There are a lot of paddlers that do it for a living, either for instruction or competition.
Agree. Grouping paddlers into categories helps to understand each individualâs motivation, commitment and desire to acquire advanced skills. Its really up to the individual to decide where he or she fits.
The pure recreational paddler simply enjoys the asthetics of paddling and has no desire or motivation, to invest the effort or commitment, and training to acquire the techniques necessary to become an expert on top of the game as a professional.
That doesnât mean a rec paddler enjoys it less, or that the professional doesnât have the time to just enjoy the experience.
Well I am not just an amateur Iâm a RANK amateur!
Meaning all the time I take in the coming years to learn new things and get more skilled is going to be time I enjoy.
In fact I am going out now. Itâs been snowing a bit in the last 5 days but the water is not yet frozen, so I am going to get the time in while I can, because soon the water will be âhard and thick on topâ and I will not be able to paddle at all until the spring thaw. The snow is very shallow and itâs pretty out there, so I am going to enjoy the time I have left.
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My point is that I wonât give advice to professionals, nor will I burden a purely recreational paddler with information they have no desire to learn. Being an avid kayaker has nothing to with a âratingâ - it has to do with a desire to learn, explore and share information. Everybody doesnât want at least a 14 foot sea kayak and a $500 paddle.
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Iâm still waiting for some kind of evidence to back up the statement.
Would some disgruntled recreational paddler please come back and tell us why you wonât use this site?
Would someone please copy and paste the items that would upset the recreational folks?
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âIâmâ not suggesting there are any. Just pointing out that everybody doesnât want $5,000 worth of gear. âMyâ comment has nothing to do with any âmissionsâ. I have no idea what mission was accomplished.
Perhaps I should start a separate thread. There is nothing wrong with urging someone to upgrade his or her outfit, to improve efficiency, to take a skill course, to explore new places. Iâm happy if I can just increase my speed on each trip, but as Iâve been told multiple times, âs p e e d isnât every thingâ. La!!! There it is!
I figured it out during an exploration trip. I came across two ladies, each in well-used, ancient rec kayaks. The boats didnât matter, they couldâve been at a booth in a coffee shop. I doubt they even knew I was there, they were so immersed in their shared time. Indeed, speed isnât everything. Iâve had such moments, so I realized they probably would be out there if seaworthy bathtubs were the only craft available.
I will take a stab at it. I came here about a year and a half ago. Being an outdoor person growing up on Lake Erie. Around, in and on the lake I was not new to boating or the water. I moved and retired inland about 30 miles and French Creek is right in my back yard plus a half dozen good size lakes within 20 minutes of driving. I didnât have an urge for motor boats any longer and car trailers and fees etc and I kept thinking I wanted a canoe. She had went out on the creek a few times with her girl friends and borrowed a rec-kayak and loved learning to paddle. I bought a used canoe and had several months to wonder what it would be like and if the two of us would get along paddling a tandem.
I started reading up and collecting ideas and found this site and a couple others that dealt with canoes and rec-kayaks. This site covers both, but I quickly realized the main core posters were not super avid posters on ether. I will say I learned a lot in reading old posts and doing searches.
We quickly found the tandem wasnât for us and bought her a good quality OT 10â rec-kayak. I will say most of what I learned to make that purchase was in seeing what others around here had and staying on the upper end of that. She wanted a pretty new kayak and one similar to what her friends were using. I wanted her to be safe in it and be able to rescue herself and the boat when needed. My canoe I wanted to change from a tandem to a solo and not turn it into a white water boat but an old mans leisure boat that also was safe and practical and could haul our gear for a day or a weekend.
I pretty much changed and outfitted both boats to suit our needs by trial and error and I used this forum to document what I learned as I went along. I never really felt pushed away but I at the same time never felt there was much interest in most of the active members wanting to be engaged in anything similar. Thatâs ok I get we all like different things and I really have nothing to offer on a thread about perfecting a roll etc.
As a contrast I joined an English group that is all about canoes and other than language we live in another world when it comes to boating. I posted similar stuff there and the group felt to be very engaging. Likely because they do similar stuff and like telling a guy from across the pond how it is properly done.
I have stuck around here and stayed active where I can interested in safety etc as it impacts all the boats high and low end and perhaps the low end more so.
In general in my time here most rec-kayakers I see come thru come and go pretty fast I donât thing they are being driven off as much as lose interest as there is little engagement past stay in shallow warm water and close to shore. Living in a place where they donât do that at all I can see they need some major education. Just not sure where they need to go to find it and have enough fun in the process to have them stick around.
We launched 501 rec boats at a fire department fund raiser for a 6-12 hour river float this summer in about an hour. Of the 501 boats and paddlers my guess is 450 of them were not properly prepared to be on the river.
I wish there was a place for these folks to want to interact and learn but I both donât see them seeking it out and I donât see places like this trying hard to retain them.
Paddling down thru these 501 boats as we put in almost last and came out almost first and trust me Iâm a total beginner still. I was amazed all day long the people that started conversations and started firing questions at me. Things like what are those ropes for? Those are painter lines and they help you guide your boat to shore if you happen to fall out or need to lead your boat by foot around something or in shallow water. What are those things in your boat? Those are additional floatation incase my boat flips and I can flip it back without it filling with water. You must not know how to swim you have that nice life jacket? No Iâm a very good swimmer but if I get knocked out I want to live or if you get in the water and get in trouble you will be less likely to drown me if I try and help. The questions didnât stop there getting the boats out of the water and securing them to the car had a whole bunch of onlookers and question askers. Like where did you get those straps thatâs really slick how you got the canoe on top.
My belief is a lot of people want to advance and actually when they think about it want to have fun and be safe at the same time. I donât see a lot of good resources. This place is one such place and Iâm sure we could do better, but like I said I stuck around and it wasnât so bad as to drive me away.
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Wow, over 100 posts. Glad you all are enjoying.
Just got tied of the repeated comments on this site about unsafe pool toys, dont go past 50 ft from shore, etc. yet posters often take pride in bragging about paddling in 10 feet seas, 5 miles offshore, in 20 degree air temp etc. Comments maybe well intended for newbies with their $200 boats, but often very demeaning for people that dont own ârealâ kayaks.
Iâm sure the number of posts will be close to 200 in a week.
No need to debate.
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Bud16415, like you said, we all have value.
rsparky, it sure generated some good content.
Search âpool toyâ. Dozens and dozens of examples!
This is just a sampling of derogatory comments concerning kayaking with inexpensive boats.
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I get that this forum caters to those more advanced disciplines of paddling than the majority of people dipping a toe into the sport will ever explore for themselves, but as someone whoâs relatively new to it Iâve definitely seen what sparky is eluding to when doing research here. Some responses come across as derisive if someone is considering approaching paddling at any less serious a level than heavy surf sea kayaking or white water. It can be a bit off putting to those less interested in developing further and building up to the gear and skills needed to try out those more challenging aspects of paddling.
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The key is that everyone belongs. Everyone has value. We all share the same interest. If you follow any thread close enough, youâll find that it typically results in positive fruit. Even if the original post was intented to be hurtful. Follow closely and youâll discover who is most knowledgeable and helpful. Direct your question to the ones you trust most. It doesnât hurt to be vunerable.
I came from a work environment where you faced adversity daily, and a family where youâd meet at a funeral or wedding and a cousin would tell you how good you look in a cheap suit. Too bad you couldnât find it in the right size. Or I have to say you carry that extra 30 lbs of ugly fat pretty well, it mostly shows up in your face. You say you lost 30 lbs? Turn around and youâll probably find it!
The information is free. Take as much as you can get. Donât quit; follow long enough and you may become the expert. As the late Judy Tenuta would say, âIt could happen!â I miss her! Laugh it off.
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