I was river kayaking in washington with a group of guys who were taking newbies out kayaking to get a feel for the river. We were all bundled up in our dry suits and wet suits. It was winter time in cold water so I had a big concern about staying warm. We had practiced how to roll back up from being upside down in a local swimming pool. I could do it in a pool but I struggled in the river. Something about being upside down in a rapidly moving river is disorienting. If you can't roll it back up with a maneuver called a combat roll which takes some skill and strength then you have to bail and get to the shore and track down your kayak and drain it which is always a pain especially if its freezing cold water. Its fairly easy to bail from the kayak you just yank on the skirt handle strap that sticks out and it unseals the skirt and you push yourself free and then swim.

I made a potentially fatal mistake with my gear without knowing.

I had worn these super tight rubber like wetsuit gloves to keep my hands warm. When i got in really rough rapids I keeled over in a bad spot and ended up upside down in the river in the kayak and couldn't combat roll up with my oar the couple times that I tried it. I ditched the oar and went for the bail. I went to reach for the strap but I could get absolutely no grip on the strap- it would just slip through the glove no matter how hard I tried to grab it. There was no traction on the glove and the strap was super wet and slippery. I was upside down, disoriented in white water grasping for this strap and trying to force myself out of the kayak but the skirt was on so tight there was no way to get out without pulling the strap. I was trapped upside down for a fair bit. Seemed like forever but it was probably less than 90 seconds of intense struggle.

A teenage kid that was with our group who was a more seasoned kayaker saw me and got into position and bailed from his kayak and swam over and pulled the cord and i was able to get free. Kid saved my life. I had already kind of given up in my mind. It was so scary. I was cold and in shock. Those freaking gloves nearly killed me. I would not have had an issue grabbing the strap with my bare hands. I had no idea it would be an issue. I have since attached a wiffleball to the strap to make it easier to grab and would never wear anything on my hands while kayaking ever again. But I learned how easy it is to die on the river- and I haven't really done much white water kayaking since. It was a very close call. If I wasn't near other skilled kayakers who were paying attention I wouldn't have made it.