The Death of RBP
 

krueger wrote:

But in some respects, I think this also reflects the state of the paddling
community, especially open boaters on the West Coast. It used to be our
rivers were a busy place with lots of folks of both persuasion out there
enjoying a great sport. Did anyone catch "My Turn" in Newsweek? Now it
seems that every other outing, our group is the only one out there and it's
getting smaller too........We're getting older, our boats are getting older
and neither are replaceable to a certain degree. Yes, along with the creaky
joints, our interests are slowly shifting or is it expanding? Be it better
or worse. But as long as the knees still bend, the ankles still flex and the
wrists/fingers are willing to grip, we'll still paddle. Rivers may morph
into the bay, slough, and lagoons, but the spirit carries on!

The higher cost of gasoline might have something to do with it.
I was going to drive north from San Jose to run the class 2 Klamath
(below Copco reservoir) last weekend, but didn't want to pay for gas.
However two weekends ago on the South Silver below Ice House reservoir,
there were scads of kayakers!

Build a river, and they will come!

I was going to submit a TR of my recent Grand Canyon adventure,
but the audience here is so small I didn't take the time.

The Death of RBP
 

SourcetoSea wrote:

Long time lurker, occasional poster calling in.
Would anyone be interested in moderated forum on a private board?
I've got some server room to play with and I might could set this up
if there is enough interest.

Usually those don't have enough readers. There is already BoaterTalk
(unmoderated) and several great Yahoo groups (semi-moderated) including

idahowhitewater
utahrafters
gcpba (Grand Canyon private boaters assoc.)
wrrr (Washington recreational river runners
PDXrecreationalKayaker (Portland OR)
inflatable-kayaking
paddler (???)

The Death of RBP
 

Somehow, I clicked on rbp today. Yes, I remember and loved those days
too.

The Death of RBP
 

I still read this newsgoup from time to time but seldom have any
information to contribute. (Thee are those who would say I never did.)
I seldom post personal exeperiences and even they have been
drastically reduced since the heart attack during the canoe race in
May05. I was only out paddling twice this year, once in Janruary
because it's never been possible to paddle in January in Ottawa
before, and once in the fall to collect apples to make cider.

I don't know what the reasons for the decline in postings. Could be
the people, eg declining levels of testosterone with age (that should
mean fewer flames), or the "technology" moving discussions and life in
general to websites. I moved from rec.autos.tech to www.fordfestiva.com
for sharing information on car care specific to the model I own and
love. Or it could be the rising price of paddling paraphenalia
(someone suggested fuel prices) and fees. I stopped going camping when
fees tripled over a few years.

I'll contine to read the newsgroup and post when I think I have
something useful to offer although my knowlege and experience are
getting dated. I still have sponsons on one of my smaller boats to
keep it upright when I put up the sail which I hope to do again some
day.

The Death of RBP
 

riverman wrote:
I'm calling it. 17:34 local time, Oct 27, 2007. Cause of Death;
overwhelming spam, apathy, sex ads, garbage and general toxicity.

We should have taken better care of her...

--riverman

Me myself lurk more than contribute. Joint the group only some months
and stay lurking. It isnt dead but times changed a bit.

The Death of RBP
 

Bill Tuthill wrote:
SourcetoSea wrote:
Long time lurker, occasional poster calling in.
Would anyone be interested in moderated forum on a private board?
I've got some server room to play with and I might could set this up
if there is enough interest.

Usually those don't have enough readers. There is already BoaterTalk
(unmoderated)

Actually, Boatertalk is moderated, and has been so for quite some time.


and several great Yahoo groups (semi-moderated) including

idahowhitewater
utahrafters
gcpba (Grand Canyon private boaters assoc.)
wrrr (Washington recreational river runners
PDXrecreationalKayaker (Portland OR)
inflatable-kayaking
paddler (???)

But for internationally oriented paddlers, it seems that most forums
cater mostly to the locals, with very few out of country contributors
to most paddling forums that I visit outside of the Netherlands.
IMO Playak.com being one of the very few exceptions to that rule.


--
Wilko van den Bergh wilkoa t)dse(d o tnl
Eindhoven The Netherlands Europe
---Look at the possibilities, don't worry about the limitations.---
http://kayaker.nl/

The Death of RBP
 

bjorri wrote:
riverman wrote:
I'm calling it. 17:34 local time, Oct 27, 2007. Cause of Death;
overwhelming spam, apathy, sex ads, garbage and general toxicity.

We should have taken better care of her...

--riverman

Me myself lurk more than contribute. Joint the group only some months
and stay lurking. It isnt dead but times changed a bit.

Bjorri, looking back from the first time I started lurking (1993) and
posting (1998) on RBP, things have changed dramatically. The number of
active posters and amount of new posts (and active threads), the
atmosphere, the interaction between members (backchannel and real life)
and the width of subjects being discussed (with people enjoying
fla****er, seakayaking, rodeo, river runners, open canoeing, rafting
and what more) by people from all walks of life... RBP really was a
different place back then. If you didn't experience back then, I can see
where it still might seem to be active now, but frankly, it's less than
a shadow of its former self.


--
Wilko van den Bergh wilkoa t)dse(d o tnl
Eindhoven The Netherlands Europe
---Look at the possibilities, don't worry about the limitations.---
http://kayaker.nl/

The Death of RBP
 

Do!

I love reading about other peoples adventures and pics too.

Carol

"Bill Tuthill" wrote in message
...
krueger wrote:

But in some respects, I think this also reflects the state of the
paddling
community, especially open boaters on the West Coast. It used to be our
rivers were a busy place with lots of folks of both persuasion out there
enjoying a great sport. Did anyone catch "My Turn" in Newsweek? Now it
seems that every other outing, our group is the only one out there and
it's
getting smaller too........We're getting older, our boats are getting
older
and neither are replaceable to a certain degree. Yes, along with the
creaky
joints, our interests are slowly shifting or is it expanding? Be it
better
or worse. But as long as the knees still bend, the ankles still flex and
the
wrists/fingers are willing to grip, we'll still paddle. Rivers may
morph
into the bay, slough, and lagoons, but the spirit carries on!

The higher cost of gasoline might have something to do with it.
I was going to drive north from San Jose to run the class 2 Klamath
(below Copco reservoir) last weekend, but didn't want to pay for gas.
However two weekends ago on the South Silver below Ice House reservoir,
there were scads of kayakers!

Build a river, and they will come!

I was going to submit a TR of my recent Grand Canyon adventure,
but the audience here is so small I didn't take the time.

The Death of RBP
 

Hi Wilko,

On Mon, 29 Oct 2007 23:40:33 +0100, you wrote:

...but frankly, it's less than a shadow of its former self.

You've been around here a lot longer than I have, but even I remember
a much more active time. When I first came to rbp, there was a
delicate mix of great paddling discussions and flame wars! :-)
Happily, the former outweighed the latter.

I also remember really enjoying Ken Strickland's occasional posting of
a new story here. At least I can still go to Pete's White Water Page
to re-read some of his stories; and the paddle writing of others as
well...even Myron's! Then there were the "Wilko-sized" trip
reports...always fun to read!

Finally, since rbp was one of the first newsgroups I discovered when I
got my first online computer, I remember you Wilko, helping me via
backchannel email to understand the culture of rbp and newsgroups in
general. A wise mentor you were (even if I couldn't manage to follow
your good advice all the time!). :-)

--
Melissa

The Death of RBP
 

On Oct 27, 4:36 am, riverman wrote:
I'm calling it. 17:34 local time, Oct 27, 2007. Cause of Death;
overwhelming spam, apathy, sex ads, garbage and general toxicity.

We should have taken better care of her...

--riverman

The primary problem IMHO is the same as all other media, over-
diversification. We had RBP; then it split out into different
categories, whitewater, touring, etc. We niched ourselves to death.
I spend more time on BWCA.com 'cause there are a lot of people there
to talk to...

oh well...

winemaker