Working with Your Throw Bag

Knowing how to load and reload your throw bag is a skill every rafter should have. It’s not just tidiness—it’s safety. This little bundle of rope is a literal lifeline and should be respected as such.

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Why It Matters

This is a rescue tool. A well-packed bag means:

• Clean, accurate throws: You look like a pro instead of a knot magician!

• Safety: Throw ropes don't mean your day will be without incident, but they're essential for managing risk.
  

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Step-By-Step: Loading the Rope

Clean it, dry It (if possible)
Before storing and before launching on a trip, make sure the bag and rope are dry and clean. Wet, dirty rope is heavy, clumsy, and likes to mold. Lay it out in the sun or hang it to dry if you’ve got time. 

1. Toss the rope over your shoulder: Pinch the bag between a palm and last 3 fingers of that hand. Feed rope into the bag through the loop made by that hand's index finger and thumb. Do this until the bag fills enough to no longer be efficient.

   

    

2. Switch techniques to finish: Switch to the see-saw method to finish the final section and tuck the loop at the tail end of the rope in to the bag.
   

3. Leave the business end accessible: Clip the loop on the loose end through the buckle so there's no guesswork involved when it's time to boogie.
   
   

4. Attach It near the center of your craft: A central location means that it's easier for anyone to access it regardless of whether the captain or passengers go for an unplanned swim. Your throw bag has several attachment points for you to choose from. Do what works for you!
   

5. The Throw: Unclip the loop, hold it in your non-throwing hand, wind up, and let loose!
                

6. Re-Load: If you miss your first throw, you'll need a speedy alternative. Instead of re-stuffing the bag, coil the rope in neat, tight coils. Tighter coils improve accuracy of the throw and diminish the chance of the coils snagging. 
   
   *ABSOLUTELY NO COILING ON YOUR ELBOW!! This method kinks and twists the rope, a curse that you and your rope will feel until you take the time to flake it back out.

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Pro Tips for River Legends in Action

• Practice on dry land: Find a technique that works for you. Some people like the underhand, others throw an overhand. Practice. Toss, reload, repeat. You’ll get smoother and faster. Practice. The West lives on. 

• Communicate to your swimmer: Before a rapid, be sure that everyone understands what communication to expect, how to prepare to receive a rope, and what to do when they receive it.

  • Some ideas to consider and communicate to your team:

    • Get into "whitewater swimming position." Otherwise known as the "floating lawn chair" position.

    • Shout “ROPE!” and/or make EYE CONTACT before you throw—no one likes a surprise clothesline.

    • If possible, encourage swimmers make "goal posts" with their arms.
    • Put the rope over a shoulder and let the rescuer pull you in. You'll exhaust and endanger yourself trying to climb up the rope.
      
• Work with the current: If you're not confident that you can make an accurate throw, toss the bag just upstream of the swimmer. The rope will travel faster than the person and will float right into their arms.
  
  

• Keep it clean: Mud, sand, and burritos don’t belong in your throw bag.

• Make Friends: Treat your throw bag like your river buddy—keep it neat, keep it close, and it’ll always have your back.