SUP knowledge –
Get the C.L.A.P
With summer here lots of you will be thinking about heading out on group adventures.
You may or may not do this as a club or group and you may or may not have done any
SUP or paddle leader courses and gained any qualifications. Leading a group is fine till
something goes wrong. So here is a guide line, to the corner stone’s of leading a group.
What you need to be thinking about before and while you are out on the water.
C.L.A.P
No, it’s not what you are thinking. C.L.A.P is the acronym we use to remember:
Communication,
Line of Sight,
Awareness and
Position of most usefulness.
If you are really leading a group then you are responsible for the safety and wellbeing of the
group. You are providing the guidance of where, when and why you are going to paddle. If
anything goes wrong then you will be the one that will be held accountable for the
consequences of your decisions and the directions that you have given others in the group. You
will also be held responsible for the actions of others in the group that you didn’t give
instructions to do what they did.
You are also responsible to make sure that everyone in the group enjoys the paddle. Making sure
that the route, the water types, the group will experience is within the ability level of the paddlers in
the group. Being a leader is a real balancing act of decisions.
We all hope that our leisure paddles stay that way. But when the muck
hits the fan and it all goes bottom up and it ends in tears. Then as a
leader you need to have covered all the bases, for answering difficult
questions of an inquest is no easy task.
So what is C.L.A.P all about?
Communication
How a leader gets their directions and information across to members
of the paddle group. Verbally, pre, during and post paddle briefings.
Visually, maps, hand signals while on water. Sound, whistle blasts for
alarm and distant attention gaining.
A pre paddle briefing is a great idea, this helps inform everyone on
the paddle Where you are going, What you are expecting and When.
This helps everyone in the group understand what is going on, Where
it is going on and When. It is really important for a paddle leader to
get this information to everyone as then the paddle group knows
what is going on and expects the same outcome from the paddle. If
you don’t do this then you will have one part of your group doing one
thing and the other half doing what they want.
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