Mae West life jackets

Until the advent of closed-cell foam life jackets, the state of the art was a “Mae West” lifejacket – two air-filled pouches with kapok material inside and one in the back, and very effective at floating you in whitewater. But, the pouches could puncture easily and water would soak the kapok and make the jacket ineffective. Adjusting your lifejacket was a regular feature of the put-in process for rafting trips.