The Rocky Mountain Sea Kayak Club is a not-for-profit organization to 1) enable people in the Rocky Mountain region who are interested in sea kayaking to meet others, 2) to organize kayaking trips both in the area and anywhere else, and 3) to provide an information forum for trips, equipment and skills.

The RMSKC is now able to offer an official ACA-style training program to its club members at a nominal cost. It’s a great way to improve your paddling skills to get ready for club trips. Training classes will provide you with the opportunity to become a RMSKC Certified Paddler. Certification is intended to promote competency in paddling and to provide Trip Leaders with a means to evaluate paddler skills. Some club trips may require the certification by all participants. This will be at the Trip Leaders discretion.

All members are encouraged to take the class, learn the skills, get acquainted with other members doing the same, and ready themselves to participate in the events the club offers.

Training

The club holds several one-day, paddling instruction events each year. Attendees must have the following minimum equipment and clothing to attend class:

• Clothing for immersion - fuzzy neoprene, wet suit, or dry suit.
• Touring kayak with closed deck and bulkheads (or internal floatation)
• PFD
• Spray skirt
• Paddle
• Paddle float
• Bilge Pump
• Whistle

Training Class will consist of instruction regarding equipment, paddling skills and safety practices as listed below:

• Clothing (Dress for immersion)
• Spray skirt
• Bulkheads / flotation
• Forward and reverse strokes
• Forward and reverse sweep strokes
• Low braces
• Wet exit
• Self Re-entry
• Assisted, side-by-side reentry
• Clothing (Dress for immersion)

RMSKC Paddler Certification

The certification is intended to promote competency in paddling and to provide Trip Leaders with a means to evaluate paddler skills. Some club trips may require the certification by all participants. This will be at the Trip Leaders discretion. Be certified and go on more trips!

Paddlers seeking certification must demonstrate proficiency in certain paddling skills (see below) and use of equipment to our ACA trained instructors. Club paddlers are encouraged to take RMSKC paddling classes to become proficient. Well qualified and experienced paddlers can demonstrate their skills in several ways:

• Meet an instructor and demonstrate necessary skills and endurance to the instructor’s satisfaction.
• Call an instructor whom you believe has knowledge of your paddling skills and endurance and request they be certified.
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To be certified on must:

• Dress for immersion.
• Use these essential pieces of equipment - Boat with flotation or bulkheads; Spray skirt; PFD; bilge pump; paddle float; whistle.
• Figure-Eights -- paddle around a figure-8 course both forwards and backwards without using the rudder. The course will be a set of pylons/buoys/stationary kayaks set 8 kayak lengths apart.
• Spin-on-a-Dime -- using forward and reverse sweep strokes to turn complete circles both to left and right without drifting off-center.
• Perform a wet exit.
• Perform 2 types of reentry - self and assisted.
• Endurance -- Paddle at 3.0 mph for one hour and not be exhausted.
  

Opportunities to demonstrate your abilities to RMSKC instructors will be available at day paddling events, the RMSKC training sessions, and on various trips.

Membership dues provides membership to both the RMSKC and to the American Canoe Association (ACA) through the Paddle America Program. Benefits offered by the ACA include: six issues of Paddler magazine, the bimonthly American Canoeist newsletter, access to ACA sanctioned paddling events, ACA member-only discounts, and ACA liability insurance for our club members and volunteers. For more information about the ACA, paddling news updates, schedules of workshops and events, and general paddling information, visit their website at www.acanet.org.