Re: [Paddlewise] Licensing

The question of licensing kayakers reminds me of the major battles and
animosities that were flowing a dozen years ago when I came on the
scene.  Back then the issue was "certification" and who should do it if
at all.  The camps were divided in many directions with the gurus pretty
much at verbal war with each other and even, to a degree, regional sides
being taken with an East Coast camp, a Midwest camp, a Northwest camp. 
This was before anyone here really thought of the BCU or even Greenland
paddling.  We had people saying in effect and borrowing from the Bogart
movie "Treasure of Sierra Madre"..."we don't need no stinking badges!"

The issues remain.  Who licenses or certifies?  What are the criteria
against which the licensed paddler is judged?  How proficient must the
paddler be in various types of conditions?  Etc.  a big Etc.

It becomes a mess.  We get all sorts of arguments here on Paddlewise
about simple things like how should a paddle float rescue be conducted
with varying schools of thought and experience as to whether to place
under bungee or not or even if it is really effective beyond mild
conditions (I am not trying to re-start those discussions again; just
trying to show how good people differ in looking at the paddlefloat
procedure).  Often individual instructors (Derek, Randy, George...real
names obviously) and institutions (ACA, BCU, etc.) differ in what they
see as the way to teach and evaluate and the very techniques involved in
rescues and the like.

Here is an example: I know how to re-enter a boat in various ways using
a paddle float or the cowbow rescue.  Last year I was participating in a
class in which the instructor insisted that the method being taught and
judged was one in which the victim lies on his back between the
rescuer's and his own boat and gets a leg on each and works into the
cockpit.  I simply could not do this for whatever reason, maybe having
to do with poor sinuses and resulting inbalance.  But the instructor
insisted that was the way to do the rescue; there were other people
around and he was seeking to limit the approach and not allow
variances.  After many tries, I simply swam to the side of my boat and
re-entered a la the paddlefloat type side entry but without the paddle
float.  If we had had a strict syllabus, I would have flunked although I
do know how to get back in which was the critical factor and not how I
did it.

I heard of an instance a few years ago at some level of BCU
certification  in a similar vein.  The evaluator went up to a paddler
and asked to see his paddle.  When the fellow handed it over, the
evaluator pushed him over into a capsize.  The guy did a hand roll up. 
The evaluator capsized him again; another hand roll bought the guy up. 
At this point the guy asked what was going on.  The evaluator said he
wanted the guy to reach for his rear deck spare paddle while upside down
and use that to roll up.  The guy said okay and flipped himself over and
used his spare to roll up.  Doesn't demonstration of one kind of
proficiency obviate the need to demonstrate another?  Sometimes we can
become too much like a bird making a nest that when someone pulls one of
the twigs the bird needs to start all over again.

These are kinds of things that can come up in licensing, proper
techniques and evaluation.  For example, Derek insisting that you
feather your paddle (or so he did at one time) or no go.  Or the lack of
understanding of the Greenland paddle which only now the certifying
agencies (ACA and BCU) are getting around to "understand";  I put that
in parens because of the brewing issue of whether these agencies can
really teach or certify it and that possibly only Greenlanders can and
should.

What about different types of boats?  Sit-on-tops (SOTs) don't require
emptying techniques and re-enter differently.  Folding kayaks also can
differ in re-entry and emptying.  If the Sit-Inside Kayaks (aka SINKs)
are the criteria, what of these other types of boats?  What about
doubles as opposed to singles?  As I said, a mess.

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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