Paul Tomblin wrote:
: In a previous article, "Courtney" said:
:The first time you were on moving water could you control your boat
:perfectly or have you never in your paddling history run into anyone?

: As I said earlier, the first time I was on the water, I was given a few
: minutes of instruction on basic canoe control before I was allowed to go
: somewhere where I could be a menace to myself and others. This flotilla
: of doom had both girls and boys in it, and most of them didn't know what
: the hell they were doing. I think it's irresponsible of leaders to set
: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if I
: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along like
: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
: found another program with competent leadership.

Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy scouts
nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there are no
boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).

That said... we've done canoe and kayak trips (we built our own kayaks... took
3 months in the church basement for each kid to complete... I had Marge Cline
and a few other instructors come out and do a class in a local lake before
we started using the kayaks we built... but, before we were allowed to do
any of that... myself and another adult went thru Safe Swim and Safety Afloat
training... and three of us huffed thru a lifeguard class (800 yard swim was
tiring), and became CPR certified... Scouts have lots of rules including
requiring training for adults, safety certifications and training for the
scouts.

We did a trip across the State of Illinois... hiking, biking and paddling...
the boys did enough miles to earn hiking (75 miles) and cycling (150 miles)
merit badges... canoeing merit badge doesn't have distance requirments so
they all earned that at summer camp.

Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them, did
you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes or
walking, if someone isn't looking at you and you are passing them, it's
polite to say "Passing on your right" (or left) or just say "On your right"
(or left) so they aren't startled when a object starts to pass... When kids
are goofing around, they are in a world all their own... think back to when
you were a kid... a polite word from the outside world usually gets their
attention back in order...

Here's a pic of our kayaks... cost about $25 per boy... the skin is that
plastic coocooning material they use to winterize sailboats and I got it
for $4 per boat from a local boat shop. Had each kid save 12*1 gallon
milk jugs with lids for flotation.. tied to internal wood frame...

http://www.chicagopaddling.org/lilyak.jpg

--
John Nelson
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago Area Paddling/Fishing Page
http://www.chicagopaddling.org http://www.chicagofishing.org
(A Non-Commercial Web Site: No Sponsors, No Paid Ads and Nothing to Sell)

In a previous article, Chicago Paddling-Fishing said:
Paul Tomblin wrote:
: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if I
: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along like
: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
: found another program with competent leadership.

Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy scouts
nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there are no
boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).

Ok, I apologize for characterizing them as "Scouts". In rural Canada,
where I'm originally from, we do have mixed gender Scout organizations.
And some of them are very badly run because they take whoever they can get
to volunteer.

Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them, did
you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes or

We were going in opposite directions - they were coming upriver, I was
coming down. They were on one side of the river, I was on the other until
they lurched across.

This picture
http://xcski.com/gallery/kayaking/DSCN2133
shows the river a few weeks previously, a different group (like I said in
my original post, the local kayak rental place uses blue PFDs, the one in
the orange is very definitely this group's leader), and about 500 metres
upstream from where I was injured. But you can see that it's wide enough
that one should be able to squeeze by.


Here's a pic of our kayaks... cost about $25 per boy... the skin is that
plastic coocooning material they use to winterize sailboats and I got it
for $4 per boat from a local boat shop. Had each kid save 12*1 gallon
milk jugs with lids for flotation.. tied to internal wood frame...

http://www.chicagopaddling.org/lilyak.jpg

Cool stuff.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
please excuse my typing, but my whole left arm is in a cast. and i don't
mean _the king and i_.

On 23-Sep-2005, (Paul Tomblin) wrote:

And some of them are very badly run because they take whoever they can get
to volunteer.

Which pretty much explains why they don't necessarily teach the kids
good paddling skills. I've seen some pretty scary things being taught
to scouts on whitewater.

However, I've also seen a lot of incompetent WW paddlers who are adults
and _couldn't_ learn anything. Unless they establish enforcable standards
for WW paddling, you have to deal with the others on the river.

Mike

Ahhh.... there's the problem, excuse me, my allergies started acting up when
I viewed the pic, my allergy to "flat water" that is.....don't paddle
anything less than class III.....and no little scouts to contend with.
"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
In a previous article, Chicago Paddling-Fishing said:
Paul Tomblin wrote:
: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if
I
: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along
like
: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
: found another program with competent leadership.

Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy
scouts
nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there
are no
boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).

Ok, I apologize for characterizing them as "Scouts". In rural Canada,
where I'm originally from, we do have mixed gender Scout organizations.
And some of them are very badly run because they take whoever they can get
to volunteer.

Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them,
did
you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes
or

We were going in opposite directions - they were coming upriver, I was
coming down. They were on one side of the river, I was on the other until
they lurched across.

This picture
http://xcski.com/gallery/kayaking/DSCN2133
shows the river a few weeks previously, a different group (like I said in
my original post, the local kayak rental place uses blue PFDs, the one in
the orange is very definitely this group's leader), and about 500 metres
upstream from where I was injured. But you can see that it's wide enough
that one should be able to squeeze by.


Here's a pic of our kayaks... cost about $25 per boy... the skin is that
plastic coocooning material they use to winterize sailboats and I got it
for $4 per boat from a local boat shop. Had each kid save 12*1 gallon
milk jugs with lids for flotation.. tied to internal wood frame...

http://www.chicagopaddling.org/lilyak.jpg

Cool stuff.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
please excuse my typing, but my whole left arm is in a cast. and i don't
mean _the king and i_.

In a previous article, "Grip" said:
Ahhh.... there's the problem, excuse me, my allergies started acting up when
I viewed the pic, my allergy to "flat water" that is.....don't paddle
anything less than class III.....and no little scouts to contend with.

I bet your boat is a lot more maneuverable than mine too.

I'd love to do some whitewater again, but right now I'm paddling placid
rivers to try and recapture some of the joy I had canoeing and to get some
fitness back, since thanks to 25 years of ever increasing joint pain I
can't cross country ski, orienteer, backpack, canoe, mountain bike or run
any more.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
please excuse my typing, but my whole left arm is in a cast. and i don't
mean _the king and i_.

25 years of ever increasing joint pain I can't cross country ski, orienteer, backpack, canoe, mountain bike or run
any more. says Paul

Poor Paul, now I get it...Paul needs sympathy

I'm just kiddin' Paul, any paddlin is good paddlin, I actually support my
club's flat water side by attending a couple of their trips each year and
pretend I'm enjoying it! Those trips are as much as social event as anything
else and I'll admit can be fun. Heck, I even treat "rafters" with respect!
Sorry to hear about the aches and pains, I know a bunch of guys who became
butt boaters cause their knees would not hold up to OC-1ing anymore.
"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
In a previous article, "Grip" said:
Ahhh.... there's the problem, excuse me, my allergies started acting up
when
I viewed the pic, my allergy to "flat water" that is.....don't paddle
anything less than class III.....and no little scouts to contend with.

I bet your boat is a lot more maneuverable than mine too.

I'd love to do some whitewater again, but right now I'm paddling placid
rivers to try and recapture some of the joy I had canoeing and to get some
fitness back, since thanks to 25 years of ever increasing joint pain I
can't cross country ski, orienteer, backpack, canoe, mountain bike or run
any more.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
please excuse my typing, but my whole left arm is in a cast. and i don't
mean _the king and i_.

Paul Tomblin wrote:
: In a previous article, Chicago Paddling-Fishing said:
:Paul Tomblin wrote:
:: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if I
:: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along like
:: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
:: found another program with competent leadership.
:
:Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy scouts
:nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there are no
:boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).

: Ok, I apologize for characterizing them as "Scouts". In rural Canada,
: where I'm originally from, we do have mixed gender Scout organizations.
: And some of them are very badly run because they take whoever they can get
: to volunteer.

Which brings up the point of what you do with your spare time... maybe offer
to help a youth group near you as a way of self preservation?

:Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them, did
:you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes or

: We were going in opposite directions - they were coming upriver, I was
: coming down. They were on one side of the river, I was on the other until
: they lurched across.

: This picture
: http://xcski.com/gallery/kayaking/DSCN2133
: shows the river a few weeks previously, a different group (like I said in
: my original post, the local kayak rental place uses blue PFDs, the one in
: the orange is very definitely this group's leader), and about 500 metres
: upstream from where I was injured. But you can see that it's wide enough
: that one should be able to squeeze by.

So, your saying you couldn't avoid the gaggle(whatever that means?) of girls
in a canoe that was coming head on at you... perhaps it's years of being
involved in scouts, or that one day early on when i was following a scout on
bike and he fell off his bike for no reason, wiping me out... that I learned
long ago to not pass closely... while there was no reason I could see for the
kid in front of me to fall (not that I could see), I did't blame anyone else
except me that I got wiped out because you just never know what a kid is
going to do next... it's supposed to be adults who watch out for them... not
the other way around...


:Here's a pic of our kayaks... cost about $25 per boy... the skin is that
:plastic coocooning material they use to winterize sailboats and I got it
:for $4 per boat from a local boat shop. Had each kid save 12*1 gallon
:milk jugs with lids for flotation.. tied to internal wood frame...
:
:http://www.chicagopaddling.org/lilyak.jpg

: Cool stuff.

I'd encourage anyone to try it... the basic design came from Roy Underhills
book "Build a log cabin and everything to go in it". We may have gotten
deals on some of the materials... pretty sure they gave us a good deal on
the plastic, but it would still be a pretty inexpensive project for someone
to do as a individual... it got a bit dicy as a group just because it
required so much cleanup effort each week when sawing in the church basement
to make the ribs...

--
John Nelson
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago Area Paddling/Fishing Page
http://www.chicagopaddling.org http://www.chicagofishing.org
(A Non-Commercial Web Site: No Sponsors, No Paid Ads and Nothing to Sell)

Chicago Paddling-Fishing wrote:
Paul Tomblin wrote:
: In a previous article, Chicago Paddling-Fishing said:
:Paul Tomblin wrote:
:: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if I
:: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along like
:: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
:: found another program with competent leadership.
If things happened as indicated, I would agree with you completely. The
"leader" of the trip should be held accountable for ensuring everyone
has the proper basic instruction and safety training and they adhere to it.

:Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy scouts
:nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there are no
:boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).
I'd just like to say this isn't accurate. The BSA has a program called
Venturers (formerly Explorers) that is a co-ed scout crew (instead of
troop). There are plenty of them across the country and both genders
can reach the top level of scouting, which I think is Ranger for the
Venturer program. I believe only boys can get an Eagle Scout ranking,
however, through the Venturing program.

While I generally agree that Scouts are abysmally equipped and trained,
Paul's reaction seems a bit extreme. I don't know what happened
exactly, but from his description of events, it seems to me Paul should
have been able to do something to call attention to himself and avoid
the collision altogether. Letting them know he was there would have
been the first thing to do, whether they were "on the other bank" or
not, even if it's just to be friendly. Then they would have at least
acknowleged his presence and been more likely to TRY to avoid him. They
may not have been successful, but odds are they would have done something.

Karma or not, I don't know. I know nothing of Paul except the few posts
I've read in this thread. It definitely could have been handled
differently, though for better or worse is anyone's guess.


Which brings up the point of what you do with your spare time... maybe offer
to help a youth group near you as a way of self preservation?

This is a very good suggestion. It helps keep you up to date with how
kids are (even just a small subculture of them) and will also keep you
thinking and acting young. It sucks sometimes, because, well they're
teenagers and teenagers suck, but generally speaking it's a great
experience. And what can be better than molding someone in your own
image? Teaching them the things you think are important the way you
find it important for them to learn.



:Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them, did
:you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes or

: We were going in opposite directions - they were coming upriver, I was
: coming down. They were on one side of the river, I was on the other until
: they lurched across.

This doesn't make sense to me. Typically I find kayaks to be far more
maneuverable than canoes so it seems to me, if you had been paying
attention, Paul, you should have been able to avoid them, whether or not
they "lurched" across. Like you said, there was more than enough space
to squeeze by, if that picture is an accurate depiction of the area.



So, your saying you couldn't avoid the gaggle(whatever that means?) of girls
in a canoe that was coming head on at you... perhaps it's years of being
involved in scouts, or that one day early on when i was following a scout on
bike and he fell off his bike for no reason, wiping me out... that I learned
long ago to not pass closely... while there was no reason I could see for the
kid in front of me to fall (not that I could see), I did't blame anyone else
except me that I got wiped out because you just never know what a kid is
going to do next... it's supposed to be adults who watch out for them... not
the other way around...

Well said.

bkr wrote:
: Chicago Paddling-Fishing wrote:
: Paul Tomblin wrote:
: : In a previous article, Chicago Paddling-Fishing said:
: :Paul Tomblin wrote:
: :: kids loose without basic instruction. If that had been my kids (and if I
: :: hadn't given them instruction already) and I saw them lurching along like
: :: that, I would have pulled them out of whatever program they were in and
: :: found another program with competent leadership.
: If things happened as indicated, I would agree with you completely. The
: "leader" of the trip should be held accountable for ensuring everyone
: has the proper basic instruction and safety training and they adhere to it.

: :Well... first let me say that I'm a boy scout leader... nether the boy scouts
: :nor the girl scouts allow youth members of the opposing genders (there are no
: :boys in girl scouts and there are no girls in boy scouts).
: I'd just like to say this isn't accurate. The BSA has a program called
: Venturers (formerly Explorers) that is a co-ed scout crew (instead of
: troop). There are plenty of them across the country and both genders
: can reach the top level of scouting, which I think is Ranger for the
: Venturer program. I believe only boys can get an Eagle Scout ranking,
: however, through the Venturing program.

Well, you can't just be in a Venture Crew and earn Eagle, you have to be
registered as a Boy Scout, at least initially (there are certain rules that
apply, hence you can't just register as new Venture and earn Eagle).

There are few Venture programs around here, primarily because the starting
age is high and it's hard to get young adults to join a organization when
they are in high school. A boy can be registered in both Boy Scouts and
Venture at the same time. Due to the age requirments, Venture Crews are
generally small... our church has one but it only has 5 members, all over
17 years old (you can't be a youth member in Boy Scouts past 18, but you can
be a youth member in Venture to 20)

Explorers still exists, but was moved into the BSA's Learning for Life program
because they are primarily sponsored by Police/Fire stations.

I would expect that if your encountering a "gaggle" sized group on a river
that cannot control a canoe, they probably aren't 14 to 20 year old kids (the
age range of a venture crew), but closer to the 11 year old range of Boy
or Girl Scouts... plus, most kids don't join Venture new, they join from
a boy or girl scout troop where they have probably already been to summer
camp a few years and have been canoeing before.

Encountering a Venture Crew on a trail or river would be more like meeting
a small group of adults (young adults)... I could see however encountering a
"gaggle" of Boy or Girl Scouts on a river, except for the mixed sex part.

One Boy Scout Troop nearby went to summer camp with 81 boys and 10 leaders...
That would be a gaggle... (they returned with 81 too as far as I know)

: While I generally agree that Scouts are abysmally equipped and trained,
: Paul's reaction seems a bit extreme. I don't know what happened
: exactly, but from his description of events, it seems to me Paul should
: have been able to do something to call attention to himself and avoid
: the collision altogether. Letting them know he was there would have
: been the first thing to do, whether they were "on the other bank" or
: not, even if it's just to be friendly. Then they would have at least
: acknowleged his presence and been more likely to TRY to avoid him. They
: may not have been successful, but odds are they would have done something.

: Karma or not, I don't know. I know nothing of Paul except the few posts
: I've read in this thread. It definitely could have been handled
: differently, though for better or worse is anyone's guess.

I think it varies... as I said, we had Marge Cline (an ACA Paddler of the
Century ;-), her son and another ACA instructor come out and work with our
scouts. I don't think we were special or different; there's a lot of
requirments to meet before getting your permit approved to do a water
activity and training is one of them... You don't just go anywhere, you have
to apply for permits to go and those permits require certain training and
certifications depending on where you are going...

: Which brings up the point of what you do with your spare time... maybe offer
: to help a youth group near you as a way of self preservation?

: This is a very good suggestion. It helps keep you up to date with how
: kids are (even just a small subculture of them) and will also keep you
: thinking and acting young. It sucks sometimes, because, well they're
: teenagers and teenagers suck, but generally speaking it's a great
: experience. And what can be better than molding someone in your own
: image? Teaching them the things you think are important the way you
: find it important for them to learn.

Well, I'd disagree with your teenager comments... they are teenagers and they
come in different shapes, sizes and personalities...

: :Since the youth group wasn't paying attention to you but you saw them, did
: :you announce yourself or announce that you were passing? Even on bikes or
:
: : We were going in opposite directions - they were coming upriver, I was
: : coming down. They were on one side of the river, I was on the other until
: : they lurched across.

: This doesn't make sense to me. Typically I find kayaks to be far more
: maneuverable than canoes so it seems to me, if you had been paying
: attention, Paul, you should have been able to avoid them, whether or not
: they "lurched" across. Like you said, there was more than enough space
: to squeeze by, if that picture is an accurate depiction of the area.

Here we agree... but accidents happen... like i said, when that scout fell
off his bike in front of me for what I thought was no reason... I had all i
could do to not hit him (I hit his bike) and fall without breaking anything.
No damage, except I'll never forget the feeling... (helmet was on... that's
a permit requirment, but I was more worried about breaking a arm...)

--
John Nelson
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago Area Paddling/Fishing Page
http://www.chicagopaddling.org http://www.chicagofishing.org
(A Non-Commercial Web Site: No Sponsors, No Paid Ads and Nothing to Sell)