While paddling across the lake in my 17ft plastic boat, it occurred to me that my PFD is made entirely of toxic PVC and neoprene. I immediately scuttled my boat thanks to some massive intake ports I still had around from the days I used to use it for running drugs, and than threw off my carcinogenic life jacket and swam the mile to shore. After a group of local wake boarders picked me up and dropped me off several hundred yards from my SUV—which I had to walk to—I swore I wouldn’t kayak again until someone made an organic PFD. Thanks Astral. The new Greenjacket is made with some organic stuff, I guess, but the remarkable thing is that it’s the first earthy jacket with a Coast Guard approval. The Astral Greenjacket costs $210.
ByRocky Thompson
um, did rocky get fired?
Sounds like you just fell off the onion truck! Get a clue loser!
obviously
what? i m still around. just some server migration problems.
I am sick of people praising “green” gear. It isn t practical when it costs 2x what normal gear does. “green” gear is more of a status symbol. As an experienced sea kayaker and guide, I have managed to keep the same PFD. It has served me quite well, and I am somewhat attached to it. I am not giving up my most faithful piece of gear for a $210 status symbol. I wish that more gear was made with the environment in mind, but as a penny-pinching paddler, I cannot afford to pay 2x for gear.
And he throws off this carinogenic life jacket to get to his pollutor SUV.
When green gear would be cheaper, it would sell. This is just way to expensive for, like Seth Dent said, a status symbol .
Well, since the regular Astral rescue vest retailed for $180, and few other rescue vests sell for less than $150 and are usually closer to $200, I m not quite sure where you get that fancy math to work out to 2x. Yeah, it is more expensive than some run-of-the-mill sea kayaking vest, but it is made to do much more. Rescue vests aren t much for status symbols. If anything, they are a liability, since people expect you to save their lame a$$es.
I have been looking at this jacket for quite some time. Yes this is a semi “green” jacket (it is really on the main front panels that are made with the wood product) but it is not the first one for Astral. I have been using the Norge for almost two years that uses the same thing. One of the biggest reasons I like the wood flotation more is that it does not have as much of a break in period. It fits like it is going to fit from the get go. Also another really nice thing about this jacket is it two piece design that allows for much greater moment. If everything works out, this is most likely what i will be guiding in next summer.