Article in Tribune: Stand Up Paddleboarders clash with....

[UKRiverSurfers]

Crowded waterways do not interest me

Me too!

If I were one of the sailors I would just head somewhere else.

Sailing is also VERY frustrating, even in perfect conditions, you always want more, so never feels satisfied. An unsatisfied sailor (all of them?  ) will always have something to grumble about.

Whatever the next thing is that comes along..That will get it in the neck as well!

[PonoBill]

A good dinghy sailer should be able to sail in full control without a rudder!

I used to be a sailing instructor and to get that qualification, we had to be able to sail in reverse and 'rudderless' 

Assuming a Gaussian distribution a good dingy sailor comprises perhaps five percent of the population, with half being below average (a virtual definition of the term) and a corresponding five percent being unable to control the boat with a rudder and an instructor. I bet you've met some of those.

[Celeste]

A good dinghy sailer should be able to sail in full control without a rudder!

I used to be a sailing instructor and to get that qualification, we had to be able to sail in reverse and 'rudderless' 

I think that is the issue, lots of beginners on both sides,  as quoted in the article,  "It's not when they are standing up, it is when the water", which I took to mean people in the that have fallen off, which beginners are more likely to do.

[UKRiverSurfers]

True - I did post that bit before I'd read the whole article!

Pretty certain that any RYA instructor in the UK would be ok without rudder though..

I think it just comes down to a crowded area.

We have plenty of near misses on the Thames between Rowers/Oarsfolk and paddlers... Rowing in 'Eights' doing twelve knots not looking where they're going! They do not like canoes, SUPs or kayaks because we are silent and they just do not notice us.

I'm constantly check my back as I blast along on my K15!  They are noisy though, with the rollex clashing and blades skimming the water on recovery.

These problems are only during the summer though really, when the fair weather folk are out

[SteamboatBORN]

Its frightening to think anyone and a 6 pack can go out on any type of water craft with no qualification. Around here we stay away from lakes allowing motorized boats. The wake boarding/ski boats with 10 drunk guys/girls flying around the lake blasting terrible music have no concept of kayaks or SUP's.

[anotherncbeachbum]

Its frightening to think anyone and a 6 pack can go out on any type of water craft with no qualification. Around here we stay away from lakes allowing motorized boats. The wake boarding/ski boats with 10 drunk guys/girls flying around the lake blasting terrible music have no concept of kayaks or SUP's.

Here if you're out drunk boating you're getting a ticket, just like a DUI. They're starting to treat the waterways like roads. Sitting in a boat fishing and having a beer or two is one thing, flying around a lake after a 12 pack is another.

[SteamboatBORN]

Its frightening to think anyone and a 6 pack can go out on any type of water craft with no qualification. Around here we stay away from lakes allowing motorized boats. The wake boarding/ski boats with 10 drunk guys/girls flying around the lake blasting terrible music have no concept of kayaks or SUP's.

Here if you're out drunk boating you're getting a ticket, just like a DUI. They're starting to treat the waterways like roads. Sitting in a boat fishing and having a beer or two is one thing, flying around a lake after a 12 pack is another.

Same goes here with boating and drinking. But it only seems enforced when something bad happens. Would be almost impossible on ocean to enforce enough.

[surf4food]

We have plenty of near misses on the Thames between Rowers/Oarsfolk and paddlers... Rowing in 'Eights' doing twelve knots not looking where they're going! They do not like canoes, SUPs or kayaks because we are silent and they just do not notice us.

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?  I know these boats are probably not very maneuverable but wouldn’t that person be able to yell out a warning or even get the crew to stop rowing?

[anotherncbeachbum]

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?

Yes and no. I rowed an 8 for a while (seats 3 or 4) and we often went w/o a cox'n. 1 or 2 were to look around once in a while but it sometimes didn't happen. Most people stayed clear when we were underway.

We rolled an 8 once, that was comedy gold. Had some newbies out in it and were turning the boat around. The cox'n told them to press down on port, they didn't and the boat began to lean too far. The starboard side leaned the wrong way and over we went. An 8 is a heavy boat to flip. I swam over and moved the oars out of the way so we could right it. The cox'n was so mad.

[ObviousSup]

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?

Yes and no. I rowed an 8 for a while (seats 3 or 4) and we often went w/o a cox'n. 1 or 2 were to look around once in a while but it sometimes didn't happen. Most people stayed clear when we were underway.

We rolled an 8 once, that was comedy gold. Had some newbies out in it and were turning the boat around. The cox'n told them to press down on port, they didn't and the boat began to lean too far. The starboard side leaned the wrong way and over we went. An 8 is a heavy boat to flip. I swam over and moved the oars out of the way so we could right it. The cox'n was so mad.

An additional issue is often the cox'n isn't as large as the rest of the crew so the view directly in front of the shell is limited.

[UKRiverSurfers]

We have plenty of near misses on the Thames between Rowers/Oarsfolk and paddlers... Rowing in 'Eights' doing twelve knots not looking where they're going! They do not like canoes, SUPs or kayaks because we are silent and they just do not notice us.

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?  I know these boats are probably not very maneuverable but wouldn’t that person be able to yell out a warning or even get the crew to stop rowing?

You would think a yell would do the job, but as already said, they just don't see or hear you. An 8 crashed into a single on my local stretch last week and they both saw each other, but just assumed one would take avoiding action!

[UKRiverSurfers]

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?

Yes and no. I rowed an 8 for a while (seats 3 or 4) and we often went w/o a cox'n. 1 or 2 were to look around once in a while but it sometimes didn't happen. Most people stayed clear when we were underway.

We rolled an 8 once, that was comedy gold. Had some newbies out in it and were turning the boat around. The cox'n told them to press down on port, they didn't and the boat began to lean too far. The starboard side leaned the wrong way and over we went. An 8 is a heavy boat to flip. I swam over and moved the oars out of the way so we could right it. The cox'n was so mad.

The Oars folk on the Thames think Portside is a drink and starboard side is a SUP....They have zero seamanship! 

[anotherncbeachbum]

This may come off as a dumb question but I really don’t know a lot about the sport of rowing.  If there’s an 8 person scull, wouldn’t it have a coxswain sitting in the back whose job it is to look forward and steer the craft?

Yes and no. I rowed an 8 for a while (seats 3 or 4) and we often went w/o a cox'n. 1 or 2 were to look around once in a while but it sometimes didn't happen. Most people stayed clear when we were underway.

We rolled an 8 once, that was comedy gold. Had some newbies out in it and were turning the boat around. The cox'n told them to press down on port, they didn't and the boat began to lean too far. The starboard side leaned the wrong way and over we went. An 8 is a heavy boat to flip. I swam over and moved the oars out of the way so we could right it. The cox'n was so mad.

The Oars folk on the Thames think Portside is a drink and starboard side is a SUP....They have zero seamanship! 

LOL.

We had a cox'n who was maybe 5' and 95 if she was carrying a sack of concrete. Any deviation from course or stroke had her yelling at you about your manhood (or lack thereof), your parents, your education and/or your nationality. Usually all of the above. It was hard not to laugh but if you did, you were the one who had to scrub the boat or sort the oars.