Description
The BCA Float 17 Speed Avalanche Airbag 2.0 is designed for close-in backcountry riding and features the new Float 2.0 system. Creating buoyancy and helping you float to the surface, the 150-liter airbag not only decreases your burial depth but also protects your head and neck from trauma in an avalanche. Nearly 30 percent smaller and 15 percent lighter than the Float 1.0 engine, the Float 2.0 engine fits inside the Float airbag compartment, freeing up more valuable space in the main compartment. All BCA Float packs include integration for BC Link™ Radios, hydration sleeve, dual-zippered shoulder straps, and molded back panel. Features of the Float 17 Speed:
- Integrated Float 2.0 airbag system with left or right shoulder strap trigger mount
- Integration for BC Link Radios
- Tool and gear loops
Specifications
- 17 liters / 1.037 cubic inches
- 5.6 pounds / 2540 grams (whole system including cylinder)
- 150-
liter airbag
How do Float airbags reduce burial depth?
- Preventing or minimizing burial depth is the key to reducing avalanche fatalities. That’s because the majority of time in an avalanche rescue is spent on excavating the victim. An airbag is designed to keep you at or near the surface, minimizing excavation time.
- Inverse segregation, more commonly referred to as the ‘Brazil nut effect’ is the science behind why airbags work. The turbulent movement sorts different shaped objects by size (similar to the way large Brazil nuts will rise to the top when a bowl of mixed nuts is shaken). Smaller objects are more likely to fall into the voids created by the turbulence, while larger objects move to the top. In addition to increasing your overall buoyancy, the Float avalanche airbags are designed to make a backcountry user ‘bigger’ than the surrounding pieces of debris in an avalanche. The Floats use compressed air in the cylinder to fill the bag and make the user’s volume larger, reducing or eliminating burial depth and increasing your chances of survival.
Important info regarding compressed air cylinders:
- Rental units are shipped with an EMPTY air cylinder as standard, but OER now offers a FULL option: click here.
- You cannot take a filled cylinder on a commercial airline, either checked or carry on, so plan ahead.
- The renter must have the cylinder filled near his trip destination, if the FULL option is not ordered. A list of BCA Refill Centers can be found HERE > be sure you have a way to fill before you order
- It is often difficult to find a place to have the cylinder filled –
we have a limited number of SCUBA/Paintball Fill adapters for a small extra charge. This adapter allows the cylinder to be filled using a SCUBA tank, which should enable you to have the cylinder filled at any SCUBA shop, or off of any SCUBA tank. Choose to add to your order during booking. - Cylinders must be emptied before shipping back using the prepaid return label.
