All for one

Kayak Newfoundland and Labrador member Stan

After our paddle on Saturday I heard from Dean that someone we both know wanted to be a part of one of our winter paddles. I wasn't sure if that was a good idea for two reasons.

While this person has a level II certification from Paddle Canada, having the certification and having maintained the skills are two different things. Taking a paddling course is a good idea for some people; I prefer to learn the skills myself. However the skills are learned they must be constantly kept sharp. In this case I wasn't convinced they were.

The second reason I was skeptical was that I'm a member of Kayak Newfoundland and Labrador and I prefer to paddle with members of the club. Why? Because being a member means I'm part of a bigger thing. I'm part of a group who are concerned about promoting kayaking safety by means such as mentoring, sharing experiences etc.

In the end, we concluded we would invite this person along to one of our practices at St. Philips and covertly assess their skills before deciding we could risk taking them along on a winter paddle. And then I'll work them over to join the club!