ACA Level 1 Kayak Instructor Certification Class + PSF Kayak

DATES:

• In person training May 3-5 at Harrison Bay State Park, near Chattanooga, TN
• Required online Zoom sessions on the evenings of April 30 and May 7

LOCATION:

• Harrison Bay State Park, 8411 Harrison Bay Road, Harrison, TN 37341

INSTRUCTORS:

• Jeff Atkins, Instructor Trainer Educator
• Geoff Luckett, Instructor Trainer Candidate

COST:

• $400 per person
  

This class is an ACA Level 1 Kayak Instructor Development Workshop (IDW) and Instructor Certification Exam (ICE) that also includes the opportunity to earn the Paddlesports Safety Facilitator Instructor Endorsement. There will be 3 days of in person instruction on May 3-5 and 2 required online sessions on April 30 and May 7. We will be covering the curriculum for the Level I Introduction to Kayaking Instructor course that can be found here:

https://americancanoe.org/wp-content/uploads/documents/sei-courses/Level_1_Introduction_to_Kayaking_Instructor_Criteria.pdf

We will also be covering the information to earn the instructor endorsement to teach Paddlesports Safety Facilitator courses for Kayak.

General module:

https://americancanoe.org/wp-content/uploads/documents/sei-courses/Paddlesports_Safety_Facilitator_PSF_Certification_Criteria_-_General_Module.pdf

Kayak module:

https://americancanoe.org/wp-content/uploads/documents/sei-courses/Paddlesports_Safety_Facilitator_PSF_Certification_Criteria_-_Kayak_Module-1.pdf

The in person class will consist of periods of on the water instruction, as well as periods of instruction on land. You should come prepared to paddle in all types of weather. May weather in Tennessee can be a bit unpredictable so please come prepared to handle a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions.

Where to stay: You are responsible for securing your own place to stay.

There are campsites available at Harrison Bay State Park.

https://tnstateparks.com/parks/harrison-bay

There are several hotels in the area as well.

What to bring: You are responsible for you own paddle gear. Please bring a kayak, paddle and PFD. You will also need hat, sunglasses, sun screen, rain gear, strap for your glasses, and personal first aid kit. Appropriate clothing is a must, avoid cotton materials. Closed toed shoes are required and must have a heel strap to secure them to your feet.

You will be responsible for all your food throughout the weekend. We will start class at 8:00 am each day. Lunch will either be on/near the water so plan to bring things you pack for lunch each day. Dinner will be on your own; we will have some class sessions after dinner so plan to have things available for quick dinners as well.

We will have some classroom type sessions, so you will want to bring materials for taking notes.

What to expect: We will have 2 online sessions (April 30th and May 7th). They will be approximately 2 hours each during the evenings. These are important pieces to the certification as they allow us to focus on the paddling and on water skills while we are together in person. We will have 3 days together at the lake for instruction. These are typically long days as we have a lot of skills to review, and for you to get comfortable enough to teach the skills back to us.

Some important things to note:

1. You can certify in either a sit on top or a sit inside style kayak. However, if you certify in a sit on top you will only be able to teach people with sit on tops. If you certify in a sit inside kayak, you will be able to teach either sit on top or sit inside kayaks.

2. This is an intensive weekend of instruction and it is possible that not everyone will get certified to teach at the end of the weekend. There are three possible outcomes for the weekend. A. You successfully earn your Level 1 Introduction Kayaking Instructor Certification. B. You complete the weekend, but are just not quite ready to be a certified instructor. In this case, you could receive what is called a “continuation” and work on the deficits until you are ready to re-test with an Instructor Trainer. You typically have up to 1 year to complete the re-test. C. You do not complete the weekend at a level that would be sufficient for “continuation”.

3. We as the instructors, are looking for paddlers that are ready to be instructors and want everyone to be successful. So come ready to work, but don’t be intimidated by the expectations.

****** Paying the fee and attending the class does not guarantee your certification. You must demonstrate the skill necessary in order to receive the L1 Kayak Instructor Certification and the Paddlesports Safety Facilitator Instructor Endorsement******