Re: [Paddlewise] What about the ACA

ralph diaz wrote:
> 
> Outfit3029_at_aol.com wrote:
> >
> >    I would suspect that it would have to do with gov't funding and
> > standardization. The American Red Cross was the primary source for canoe and
> > kayak education (read funding recipient). Resources for the larger part have
> > been shifted to the ACA. If I am not mistaken.

I am not aware that the ACA receives gov't funding, or that the ARC did,
either. Both are private non-profits. There may be some grant money from
time to time, but they're not gov't agencies. If anyone is aware of any
gov't money being spent on canoe/kayak instruction, please let me know;
I'd like a piece of it.
> 
> I believe that the Red Cross got totally out of the certification of
> canoeing back about 10 years ago.

That's right. There was a scramble from summer camps to get ACA to
suddenly take on the role of certifying camp paddling instructors. ACA
was not terribly interested in taking the whole job on, IIRC.
> 
> Back in the late 1980s there were major battles over the issue of
> certification when the ACA first started moving toward an established
> curriculum and certification of paddlers and instructors.  

ACA certifies instructors, not paddlers. 

<interesting historical notes snipped> 
> The problem with certification, be it by the BCU or ACA or anyone else,
> is that there are plenty of competent paddlers who just don't want to go
> through any of it but who can still paddle decently, self-rescue, and
> avoid getting themselves into predicaments in the first place, which is
> really what should be the bottom line in instruction.  

Why is this a problem? If they are competent without getting
instruction, more power to them. The point of certification is to try to
ensure that an _instructor_ can teach the skills to novices.

Not to say, of course, that _all_ certified instructors are competent,
or that _no_ non-certified types are good instructors. I only know about
100 ACA instructors, not all of them, and I must admit that I know a
couple who I wouldn't teach with. Contrariwise, we've got folks like
Matt, who is reputed to be excellent (Haven't had the pleasure, myself).
But I've also seen a lot of "buddy teaching" on the river that was both
dangerous and time-wasting.

> There is always
> the danger that a certifying body can get to a point that it does
> dominate.  And its domination turns into a tyranny.  It can get to the
> point that liveries will only rent to certified paddlers; group trips
> limited only to the certified; etc.

We argued about that very thing recently. Mark (mostly for the sake of
argument) suggested that the liveries do the certifying, IIRC. In the
final, I don't think anyone was behind the certification of paddlers.
Ralph, are you viewing with alarm, or can you give an example of where
the sort of tyranny you fear has happened?
> 
> Certification certainly has its value in setting up a curriculum and
> benchmarks against which an interested paddler can measure him/herself.
> By its nature, at least in the BCU certification, it lends itself to
> growth and reaching higher star levels.
> 
> All of this is fine for the achievement minded kayaker.  What I miss
> though is something that would help the masses of kayakers who are not
> oriented in that direction and that would help them learn a modicum of
> skills and savvy to keep them out of trouble.  The real world of trouble
> in kayaking is in the masses of kayakers getting into recreational
> kayaks and entry level sit-on-tops.  It would be great to see something
> real simple for them.

ACA has a couple of courses like that. Jump-Start your Kayak and Intro
to Paddling. The trick, and I don't know it, is to get the casual
paddler to sign up.
> 
> Unless I am mistaken, someone showing up with an SOT or Keowee would
> perplex a BCU instructor.  Or in a double folding kayak.  There is
> really nothing aimed at them.

I had a student show up for a course on a SOT last spring. Required a
little adapting of the stuff I wanted to teach, but I think she would
say she got a lot out of the course. It would have been easier for me if
she'd been in a "real" kayak like the rest of the students, but why take
a course in a boat you don't paddle? Then again, I'm not BCU ;) Our
local club, the Georgia Canoeing Association, has started teaching
duckie clinics in addition to all the hardboat clinics.

Steve

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