Throw rope and rope bags are essential pieces of safety gear for whitewater kayakers, canoeists, and rafters. Once a throw bag is deployed, whether to rescue a swimmer or to dry out the rope, it is important that the safety rope is properly packed back in the rope bag. Follow these steps for instructions how to stuff and pack a throw bag.
Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: a couple of minutes
Here’s How:
- Allow the Throw Rope Bag to Dry Out: It isn’t good to let the rope sit in the bag wet as it will grow mold and begin to deteriorate. For this reason it is good to open the bag up and pull the rope out after paddling, allowing it to dry.
- Remove the Kinks and Knots from the Throw Ropes: It is important to remove all twists, knots, and kinks from throw ropes prior to repacking the rope in the bag.
- Fully Open Rope Bag: Open the rope bag as much as possible. Be sure the opening of the bag is loose, open, and unrestricted. Check the bag to ensure there is no debris inside of it.
- Pack the Throw Rope into the Throw Bag: Begin feeding the rope into the bag. Do not wrap, roll, or coil the rope. Just feed the rope in every 6″ at a time until the whole rope is in the bag.
- Close the Throw Bag: Once the rope is in the, simply close it up so that the rope can’t fall back out of the bag.
Tips:
- Don’t roll the rope up or attempt to put it in the bag neatly as this will actually cause the rope to get tangled when deployed.
- It is good to empty the rope out of the bag each time it gets wet so that it drys out.
What You Need
- Throw Rope Bag
