SEA KAYAK TRAINING FOR NAVY OUTDOOR STAFF.

"BEFORE YOU CAN BEGIN TO KNOW WHAT PADDLERS KNOW AND EXPERIENCE WHAT PADDLERS SEE, SMELL, AND FEEL, YOU NEED TO KNOW YOURSELF."

--1999 Beginner's Guide to Canoeing and Kayaking 

For outdoor athletes, the logistics of participating in certain activities are not as simple as other sports such as basketball, racquetball, and running. Navy gyms are ordinarily easy to find on base and usually have the gear needed to participate in the sport. People who wish to be active in outdoor activities in unfamiliar surroundings will require additional support. Newcomers may be looking for transportation, knowledge of the local environment and its hazards, the best places to participate in their chosen activity, specific instruction if they want to learn a new skill, or gain knowledge of an activity unique to Your area. To help them, if is crucial to have specialized gear and very knowledgeable staff members who can reasonably advise and direct them to suitable locations.

Surveys and the outdoor industry show that sea kayaking rentals, programs, and sales at Navy MWR Outdoor Centers have the potential to be highly successful. The Outdoor Recreation Coalition of America, the trade association of the outdoor recreation industry, recently released the 1999 Outdoor Recreation Participation Study. The study includes behaviors, attitudes, demographics, and participation numbers for fourteen outdoor activities including: road bicycling, single track bicycling, wide road bicycling, car camping, canoeing, hiking, rafting, rock climbing, cross-country skiing, telemark skiing, snowshoeing, and trail running. The survey showed that snowshoeing, telemark skiing, and kayaking had the highest growth of participants, especially within the female enthusiast group. The Professional Paddlesports Association's Meetings Review, June 1999, showed that when outfitters looked ahead five years they predicted major growth in all forms of paddlesports in coastal areas.

Many Navy bases are near prime sea kayaking locations. Most of these areas can offer unique and exotic sea kayaking experiences our customers will never forget. Opportunity and adventure are waiting.

We need to develop sea kayaking and other adventure activities worldwide, especially in our exotic locations overseas. When Navy personnel travel or are stationed overseas they have an opportunity to participate in outdoor recreation adventures they may never have another chance to experience in their lifetime. These are memories and experiences that will last for the remainder of their years.

How many people have the opportunity to climb, ski, paddle, mountain bike, bike, backpack etc. in exotic locations around the world? American civilians plan, save, dream, sacrifice, and if they are fortunate, they will be able to participate in some of the activities we can offer and make affordable to all of our eligible personnel.

Think "adventure." Imagine testing yourself, trying out your "tried and true" or recently acquired skills and knowledge, in a totally different environment. Discovery and adventure of the unknown, the unexpected, different cultures, and foreign environments. This is what we can and should offer.

To promote, encourage, and assist sea kayak rentals and programs, Navy Outdoor Recreation is offering training grants to outdoor recreation staff worldwide. Progressive training grants will be offered as needed to help employees work toward coastal kayak instructor certification.

The grants were created on the premise that if the employees don't have the sea kayaking knowledge, skill, interest, and desire, all the gear and equipment in the world won't make a successful program. The system needs can be summarized in the following statement:

"Employing people trained, educated, experienced and having a passion for outdoor education, recreation, adventures, and business will do the most to improve and grow outdoor adventure recreation in the Navy. Training, educating, motivating, and sharing direction and vision with personnel is critical in developing the people. If you are developing the people, the people will develop the program. After selecting qualified people for employment, training is the next most important factor in program growth and financial viability."

MANY VARIABLES IN TRAINING

The training grant addresses the wide variety of operational differences between Navy bases. These differences occur because of variables such as location, environmental conditions, adjacent and/or accessible civilian recreation opportunities, and the particular mission of each individual base. Because of all of the variables the training will take place locally or regionally. The primary advantages of regional or local training are:

1. MWR fund savings in travel and per diem expense.

2. We will be able to train more people Navy-wide for less money.

3. Staff will be trained in their geographical environment and acquire specific knowledge pertaining to their environment.

4. Regional training will facilitate and enhance teamwork, networking, and leadership within the region.

The grant includes funds to pay for the instructor's salary, travel, per diem, and sea kayak equipment rental if needed. Navy MWR will also help the outdoor programs assist in finding certified instructors.

An application is required from all applicants. Students will be selected for training based on their application, qualifications, and the level of the base MWR Department's commitment to a sea- kayaking program. The MWR Department, by accepting the grant, agrees to support the sea-kayaking program with the proper logistics, instructors, staff, gear, and safety requirements with the intent of building a superb, not minimal, program.

This is just one of many programs proving that Navy MWR Outdoor Recreation is committed to providing our Sailors and their families access to the best possible customer-focused program package regardless of duty station. We want to provide high quality, outdoor recreation opportunities that empower individuals to grow physically, mentally, and spiritually, enhancing quality of life and fostering passion for the outdoors.

The Navy Sea Kayaking Program will do this by introducing people to sea kayaking activities and its associated values and benefits, by offering instruction in appropriate behaviors, and skills relevant to sea kayaking, by organizing and leading sale and challenging trips, equipment rentals, and sales. The doors to the Navy's Outdoor Recreation Centers will be our customers' entry into discovery, adventure, and outdoor education in differing environments throughout the world.

Ed Dunning is well qualified to have written "Sea Kayak Training for Navy Outdoor Staff," beginning on page 66. He has been the Navy's program manager for outdoor recreation since 1998. He completed a Navy-wide baseline assessment and developed the Navy's first-ever program standards for professional, comprehensive outdoor programs. He holds numerous certifications in rock climbing, canoeing, lifesaving, and water safety. He has a bachelor's degree from Washington State University and a master's from Central Washington University.