Ray Guards?

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Mddauby
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Ray Guards?

Post by Mddauby »

I've been toying with the idea for awhile, and finally bit the bullet on a pair yesterday. Went with the Everlast Ray Guard Boots with Shield. They seem slightly bulky as they sit roughly half way up my calf, but the peace of mind I am envisioning makes it seem worth it. It also felt tight enough on my foot and calf that it wouldn't get stuck and slip off in the mud.

I was wondering in general what you guys like to wade in. Do you utilize any type of ray guard; full fledged waders and all?

Sure would ruin my afternoon to take a barb in the foot/ankle. :shock:
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aggie182
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by aggie182 »

Mddauby wrote:I've been toying with the idea for awhile, and finally bit the bullet on a pair yesterday. Went with the Everlast Ray Guard Boots with Shield. They seem slightly bulky as they sit roughly half way up my calf, but the peace of mind I am envisioning makes it seem worth it. It also felt tight enough on my foot and calf that it wouldn't get stuck and slip off in the mud.

I was wondering in general what you guys like to wade in. Do you utilize any type of ray guard; full fledged waders and all?

Sure would ruin my afternoon to take a barb in the foot/ankle. :shock:
I wear my ray guards if I will be wading a lot, but generally don't. When I do, I wear the Simms OceanTek or Simms Flats Sneakers along with the Foreverlast Ray Guards. The Simms boots are always on though, just paddling or wading. I fear razor sharp oysters over stingrays and they protect my feet from that. Stingrays are a good sign, they eat some of the same stuff redfish eat.
rgrayson
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by rgrayson »

I have a pair I keep with me if I want to wade, especially in grass. A few months ago I was out on a grass flat and the water was crystal clear. I don't know if it just happened to be a busy moment for them or what but there were rays everywhere. I stayed in the yak on that day.
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Yaklash
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Yaklash »

I grew up wading the bays and surf, so I grew up doing the Stingray Shuffle. Never in 20+ years of wading without any protection was I ever stuck by a ray, tho numerous times over the years, I would kick them up. I knock on wood and thank God for that.

Never the less, about 15 years ago, I bought my first pair of Everlast boots with guards after hearing a few horror stories from folks who'd fallen victim, regardless of the shuffle. I am on my third pair now, having worn the soles off of and/or irreparably damaging the other two. The peace of mind is a little misleading tho, because after a season of wearing them, I noticed I had stopped doing the shuffle and twice in one weekend (West Matagorda), I got hit on the boot foot and ankle of my Everlast boot/guards. No harm/no foul, but I rededicated myself to the shuffle thereafter because a bigger ray could possibly get a barb in you above the line of the guards.

They are a good product and yes they are heavy and bulky. When I am wearing them and back in the nasty marsh mud, I stay in the boat. Partly because they are harder to pull up out of the mud than traditional (smaller) wading booties. Partly because of the mess they carry back into the kayak. And also because I'm too old and out of shape to be wading much mud anymore :lol:
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aggie182
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by aggie182 »

I have heard, not sure how much truth there is to it, but it makes sense, that a lot of folks that get stuck in the back of the leg. They are shuffling, etc., and lose a little balance and step backwards to regain and get hit when they step on a ray. Apparently the rays follow us as we shuffle, eating the stuff we kick up. Who knows but it makes sense I suppose.
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Salty Bum
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Salty Bum »

question about Rays - i know the tips of there tails have barbs and is like a knife but does it have poison in it - seems every wound i see looks like the flesh is being eaten away by infection and I was wondering if that is from a poison from the Ray - thanks
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Yaklash »

Salty Bum wrote:question about Rays - i know the tips of there tails have barbs and is like a knife but does it have poison in it - seems every wound i see looks like the flesh is being eaten away by infection and I was wondering if that is from a poison from the Ray - thanks
Barb is about halfway back on the tail-not at the tip, it is a serrated barb such that when it hits you and buries in your flesh, it breaks off of the rays' tail rather than come out of your flesh and it has a toxin or poison of some sort. Water as hot as you can stand it as soon as possible after getting hit seems to leach out some of the poison and lessen the pain and, so I've heard, risk of infection/inflammation.

As far as where most get stuck, this is what statistics bear out - most stingray hits are to the top of the foot or ankle. Yes there have been those who stumbled and landed on one, but even then, unless it is a big ray, their tails (half the length of their tail is where the barb is) aren't usually large enough to go any higher than the ankle.

The worst story I ever heard (and it was soon thereafter I bought my first pair of Everlast Ray-Boots), involved both the big size and the stumble and it was from a seasoned guide who had been shuffling his entire adult life. He shuffled into a pothole, stumbled and his next step was onto a mammoth stingray, so big that the strike was into the thickest part of his calf. The barb was so big that, before it broke off, the ray had dragged him off of his feet and a yard or two in one direction - he was wet from head to toe when he stood up again. But that was not a ray following him; he stumbled forward. I have heard stories about people stepping backwards to set the hook on a fish and step on one that was trailing them, so there must be something to that theory.
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Mddauby
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Mddauby »

rgrayson wrote:I have a pair I keep with me if I want to wade, especially in grass. A few months ago I was out on a grass flat and the water was crystal clear. I don't know if it just happened to be a busy moment for them or what but there were rays everywhere. I stayed in the yak on that day.


I had a similar experience one time yak fishing the upper Laguna. Water was clear like you mentioned. We had pulled up to a point in maybe twelve inches of water, dropped anchor, and were going to wade around this little grass flat. Kicked up two rays within ten feet of the boat. After that I just wasn't quite comfortable shuffling around out there.
Yaklash wrote:I grew up wading the bays and surf, so I grew up doing the Stingray Shuffle. Never in 20+ years of wading without any protection was I ever stuck by a ray, tho numerous times over the years, I would kick them up. I knock on wood and thank God for that.

Never the less, about 15 years ago, I bought my first pair of Everlast boots with guards after hearing a few horror stories from folks who'd fallen victim, regardless of the shuffle. I am on my third pair now, having worn the soles off of and/or irreparably damaging the other two. The peace of mind is a little misleading tho, because after a season of wearing them, I noticed I had stopped doing the shuffle and twice in one weekend (West Matagorda), I got hit on the boot foot and ankle of my Everlast boot/guards. No harm/no foul, but I rededicated myself to the shuffle thereafter because a bigger ray could possibly get a barb in you above the line of the guards.

They are a good product and yes they are heavy and bulky. When I am wearing them and back in the nasty marsh mud, I stay in the boat. Partly because they are harder to pull up out of the mud than traditional (smaller) wading booties. Partly because of the mess they carry back into the kayak. And also because I'm too old and out of shape to be wading much mud anymore :lol:


I'm with you Yak; even with the guards there will probably be lots of shuffling going on in my future.

aggie182 wrote: I wear my ray guards if I will be wading a lot, but generally don't. When I do, I wear the Simms OceanTek or Simms Flats Sneakers along with the Foreverlast Ray Guards. The Simms boots are always on though, just paddling or wading. I fear razor sharp oysters over stingrays and they protect my feet from that. Stingrays are a good sign, they eat some of the same stuff redfish eat.
My Trout Support DVD, "Redfish - Marsh & Grass Flats" echoed the same sentiment in regards to stingrays being a good sign. I've fished fresh water most of my life. Salt water fishing seemed overwhelming at times, just because geographically the coast is so vast as opposed to a bass pond/lake. Been watching this DVD over and over again, and I'm pretty pumped about getting out there to put it to good use.
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by b737 »

Ray Guard boots work very well (personal experience, hit twice while wading, 10 years apart, same boots). Always wear the Ray Guards fishing off the PB . Lower Laguna Madre, 4 or5 on boat, everybody wade fishes. Kayak, wear the Ray Guard angle boots,
mainly for shells/ reefs. Will wade from the kayak only if no more than knee deep, clear water, sand bottom.
When wading above belly-button deep off Mansfield, have seen small Rays , up to 1 foot across, swim in front of me just below the surface. Have also seen a 1/4 acre area with the bottom completely covered with large Rays (floated over in the PB)
Nothing is fool proof. Good luck (also carry one of the sealed "ray first aid kits in the yak)
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Rockclimber
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Rockclimber »

What is in a 'ray first aid kit' that makes it better than a regular first aid kit?
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5fangers
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by 5fangers »

Rockclimber wrote:What is in a 'ray first aid kit' that makes it better than a regular first aid kit?
Most have the addition of an instant heat pack.
b737
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by b737 »

TTF Stingray Kit. Everything in a sealed alum-pouch. Towelette, gauze, Hydrogen Peroxide, Tweezers (get barb out), Antibiotic Ointment, bandages ,Instant heat pak, Elastic bandage, hydrocortisone cream.
Others have referenced this kit on this forum (that's why I bought it) I bought at Academy, do not know if they still carry
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Captain53
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Captain53 »

b737 wrote:TTF Stingray Kit. Everything in a sealed alum-pouch. Towelette, gauze, Hydrogen Peroxide, Tweezers (get barb out), Antibiotic Ointment, bandages ,Instant heat pak, Elastic bandage, hydrocortisone cream.
Others have referenced this kit on this forum (that's why I bought it) I bought at Academy, do not know if they still carry
Looks like they still make them.

http://texastacklefactory.com/index.php ... d=42:blogs" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by texnomad »

ray barb.JPG
ray barb.JPG (21.19 KiB) Viewed 7214 times
For those who do not know what the barb looks like close up here a picture for you.
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RP
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by RP »

I've fished Galveston Bay for 25 plus years and got my first Ray hit just last summer. NOT a good experience AT ALL.
Had to wade back to my yak, paddle 2 1/2 miles to my truck load yak, call wife and tell her to get HOT water ready. Drive home took 1 1/2 hours. GET RAY GUARDS and USE THEM.
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JW FunGuy
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by JW FunGuy »

Fishing in some very stained, grassy water the other day and at one point feeling something squishy scuttle out under my foot, I began to think that maybe Ray Guards would be a good idea! These posts are kind of old so has anybody found anything new/better out there? It doesn’t seem like there are a lot of companies making them. I am looking primarily for just the guard itself not a boot combo.
Thanks!
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Mddauby
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by Mddauby »

I'd imagine there are other brands but Everlast really seems to have the market cornered down here. When I go to Academy, all I see are Everlast boots and ray guards.

MD
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UCkayaker
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Re: Ray Guards? Recommend the Stiny Ray guards by crackshot

Post by UCkayaker »

I have tried all the sting ray guards and I find the Sting ray protectors sold by stinkypantsfishing.coom "Cracksho-ray-guardsz" to be better than those sold by Academy. I always use them when I am wading or kayaking. My personal 2 cents. They last longer.
https://www.stinkypantsfishing.com/prod ... ray-guardz
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JW FunGuy
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Re: Ray Guards? Recommend the Stiny Ray guards by crackshot

Post by JW FunGuy »

UCkayaker wrote:I have tried all the sting ray guards and I find the Sting ray protectors sold by stinkypantsfishing.coom "Cracksho-ray-guardsz" to be better than those sold by Academy. I always use them when I am wading or kayaking. My personal 2 cents. They last longer.
https://www.stinkypantsfishing.com/prod ... ray-guardz
Thanks! They do look bomber, not cheap but probably less than a trip to the ER. I assume they are OK to walk in? I do like that it has an instep strap to keep them down.
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krfish
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by krfish »

I wear reef boots with the ray guard shields separate, so I can wear them when needed. I never was to serious about it until my uncle was hit in the calf while fishing in POC. He drove himself to the hospital in Victoria, where they removed the barb and stitched him up. Fought infections for a couple
Months. Was no fun.


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WSalley58
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Re: Ray Guards?

Post by WSalley58 »

Do the Ray-Guard Reef boots utilize neoprene? Looking for a non-neoprene wading boot option as I am allergic to neoprene


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