Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 12/04/2008 - 09:25
Forums
Oden Antarctic Expedition 08

I am curious about the survival suits, tCoolell me more about the survival suits pictured.  What are they made of?  How long will they keep you alive in the frigid waters?  How long does it take to put them on?  Are you told when to put them on?  Do they have safety drills/fire drills on the Oden?Sealed Are you missing your family?  Are you going to miss teaching in your classroom?  What books are you reading while on the Oden?  I love ranch dressing do you?  A lot of questions I know, please answer soon.  

 

Tyler D. Carter-Mr. Radford's 5th grade class.

 

P.S. i like the picture of our flags inside! 

Thu, 12/04/2008 - 15:26

Jeff Peneston

Tyler!
Thanks for all the questions. The survival suits are rather difficult to put on and awkward to move in but they were fun to try. I asked Eric, the Master of the Oden to answer your technical questions and he said that the suits are brand new and they are made of waterproof nylon canvas. Erik told me that they are rated to keep you floating and alive for 6 hours in 0? C (freezing) water. There are more than enough suits for everyone on board and when we had an emergency drill on the first day and tested them, most of us took about 3-4 minutes to get the suit on. Each person on the Oden has a number (mine is #50) and when and alarm sounds we must quickly find warm clothing and report to our assigned muster location. I have been assigned to the lifeboat area on the port side of deck #2.
Yes, I miss my family; my students and my friends back home. However, I contact my wife every day by email and I am able to make many new friends on the Oden and friends like you through the PolarTREC journal.
I am reading 2 books on the Oden right now and both of them are “old friends”. The first is a copy of the book “Walden” by Henry David Thoreau that was given to me by my 5th grade teacher. The second book, Endurance by Alfred Lansing is the famous and heroic true story of a shipwreck in Antarctic sea ice nearly a century ago.
Ranch dressing?? Not my favorite.
Have fun, keep reading the journal and keep asking questions,
Jeff Peneston