age most police officers wear Kevlar vests, fire personnel have their helmets and a fire-protective coat. How long a list could you compile?
Every time, every occupation, every sport that you could name, any active participant has that one piece of equipment that’s worn because it’s crucial to their safety and ongoing success. More importantly it’s worn without question. It’s the professional thing to do. So now we arrive at the crux of my story. Why is it that so many boaters are still reluctant to wear the single most important part of their safety equipment, a lifejacket, the P.F.D.? Maybe it would have been more acceptable if it were known as a Professional Floatation Device. With no stigma attached putting it on would be the natural thing to do. And remember, they don’t work if you don’t wear them so let’s all just “get it on”!
Carl Shier,
CEO Lifesaving Society – Manitoba
“The Lifeguarding Experts”
