Peter Clinch wrote in message ...
Alex McGruer wrote:

I was wondering what standards are used elsewhere.
Our club uses CRCA 2 with current first aid training .
That would be BCU 4 or 5 star as leaders.

Quite a lot of the really experienced paddlers in Tayside Sea Kayak have
no stars to their name at all, and no intention of getting any either.
Why pay money for a piece of paper that tells them what they know they
can do?

To a large exrent it is exactly like that here. A couple of the best
paddlers I know have no recognizable certified skills. One does hand
rolls in a sea kayak that is not that east to roll, the other has led
expeditions around the Baltic.

We require current first aid certificates to use the local pool, but
it's not an issue for Real Trips.

There is a rule brought in because of litigation worries that if club
kit is involved there will be at least 3 people, but this is very much
resented as being stupidly inflexible by many of us and will hopefully
(IMHO) be kicked into touch in the not too distant.

That may be what we are moving toward. We are looking at a standard of
one club guide level paddler to each 6 of less than high skill. That
is sort of OK as most of out paddles are full of people that I would
trust to pluck me out of the drink.
Most of the leaders now are CRCA 2 ( BCU 4 or 5 ) First aid is not a
big issue because the club just ran a wilderness and remote first aid
course with the Red Cross ; also most of the paddles I am on one or
more of the participants is a doctor.
The pool sessions are great. We use an olympic swim pool and the life
guards are some of the best. The Life Guard Factory Ltd operates out
of there. They are the local life guard training facility.

Leadership is measured for my purpose in a recognized ability to stay
out of trouble and get yourself and others out when things go wrong.
More utility than true leadership.

But not anything you can measure. We use "common sense" too, but are
aware of its possible shortcomings if things turn nasty. But also the
case that if you try and pin down things in a legally watertight manner
the practical upshot is you never get to do anything or go anywhere.
Bottom line is that adventure sports based on freedom to do what you
will do not really fit into such frameworks. If you're that worried
about litigation then I'd take out insurance rather than try and cover
*all* the bases up front.


Insurance here is prohibitive.

Caveat: ask different members of TSKC the same question and quite
possibly get a different answer. Above opinions are mine and not
Official TSKC Committee Policy.

Pete.

We require our leaders to carry flares, Spare paddle , Marine VHF,
First aid kit etc. We also have participants sign wavers.
This is to show Due Dilligence.

Thanks.
This is realy usefull .