With a heat wave hitting this morning and chances of temps getting into the 100's nit including the humidy nd heat index factored in, I decided that my son and I would go swimming. Unfortunately, the beautiful lake we had found recently had signs up for no swimming, due to something wrong with the water. Im unsure what it is but I didnt want to take chances. However, we have a few state park ponds around and despite not so great water, and paying $5 to get in, the heat made it seem a good thing to do.
My son, being 4 years old and believing himself invincable as all kids do, wears arm floaties when he swims. It's a safety issue. He has been taking swim lessons, and while hes good, hes not great. But he thinks hes the best. Putting this together with potential deep water could spell disaster. Granted Im with him every step of the way, but I still make him wear floaties. He understands why hes never allowed in the water without them and for a kid, really respects that decision I made.
We set up at the lake, I threw on his floaties and hand in hand, we headed towards the water. Not 5 minutes later I had a life guard approach me, and tell me I had to take the floaties off my son. They were not allowed. When I asked why when he obviously had them on, he shrugged and said it was against the State Park rules. Yet, Ive been there before many times and never heard of this, nor ever been approached. I have seen countless of children at this same pond many times wearing floataion devices of some sort.
When I replied that I had my son wear them for safety reasons as he was not a proficient swimmer and the safety of my child is first and foremost, I was informed I could either take the floaties off, or he would remove me from the property. Thats right. I would be removed from a pond if I did not comply and take off what I consider a helper in ensuring my sons safety.
In the end I mnade him get his superior, while my son, confused, was refused in the lake. He wouldnt take his floaties off either, because he has had it instilled in him he can not swim without them, until he has had swimming lessons where he can swim without them. After chatting with the admin for awhile he gave me the number of the district admin, the one who makes the rules up. First thing tomorrow morning when offices open I plan on calling and filing a complaint.
I left the lake, and I wont be returning. I can understand the slight reasoning that a small percentage of idiot parents believe that floaties are enough for children to go swimming on their own, thus making it more dangerous for the kids. But the majority of parents out there, know that it is just one more safety measure to be used with swimming alongside their offspring. The fact they made it an actual rule that you can NOT wear them EVER though, screams of danger, to these parents ears. My feeling is why should someone make a rule up that takes away a potential safety measure for children, and refuse a parent their right to help keep their child safe? And when the parent is confronted and ensures s/he will be right there with their child why insist on a rule that could be more detrimental? As a parent my childs safety is first and foremost. Sadly even if it means leaving a place knowing how upset your child will be, not knowing why, or thinking it was somehow "his" fault, I refuse to stay in an area like that.
On a lighter side, I did find a pool down the road that does allow floaties. They close for an hour ( right now ) but open from 6-8, and in the afternoons from 12-5. I plan on taking my son there in 30 minutes and we are going to cool off and have a fun time. I know some of you, esp those without kids, may think I am overreacting. Thats fine. But am I wrong in thinking this *could* have the opposite effect of safety measures when it comes to kids and swimming?
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State Park swimming = Not CoolFollow
I wonder why that rule is in place? It doesn't seem to make sense, unless they think birds will choke on your son's floaties or something.
Edit: Did a search, and so far only came up with the following from a WA state park webpage:
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 5:53pm EDT by Atomicflea
Edit: Did a search, and so far only came up with the following from a WA state park webpage:
Quote:
ADDITIONAL CAUTIONS REGARDING FLOTATION DEVICES:
Flotation devices are not foolproof; they are NOT a substitute for close guardian supervision.
Parents/guardians MUST remain within arms reach of small children using any flotation device.
If you can't swim well enough to be safe in deep water without a flotation device, you aren't safe with one either.
Flotation devices are not foolproof; they are NOT a substitute for close guardian supervision.
Parents/guardians MUST remain within arms reach of small children using any flotation device.
If you can't swim well enough to be safe in deep water without a flotation device, you aren't safe with one either.
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 5:53pm EDT by Atomicflea
All that over arm floaties? That's pretty jacked up. Here's what you need to do. Get a pair of floaties that aren't transparent. Fill them up with concrete and go back to the lake. When they tell you to take them off the little tike, fire those ******* right at his head. It's a win/win situation.
You are always the complainer. Always going on about "The rules are to strict. These laws take away from my freedoms. Why do burecrates and politicians always make stupid rules and laws that make no sense and pander to the politicaly correct crowed?" Why do you hate America? Is it because you are a hairy, tree hugging hippy liberal? Let go of the tree, shave your legs and quit worrying about things. Thats President Bush's and the goverments job.
I just don't understand how they can justify you taking a swimming safety device OFF of your child.
From your post, I assume that it is because they are concerned that people won't watch their kids as close. Fine, then make the rule that a parent has to be within so many feet of their kid, if that is the issue they are trying to address. Trying to solve the problem in such an assinine fashion is ludicrous.
My kids always wore floaties, even in our 2.5 feet deep backyard pool, until they were 5-6 and had taken several swimming classes. Just because they wore floaties we still never left them alone.
Who dreams up stupid rules like that anyway?
And my sympathy on the heat wave, it is supposed to be ending tomorrow for us in WI.
From your post, I assume that it is because they are concerned that people won't watch their kids as close. Fine, then make the rule that a parent has to be within so many feet of their kid, if that is the issue they are trying to address. Trying to solve the problem in such an assinine fashion is ludicrous.
My kids always wore floaties, even in our 2.5 feet deep backyard pool, until they were 5-6 and had taken several swimming classes. Just because they wore floaties we still never left them alone.
Who dreams up stupid rules like that anyway?
And my sympathy on the heat wave, it is supposed to be ending tomorrow for us in WI.
The Glorious Atomicflea wrote:
I wonder why that rule is in place? It doesn't seem to make sense, unless they think birds will choke on your son's floaties or something.
/nod
It doesn't make sense to me that something like that would be against the rules. Unless there's something I'm missing about the cons of using floaties I'm confused by this rule.
Maybe they're worried that the floaties might attract sharks or giant octupuses.
Yeah, I don't get it either.
Yeah, I don't get it either.
Some people are like slinkies, they aren't really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.
http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/firstaid_safe/outdoor/water_safety.html
What kind of flotation device did he have? Water wings? If so, they may have been doing you a favor. It seems they're not that safe.
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 6:00pm EDT by Atomicflea
Quote:
Invest in proper-fitting, Coast Guard-approved flotation devices (life vests) and use them whenever a child is near water. Check the weight and size recommendations on the label, then have your child try it on to make sure it fits snugly. For kids who are younger than 5 years old, choose a vest with a strap between the legs and head support - the collar will keep the child's head up and face out of the water. Inflatable vests and arm devices such as water wings are not effective protection against drowning.
tinytravelers.net wrote:
3 to 8 Years: First Swim Lesson
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. They can give children and supervising adults a false sense of security, deflate easily, and restrict an instinctive swimmer's natural movements. As toddlers get more comfortable exerting themselves in the water, I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs.
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. They can give children and supervising adults a false sense of security, deflate easily, and restrict an instinctive swimmer's natural movements. As toddlers get more comfortable exerting themselves in the water, I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs.
What kind of flotation device did he have? Water wings? If so, they may have been doing you a favor. It seems they're not that safe.
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 6:00pm EDT by Atomicflea
Do you know who else used to use floaties? Hitler.
/nod
/nod
Belkira wrote:
Wow. Regular ol' Joph fan club in here.
Just let loose your inner ***** 
on that administrator, by the weekend floaties will be required wearing for all swimmers young and old.
on that administrator, by the weekend floaties will be required wearing for all swimmers young and old.Jophiel wrote:
Do you know who else used to use floaties? Hitler.
/nod
/nod
Godwins!!
Some people are like slinkies, they aren't really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.
Somewhere along the line someone misinterpreted something. Flotation devices have been blamed for many child drownings. But not the kind you wear. The kind that you lounge upon in the water. Kids swimming under water come up underneath them and are not strong enough to lift them, and not bright enough (I guess) to move them aside. So they get stuck under it and drown. But floaties are not the problem.
just follow the rules and stop being a douche
Git, fuck off and die a slow death. I dont usually bitch about rules being too strict.
It took them a long time hemming and hawing before this was the reason they gave for there being such a law. And I told them, thats fine, but realize that most parents will not leave their child unattended. And if they do see a parent leave their child unattended then they should step in and tell them to watch their kids or be removed. It should not be the opposite, where a parent who is concerned for their childs safety is being told to leave for enforcing more safety precautions.
I do use the floatation devices on his arms. The safety on any type of floatation device is moot no matter how "good" if a parent does not watch. If water wings deflate, you shold be there to notice such a thing happening, so from that perspective I dont see how not having ANY device wold be better than something. I would rather have my son in water wings than nothing. But to get to the details, it was not just water wings they were against, it was all floatation devices. If they had an issue with it being water wings, but something more "safe" was appropriate, I would not have had as hard a time understanding their concept. I most likely would have then hopped in the car and headed to Walmart or Target to pick up something that was allowed. But that was not the issue they had.
Quote:
From your post, I assume that it is because they are concerned that people won't watch their kids as close. Fine, then make the rule that a parent has to be within so many feet of their kid, if that is the issue they are trying to address. Trying to solve the problem in such an assinine fashion is ludicrous.
It took them a long time hemming and hawing before this was the reason they gave for there being such a law. And I told them, thats fine, but realize that most parents will not leave their child unattended. And if they do see a parent leave their child unattended then they should step in and tell them to watch their kids or be removed. It should not be the opposite, where a parent who is concerned for their childs safety is being told to leave for enforcing more safety precautions.
The Glorious Atomicflea wrote:
http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/firstaid_safe/outdoor/water_safety.html
What kind of flotation device did he have? Water wings? If so, they may have been doing you a favor. It seems they're not that safe.
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 6:00pm EDT by Atomicflea
Quote:
Invest in proper-fitting, Coast Guard-approved flotation devices (life vests) and use them whenever a child is near water. Check the weight and size recommendations on the label, then have your child try it on to make sure it fits snugly. For kids who are younger than 5 years old, choose a vest with a strap between the legs and head support - the collar will keep the child's head up and face out of the water. Inflatable vests and arm devices such as water wings are not effective protection against drowning.
tinytravelers.net wrote:
3 to 8 Years: First Swim Lesson
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. They can give children and supervising adults a false sense of security, deflate easily, and restrict an instinctive swimmer's natural movements. As toddlers get more comfortable exerting themselves in the water, I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs.
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. They can give children and supervising adults a false sense of security, deflate easily, and restrict an instinctive swimmer's natural movements. As toddlers get more comfortable exerting themselves in the water, I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs.
What kind of flotation device did he have? Water wings? If so, they may have been doing you a favor. It seems they're not that safe.
Edited, Aug 1st 2006 at 6:00pm EDT by Atomicflea
I do use the floatation devices on his arms. The safety on any type of floatation device is moot no matter how "good" if a parent does not watch. If water wings deflate, you shold be there to notice such a thing happening, so from that perspective I dont see how not having ANY device wold be better than something. I would rather have my son in water wings than nothing. But to get to the details, it was not just water wings they were against, it was all floatation devices. If they had an issue with it being water wings, but something more "safe" was appropriate, I would not have had as hard a time understanding their concept. I most likely would have then hopped in the car and headed to Walmart or Target to pick up something that was allowed. But that was not the issue they had.
Quote:
Git, **** off and die a slow death.
deal, can i borrow those floaties?
alchemistceno wrote:
Quote:
Git, @#%^ off and die a slow death.
deal, can i borrow those floaties?
yeah, let me make a few tears in them first though..... hang on I need to find a knife....
Sarcasm. Get a grip.
GitSlayer wrote:
Sarcasm. Get a grip.
really? I had no idea.
:p
In my honest opinion, either teach the kid to swim or keep him out of the water.
My first trip to the river, I learned to swim the old fashioned way. My pop tossed me out as far as he could throw me, and my uncle fished me out a little downstream. They gave me a "Good job! Go do it again!" and(as soon as I cleared my lungs) I ran back up to dad to have him toss me once more.
Yeah, I swallowed alot of river and might not have made it out the first time if it wasn't for my uncle(thats why he was there), but from there on I knew my own limits and learned to swim on my own in the shallows. I spent most of my young years living on lakes, and had the freedom to swim on my own was because my folks new I could handle myself.
If your kid has an exagerrated sense of his own ability, he's a danger to himself and it's your fault for not introducing him to his own boundaries. Don't coddle the child, let him have a taste of drowning and he'll soon swim like a fish.
And yes Flea hit the nail on the head, water wings are teh debil when it comes to actually learning how to swim. Even life vests aren't there to help you swim. They are there to keep you alive when you are either fully clothed(and easily sinkable) or disoriented/stunned from crashing.
My first trip to the river, I learned to swim the old fashioned way. My pop tossed me out as far as he could throw me, and my uncle fished me out a little downstream. They gave me a "Good job! Go do it again!" and(as soon as I cleared my lungs) I ran back up to dad to have him toss me once more.
Yeah, I swallowed alot of river and might not have made it out the first time if it wasn't for my uncle(thats why he was there), but from there on I knew my own limits and learned to swim on my own in the shallows. I spent most of my young years living on lakes, and had the freedom to swim on my own was because my folks new I could handle myself.
If your kid has an exagerrated sense of his own ability, he's a danger to himself and it's your fault for not introducing him to his own boundaries. Don't coddle the child, let him have a taste of drowning and he'll soon swim like a fish.
And yes Flea hit the nail on the head, water wings are teh debil when it comes to actually learning how to swim. Even life vests aren't there to help you swim. They are there to keep you alive when you are either fully clothed(and easily sinkable) or disoriented/stunned from crashing.
I was raised in the olden days. You know, before water wings existed. The rule of thumb was, if you can't swim, don't go into deep water.
It worked out okay for us.
On a serious note, there are a lot of public beaches around here with that same rule. The rules do not apply to little kids with water wings only. They also apply to people who like to fall asleep on their air mattress and float into the middle of a lake. That kind of crap happens often enough and yes, once again it's a case of a few stupid boobs wrecking everybody's fun.
It worked out okay for us.
On a serious note, there are a lot of public beaches around here with that same rule. The rules do not apply to little kids with water wings only. They also apply to people who like to fall asleep on their air mattress and float into the middle of a lake. That kind of crap happens often enough and yes, once again it's a case of a few stupid boobs wrecking everybody's fun.
Quote:
My first trip to the river, I learned to swim the old fashioned way. My pop tossed me out as far as he could throw me, and my uncle fished me out a little downstream. They gave me a "Good job! Go do it again!" and(as soon as I cleared my lungs) I ran back up to dad to have him toss me once more
now your pop would probably be jailed for child abuse.
You should have went and bought some pirahnas and... y'know
DSD wrote:
GitSlayer wrote:
Sarcasm. Get a grip.
really? I had no idea.
:p
Why do you hate America?
Anyone over the age of 25 grew up with floaties on their arms when they went swimming at a young age. I think it's absolutely ridiculous that there are rules in place actually prohibiting the use of such devices on the basis of blaming them for accidents with children. The only accident is the parent that doesn't watch their child.
FTFY
tinytravelers.net wrote:
3 to 8 Years: First Swim Lesson
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards (sold seperately) that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs. (Mfg. of Safe-T-Seal passes the cash filled envelope, thanking Scuba Sam for his justified endorsement of their product)
As an aquatics instructor, I don't recommend inflatable flotation devices for non-swimmers, i.e. arm swimmies or water wings. I recommend a solid foam flotation vest called Safe-T-Seal Swimmer. The vest fabric is filled with flotation cards (sold seperately) that you add or remove according to the child's skill level. What I like best is that this product allows free movement of arms and legs. (Mfg. of Safe-T-Seal passes the cash filled envelope, thanking Scuba Sam for his justified endorsement of their product)
FTFY
It's funny because Git has working DSD down to a science. 
The reasoning behind the no water wings rule is sound, even if on the surface of it it seems harsh. The rule mimics the same one for the local rivers around here which don't allow you to go river rafting on these. The logic is you don't swim where if the device fails you would be incapable of extricating yourself from danger.
It's a good rule, DSD, despite the fact it makes for a sucky summer afternoon plans.
Totem
It's a good rule, DSD, despite the fact it makes for a sucky summer afternoon plans.
Totem
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