My thoughts... 1. z-rigs can be very useful but also very dangerous, both for the people on the trip, but also for craft coming downstream behind you. Upstream safety is crucial. 2. Assume that not everyone involved has the experience you'd wish for. I always have a laminated z-rig picture in my kit. Even if you know how to set it up, it doesn't hurt to take a second to verify you haven't made any mistakes. 3. One of the simple definitions for me is: mechanical advantage only happens if a pulley is moving. Otherwise it's just a change of direction. One place where this can come in handy is if you can rig a pulley to the boat (i.e. anchor on land, rope through pulley on boat and back to shore) you have a 2:1 advantage. This might be enough to release the boat without the setup required for a full z-rig. 4. I think the biggest thing is to have 1 leader who is strong enough to stop others from rushing in and creating safety issues.

Am a swiftwater instructor, you pretty much nailed it.

Great commentary, Zach. In whole agreement. Vital skill to know, left best as a tertiary option.

dude! you need to do on water experience. Especially with these rescue videos you are explain.

Zach, you have PHD in real world experience, that counts as much or more than wether you are a certified swiftwater instructor.

Great videos all around! I really appreciate your stance and view point on real world applications. One question I have is do you know what D rings on rafts or more realistically the adhesive used to attach them via patches to the raft rated too? I have asked a few outfitters that I work for and called NRS, Aire and Sotar and no one is really able to give me an answer. The reason I am wondering is outside of some sort of vertical hauling system for gear which is most likely outside of most river guides scope of practice it seems as if the standard static rescue line in most peoples Pin or wrap kit is way overkill even on a stabilized anchor to 2-3 D rings. Thanks in advance!

I feel like a 3:1 on a body would be a bad idea. Maybe after packaging, attached to the litter, to help haul up a incline. But never pulling on the body itself. Sounds like a good way to tear one to pieces.