The Introduction to River Kayaking class will focus on basic paddling skills, tricks for added boat control in current, trip planning and prevention, as well as skills like how to read the river and how to identify and avoid hazards and be more confident about exploring Class I rivers.
Recent tragedies on Georgia waters highlight the need for appropriate planning and safety precautions while paddling and playing on these waterways.
Special Photo: Georgia River Network
The Introduction to River Kayaking class will focus on basic paddling skills, tricks for added boat control in current, trip planning and prevention, as well as skills like how to read the river and how to identify and avoid hazards and be more confident about exploring Class I rivers.
Special Photo: Georgia River Network
Georgia River Network safety classes are led by instructors certified by the American Canoe Association, the gold standard in paddlesports education.
ATHENS — Georgia River Network is launching its first full season of kayak and paddler safety classes designed specifically for paddlers who enjoy lakes and slow-moving rivers and would like to gain some skills to be safer and have more fun on the water. GRN began offering classes in September 2021, and all initial offerings sold out rapidly.
According to a recent press release from the Waterfall Foundation citing the latest data (2020) from the Outdoor Foundation, a record 37.9 million participants across the United States engaged in paddlesports like kayaking, canoeing and stand-up paddleboarding during the pandemic. This pandemic surge brought an estimated 2.5 million new paddlers to American waterways. However, it increased accidents to 331 and fatalities to a record high 202 — accounting for more than 26% of all boating fatalities that same year. More than one-third of victims had less than 10 hours of experience in paddlesports; experts cited lack of safety training as an important contributing factor.
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.