3 ms·

>>the exception of the rare swimmer is much less nimble than a pedestrian or biker (and thus more predictable). The problem is that boats are an absolute pain

>>the exception of the rare swimmer is much less nimble than a pedestrian or biker (and thus more predictable). The problem is that boats are an absolute pain to turn and are the very opposite of "nimble" too. Yes if you see a swimmer in the water 20m ahead of you they probably won't move very far, but also to avoid them you should have started making a turn about a minute ago. Having done some canal boating in the UK it's just inevitable that you will keep colliding with things, and unfortunately you leave a lot of kayakers pissed off because it's almost always them having to take an evasive action.

silasdavis 5y ago
Perhaps not ideal but as a swimmer you almost always have down as an evasive direction. You do need awareness but this has saved me from multiple shallow hulled fast boats and water jetskis. You can hear them miles away though directionality of the sound is poor or absent.
- notahacker 5y ago
  In a 3' deep canal, down is a problematic evasive direction!
- nradov 5y ago
  When I'm doing open water swimming workouts I'm usually wearing a wetsuit buoyant enough that I can't dive down. I probably wouldn't risk swimming at all in waters where jet skis are allowed because they're notoriously irresponsible. It's a good idea to also tow an inflatable buoy to increase your visibility. https://www.newwaveswimbuoy.com/ https://www.newwaveswimbuoy.com/
notahacker 5y ago
It'd be an interesting challenge writing an algorithm for canal boats on narrow British canals that can deal with the effect of wind, bank effect and squat and underwater obstacles that simply shouldn't be there in a vessel that's 57' long, pivots in the middle only and generally between a few feet and a few inches narrower than the canal itself. Tbf kayakers are easy to deal with if you actually see them in time to slow down. Most obstructions don't move as fast to get out the way! A robot to do locks for me when I'm feeling lazy would be a bigger deal though :D

silasdavis 5y ago

Perhaps not ideal but as a swimmer you almost always have down as an evasive direction. You do need awareness but this has saved me from multiple shallow hulled fast boats and water jetskis. You can hear them miles away though directionality of the sound is poor or absent.

notahacker 5y ago
In a 3' deep canal, down is a problematic evasive direction!
nradov 5y ago
When I'm doing open water swimming workouts I'm usually wearing a wetsuit buoyant enough that I can't dive down. I probably wouldn't risk swimming at all in waters where jet skis are allowed because they're notoriously irresponsible. It's a good idea to also tow an inflatable buoy to increase your visibility. https://www.newwaveswimbuoy.com/ https://www.newwaveswimbuoy.com/

notahacker 5y ago

It'd be an interesting challenge writing an algorithm for canal boats on narrow British canals that can deal with the effect of wind, bank effect and squat and underwater obstacles that simply shouldn't be there in a vessel that's 57' long, pivots in the middle only and generally between a few feet and a few inches narrower than the canal itself. Tbf kayakers are easy to deal with if you actually see them in time to slow down. Most obstructions don't move as fast to get out the way! A robot to do locks for me when I'm feeling lazy would be a bigger deal though :D