After a brush with death and nearly drowning two years ago, big wave surfer Shane Dorian began working on a wetsuit that could be instantly inflated, bringing the user back to the surface. Still only a prototype, it works by pulling a cord so that a CO2 cartridge will fill the bubble, with only drawbacks being that the wearer might be unconscious or too weak to pull the cord, and that the location of the bubble might leave the wearer face down. Hmm, I think maybe some kind of hydrostatic release mechanism like in this Danish oilskin ? Via joonbug.com.

Billabong V1 Wetsuit from Billabong USA on Vimeo.

Always nice to know …

• Do not go in the water at dawn or dusk; everything is in the shark’s favor. Shark attacks around midday are very rare.
• Avoid large groups of seals or sea lions, or if you see these creatures on the beach or near the shoreline, beware.
• If you are bleeding, including menstruating, stay out of the water.
• Stay clear of fishing boats.
• The murkier the water, the easier it is for a shark to sense you without your seeing the shark. Shark attacks are more likely to occur than when the water is clear.
• Leave the water quickly and calmly if a shark is sighted. Avoid excessive splashing or arm and leg movement.
• Stay in a group; most sharks attack individuals.

Read SanClementePatch

A 3.8 km open water charity race on Sunday round Joss Bay in Kent could according to the BBC have ended as “a very serious problem”, when “up to 80 people” were swept out to sea and had to be rescued, some of them nearly two hours after the incident. Only a few swimmers managed to finish the race, arranged by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and coaching and event company Votwo, in support of the RNLI. The rest of them had to be resqued by the RNLI, talk about proving your value, *ahem*.

Votwo are being more casual about it, stating shortly:

Date Posted: 29-Aug-2011

Joss Bay Long Swim

Well done to the two junior athletes Lauren Joy and Molly Dawson who completed the mile swim in 27:23 and 27:25 respectively.

In the 3.8km swim Paul Richardson won with a fast time of 51:25. Paul Newson came 2nd in a time of 55:13 and said the event was great training for his channel swim in a few weeks time.

Of the 53 swimmers that started the 3.8km swim, 25 were unable to complete the course after the tide changed and were retrieved by water safety craft. 6 completed the whole course with 22 retiring early. All swimmers were accounted for.

70-year-old Efrain N. Carrasquillo was working on a car last Thursday in the carport of a home in Orlando, when the car slipped into gear, pushing him and another vehicle parked directly behind him into the pool. The vehicle either sandwiched Carrasquillo or he was dragged, but other than that it was unclear exactly how he came to his death, when this article on the Orlando Sentinel was written.