PADDLER 39
Robyn paddleboarding
Chris and Dan ’ s top tips !
1 . LET THE CHILD CHOOSE THE PACE
Both Chris and Dan ’ s answers made the importance of letting a child decide whether or not they want to paddle and how much they want to paddle clear . Chris explained this point so well that I have included his extract as follows …
“ I am incredibly fortunate to live in a house overlooking the River Dee and the Llangollen Canal . This has given me a rich environment to introduce my son to the sport I love . I also work at Bryntysilio Centre , which has been taking young people into adventurous environments for over 50 years . However , this is a unique circumstance , and my experience teaching Toby to ski may be as relevant as my first tip on supporting young paddlers .
“ After saving throughout the year and visiting an old friend who lives in a ski resort , I ’ ve been able to take Toby skiing . I have taught him myself , which has been incredibly frustrating and hugely satisfying . On one particular day last year , mid-trip , we decided we were ready for a full lift pass and a reasonable expense . Unfortunately , we only made it down one easy run involving a crash , tears and a yard sale of kit .
“ While I had set my expectations low , I was super frustrated at the cost of the day , his lack of progress , and now my lack of ability to ski , so I had to take him home . It ’ s easy to see this in kayaking with some of my friends with young children .
“ Time at the lake / canal / river is limited , so parents ( including me ) want to get the most out of their investment in time and money . This can lead to young people being overloaded with information , staying out longer than necessary and therefore not having a great time .
“ We rarely run full-day sessions at the centre because it ’ s too much . Leaders are setting the agenda rather than the young person . Bryntysilio focuses on giving the young people agency ; outdoor activities are something they undertake , not something we undertake for them .
This year , skiing was a different story ; Toby has got the hang of it , got confidence , and is running some challenging slopes , and we were riding the chair lift , chatting like mates , at his pace ( I was struggling to keep up ).
There is hope ! To begin with , set your expectations as low as possible in terms of what you can accomplish . Accept that you won ’ t get much paddling done yourself and that the joy is in introducing your young person to the water .
“ Let them decide the pace , which means the first time will probably involve driving to a location , 20 minutes getting ready , five minutes of paddling , snacking and playing near the water , five minutes of paddling if you are lucky , and then home .”
As Dan added , “ Watch out for the commitment heuristic ! We had loaded up before and headed to the lake , only to not paddle in the end . At their age , it ’ s really important to go with the flow .”
What I found particularly striking about this tip is how easy it would be not to follow it because of the effort involved with paddle sports . Preparing for time on the water is far more effort than taking your child for a walk in the local park . Making that effort only to have your child change their mind or not want to spend very long doing the activity could be pretty frustrating . If you prepare for this potential outcome and accept it as part of the journey , it may be easier to contain those frustrations and not impact your child ’ s view of the sport .
2 . BE EFFICIENT ABOUT GETTING ON THE WATER
Dan suggested it was important to learn to become ‘ mega efficient ’ when getting ready to go on the water . Whilst paddlers are notorious for being ‘ faffy ’ and slow at getting ready for the river , it is something worth improving when you are with children .
Dan has even invested in a canoe trolley so that the journey from the car to the water can be made in one go . This prevents his children from waiting too long and allows them to keep up their excitement for water time .
3 . MAKE SURE IT IS FUN
I love that making sure the experience was fun came through strongly in both Chris and Dan ’ s answers , as it was also a keep tip that I included about introducing adults to kayaking . When you start paddling with children , it should not be immediately about their skill development . Instead , the goal should be for them to enjoy being on and near the water . Dan says most of his paddling journeys with his children are planned so that within 10 minutes , they can get out and play on a beach or throw rocks from the bank .
Da and Robyn on a SUP in Denmark Photo : Kate Wilkinson
PADDLER 39