Life jackets save lives

I must congratulate Rob Konrad, the former Dolphin fullback, for his heroic marathon swim after he fell overboard from his boat at sea recently (Rob Konrad’s survival at sea is the stuff of legends, Jan. 13).

However, there is a valuable lesson to be learned from his ordeal: Why on Earth was he not wearing a life jacket? I have never gone out to sea without having one on. Not next to me, I mean wearing it at all times.

Once, while off of Sanibel Island, a man asked my friend, “Why does he always have a life vest on?” “He just always has one on at sea.” I even had a nickname, “Chicken of the Sea.” It didn’t bother me a bit.

I knew that if that boat flipped or sank, I wasn’t going to drown. I, at least, had a fighting chance to be rescued. I bet Konrad must have wished often that he had been wearing a life vest during that long, scary night.

This story was originally published January 15, 2015 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Life jackets save lives."