What Type of Boater Are You?

In North America, there are two types of boaters. The commercial river trips, and the non-commercial or private river trips. Commercial river trips involve rafting companies, guides, safety regulations and an exchange of money. These guides have been trained and paid to take people down river safely.

Then, there are the private boaters, the non-commercial boaters. The DIY (Do It Yourself) crew. These brave souls, choose to brave the whitewater unguided, and on their own. The basic requirements for this group includes having access to the appropriate gear and permits (if applicable)- no experience is necessary (It completely depends on the section of river, permit and group make up).

There is increasing popularity in rafting and kayaking, leading to more private boaters. Which is a good thing- mostly. We say mostly because river sports are inherently dangerous. Other than the person checking the coveted private permit at put in, no one is going to stand up and say “YOU SHALL NOT LAUNCH! (Because I don’t think you have the skills to make it to take out- ALIVE).” They might send you home if you don’t have all of the required gear on the permit, but they usually don’t send people home for lack of skills.

If there isn’t a permit, no one is going to stop you. This means several things. First, there is more inexperienced people than ever before putting in for permits, getting on the water, treating the river like a road, getting themselves into life threatening situations, that they didn’t have the knowledge or skills to prevent and certainly do not have the knowledge or skills to get themselves out of it. Second, this means there are more people than ever looking for resources to be able to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to have a safe and fun time on the water.