Restube Active Swimming Safety Buoy for Adults and Kids - Open Water Swim Buoy to Help Swimmers Stay Afloat - One-Pull Inflatable Mechanism Life Buoy with Whistle

The ideal buoy for swimming in open water. It's not my first buoy and I can definitely recommend it to others

My wife does a handful of triathlons a year. She recently had an issue during the swim this last time when her leg got caught and she panicked. We purchased this product to help her in those times because it isn't one that floats behind the whole time.We tested the product out, and it works great for what we need it for. HOWEVER, I keep seeing issues where you have to purchase the CO2 from Restube, and that is a pain. It's a 16g CO2 cartridge, so what is the difference between the standard 16g bike CO2 cartridges and the Restube ones? Other than Restube charges 3x or more the price? ($1.50 per compared to Restube's $6.50 per)If it will take 16g bike CO2, then it's a 5 star in my book. Even without the PFD cert.UPDATE: tested it with a 16g Bike CO2 cartridge and it works fine! 5 Stars! (This is for the Active model)

I go kayaking and rafting in lakes and rivers, and when I'm using a sit on top I often like to slip off the side and swim around. While I wear a PFD in the kayak, that's not exactly conducive to swimming so I will typically leave that on my kayak while I swim. Twice in the past I've run into scenarios where I wished something like this existed. The first time I got into the water to swim and after a while I realized I had forgotten to deploy my drift anchor and my kayak was much farther off than expected, and it was getting farther. Getting back to it was a bit of a scary experience as I was getting really tired and had to stop and backfloat to recover several times on the way back to it. The second time as I was swimming back, I got a bad cramp and I really struggled to get back to my kayak then as well. If I had this on me, both of those potentially fatal situations would not have been so worrisome.Out of the box the unit looks well designed, it is made with strong quality materials that look like they will hold up for some time. I wear size 34 jeans and when adjusted to my waist there are an extra 10" or so of strap left, so this should fit any child and most adults who are at least somewhat active as long as you're under 45" around (the max setting). This could be extended with the addition of a simple 1" strap with buckles you can find here on Amazon or a local retail store for a few dollars, though I would use caution depending on your size as the buoy may not be large enough to support your weight, so test it out before use.Packed up into the bag with a loaded CO2 it is a snug fit, but it isn't hard to pack. The activation mechanism is pretty neat and easy to use, and with a simple tug on the cord it activates the seal puncture for the cylinder. Also nice is that on the end of that cord is a whistle, and since the leash is long enough you are able to use it once the floatation device has been deployed. Unfortunately, it does leverage a single proprietary threaded 18g Co2 cylinder instead of widely available 12g ones. While it may be a matter of volume, it wouldn't be hard to devise a similar mechanism which would allow the loading of two 12g cartridges.At this point my review is purely on the product itself, but not the performance as I have not used it yet. I am going to be testing it in the ocean next week and will update my review with feedback on wearing, deploying, and attempting to stay afloat with it. Until then, as far as the product goes, it looks good and very promising.

My kids and I swim well. But I was always worried in the open water; who knows when a bad surprise happens. This small device gives me lots of confidence without clumsiness.I tested the device twice and it worked well

I am a triathlete with 2 fulls and 10 halfs over 15 years. Even after all these years I am still nervous about open water swims with large groups.. Doesn't help that every year you hear about athletes dying in the swim portion of races. When I found out this inflatable Buoy is usat legal and can be work in any race I was thrilled. Finally I have this to fall back on if something goes wrong. I tested it today and it worked perfectly. I also tested swimming with and without and thgere was no noticeable difference in my pace. I am looking forward to next season with much more confidence!

I’m not a great swimmer but I don’t like to wear a life jacket on a calm boat ride. This is discreet to wear and gives me peace of mind if I should ever need it.

When swimming, particularly competitive open water swimming, a muscle cramp can be a life-threatening condition. Having an emergency inflatable can be a lifesaver, which is exactly what this is for.The Restbue is a small (but not THAT small) nylon pouch secured with velcro. I actually thought the pouch would be about half the size it actually is. Inside the pouch is a folded inflatable tube, along with a CO2 inflator. The pouch has straps used to strap the pouch to the swimmer, normally around the swimmer's waist.There is a small plastic emergency whistle on the pouch. Pulling on the whistle will trigger the inflatable and it will pop the pouch open and inflate. The tube itself is actually quite a bit larger than I thought, and provides more than enough buoyancy to support a swimmer in the water.The tube once inflated itself is yellow for high visibility. Once deflated and dried out, it can be folded up, repacked into the pouch, and a new CO2 cartridge installed so that it can be reused.Who is this for?- Swimmers- Paddleboarders- Boaters- Pilots flying overwaterPros:- Relatively compact- Easy to use- Provides very good buoyancyCons:- Could be smaller (a smaller version is available - but is less buoyant)

Do not buy these to take on travel. Despite what the manufacturer says, the TSA will create problems for you. They don't like these. The wasted 1 hour of my time while the supervisor tried to figure out what to do with these. Eventually, they let us proceed with them. But who wants such a hassle and so much time wasted, every time you travel??