If you add first aid and trip planning skills to the list below, and clarify that the boat handling skills are comfortably demonstrated in 2 - 4 foot seas, you have described below the BCU 4 star level. the bottom line on 4 star certification is that the paddler "is not a liability on an open ocean journey" in 15 - 20 knot winds. i very much disagree that the multiple levels are too complicated. 1 star is a participation/encouragement award. 2 star is basic skill level in flat water, 3 star is confident skill level in flat water and basic seamanship, 4 star is confident skill level in rougher water and solid seamanship, 5 star is leadership seamanship and skill level in more extreme conditions. This creates a ladder of achievement upon which paddlers/students can progress, which is tangible enough that people feel some satisfaction as they work their way through the awards, and equally important, provides a modicum of consistency/standards, so that if someone comes to me and says " i am a # star paddler", i know what sort of conditions we can reasonably go out in. also, i have been told that the bcu is also hard at work on creating a greenland technique module, which they hope to have sorted out by next summer. regards, george ruta northcountry kayak 518-677-3040 (coach level 2, working on level 3) In a message dated 98-10-02 21:01:34 EDT, kwhilden_at_u.washington.edu writes: << Julio, I think we pretty much agree on the level of relevance of the ACA. I personally would go so far as to give a succint summary of their sea kayaking certification... It's too wimpy. The BCU is much better as far as technical skills go, but again there are problems. They are too stuffy. Things like never paddling alone or completely ignoring greenland paddles bother me. I wonder what the good people on this list would come up with if we decided to start our own certification program. Perhaps I'll get the ball rolling... I think the the five star rating of the BCU is too complicated, and leaves too much room for mediocrity at the lower levels. I would propose having only a single rating, and then add specialized components as needed. For instance, Joe Seakayaker has an official Paddlewise certification of competency with specialty in greenland paddles and paddling open coast w/ surf. Or something like that. The basic certification would be much more comprehensive of the basic skills. I'll list a few, and then perhaps others could add more. - Basic paddle strokes: Forward, sweeps, rudders, duffek - Basic skills: edge control, edged turns, sculling, high and low brace - basic rescues: Wet-exit, assisted (several kinds), solo w/ paddle float - basic eskimo roll: I would go so far as to require a roll for certification, others might balk so much that I might have to compromise. But we should at least give the message that this is the best kind of rescue, period, and that it is not really that hard to learn. - basic navigation skills: Read a chart, compass, avoid shipping lanes, - basic tide and current awareness - basic hypothermia awareness - basic boat packing skills Well, that's not a bad start for the BASIC certification. The idea here is to make it somewhat difficult, instead of giving one away with every full tank of gas. Another idea is to keep it simple -- one level is all that is needed to make sure everyone is a competent kayaker for the level of paddling that majority of sea kayakers typically attempt. This would really increase safety in general. Then there are the specialized ratings that can be used for aspects of sea kayaking that the majority of the sea kayaking public would not typically attempt, such as rock gardening, open coast paddling, tide rip playing, greenland paddle technique, surfing, whitewater rivers, etc... There are plenty of people who do want to learn these things, and it would be good address each one directly and specifically, because they are all quite dangerous in different ways. (greenland paddles ARE dangerously fun...) Well, what do you think... can we run with this and turn it into something substantial? This is a wonderful email list, with many many outstanding contributors. I don't see why we couldn't formalize a certification program, even if it just goes on the web page for the general public to read. let's be the Linux of sea kayaking. :) ___________________ / Kevin Whilden \ >> *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************Received on Sat Oct 03 1998 - 06:47:57 PDT
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