Re: [Paddlewise] Saturation Point

Doug Lloyd wrote:
> 
> I spoke with a dealer at the PT Symposium who was elated at their sales
> this past year, and all the new paddlers at the symposium showing interest
> in his boats. I said that was "too bad".
> 
> "Excuse me", came the reply, "What do you mean by that?"
> 
> I said that means more people on the water, more impact. Does anyone think
> there are too many people participating these days? 

I don't think there are too many.  But there are more and more unaware
types coming into the sport.  That worries me more than the numbers.  As
Bob Woodward mentioned: he sees people carting off boats from his local
kayak shop but he hardly runs into anyone on the water.  There seems to
be a lot of space for all of us except in some particularly popular
places.  It isn't like whitewater where there are just so many places
within x hours to paddle especially when the action is dependent on
intermittent dam releases.  So you will get many hundreds of WW paddlers
in small stretch of a river at the dam release time.  New York City for
example has 529 miles of shoreline.  Even if a hundred paddlers are on
the water at the same time, you won't see many if any.

Getting back to my point.  While more people are getting educated
through courses, conversations with knowledgeable paddlers and forums
such as this, nyckayaker and cpakayaker among others, a lot are slipping
through the cracks.  How many people for example have been inspired to
take up seakayaking after seeing the romantic photos of JFK Jr. paddling
a hardshell or his Feathercraft K-1?  How many would think about wearing
a PFD or cold water gear when he obviously was not or would not wear
either items?  What about sales through large outdoor shops where sales
personnel may be less than knowledgeable and tell them things like "If
you stay near shore you won't need a wet suit or dry suit."

I paddle with a healthy amount of fear when in my local waters of NY
Harbor.  But I can't tell you how many people I have seen take off
around here, without PFD, without cold water gear, without the foggiest
idea of what large traffic does, the meaning of different buoys and
navigation lights, no knowledge of when the current will turn to an ebb
or a flood, oblivious to potential weather change, carrying no lights
although the sun will go down in about an hour, etc.

BTW, Larry Bliven wrote:

earlier this year a symposium that was scheduled in the Washington DC
area
by (i think) TAPS was cancelled. i seem to remember that one reason was
lack
of dealers willing to participate. i have been told that in this area,
dealers *pay* to exhibit, folks *pay* to attend,
but the vendors are *not* allowed to sell boats.

I think that you were misinformed.  Vendors can sell boats at
symposiums.  Speaking from my experience with some of the folding kayak
manufacturers who have appeared at these shows, if the vendor is there,
he or she gets the sale.  Even on special orders.  The manufacturer is
there to help the vendor.  With larger manufacturers, they may be there
without the dealers and so the dealer doesn't get the sale.  But,
certainly, if the dealer is paying to be at the show (which he would
have to in order to exhibit), he gets the sale.  That was certainly the
case with the same show in Delaware in 1998.  Trouble was there that
hardly any customers showed up period.

ralph diaz
-- 
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Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter
PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024
Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com
"Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag."
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