Editor’s note: This topic arose during one of our Tarp Talks on the Tsunami Retreat in November, 2019, and we’d like to share our thoughts on this very important subject. In the past, the Rangers have been vilified as a bunch of chest-beaters, careless, crazy, dangerous, whatever. Nothing could be further from the truth. For one thing, we count one of the highest-level certified ACA instructors in the country as our Captain. For another, the main reason the Tsunami Rangers came into existence is that Jim and Eric knew they couldn’t go to the places they wanted to go and do the things they wanted to do safely without a team of like-minded kayakers. We hope you enjoy our little discussion, recorded on Jim’s iPhone, and that you’ll chip in with your two cents in the comments section at the end of the post. Thanks!
Tarp Talk, November 14
Jim: My attitude toward certification is I always thought, oh that’s for Herberts, and for people who just want to get the badge and aren’t really invested in the sport or the environment, but my attitude is changing about that a little bit because I realize now as Tsunami Rangers we do have our own form of certification, we just call it rank. But there are advantages and disadvantages to everything, and in the kayaking world there’s a lot of disagreement on what certification actually means. Now, I am not knowledgeable about the different certification ranks or different certification schools and classes, what all that means, so we’re going to have to develop that into a very descriptive couple of paragraphs so that we know what we’re talking about…
In the Tsunami Rangers we’ve always scoffed at certification and I think that that was probably a little bit of an ill-conceived attitude because I think that certification is useful and this is what we’re trying to decide now.
Nancy: Why do you think it’s useful?
Jim: Well, um, I don’t know but here is Captain Tortuga to talk about why certification would be useful.
Deb: Why is certification useful? Well, in the Tsunami Rangers that certification has to do with your experience, your decision-making, your risk management, and as that develops more you earn a higher rank. And there’s a lot that’s similar to other certification systems and the most familiar would be the American Canoe Association, the ACA, and the British Canoe Union, the BCU. And there’s also now a certification system in Canada, I think in parts of Europe and New Zealand, something that’s a work in progress, with that same idea. Now I’m very familiar with the ACA because of being involved with the American Canoe Association for many years, and I’m an instructor at a Level 5; I’m an instructor trainer-educator at Level 5 which is the highest certification offered by the American Canoe Association, and at this point I’m the only woman who holds that in the country.
I think certification is a great thing. I think where there’s a lot of sort of controversy or discussion is because what does a certification buy you? And that a lot of people think that it’s just a badge and in some ways I think that it can present itself to be just a badge, but what it does is each level shows that you have the paddling skills and the group management ability and the leadership ability in those conditions so Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, Level 4 and Level 5 in coastal kayaking, and Level 5 being the highest, and now there’s no upper end of the conditions so there’s no remit at Level 5, so it’s all about judgment in those conditions.
But what happens is instructors go through this process, and that’s what they do, they teach kayaking and they don’t necessarily get out in the real world and get the breadth of experience, the broad spectrum of experience in all different environments, and not just their home environment, but other environments in other parts of the world, cold water, warm water, all of that.
Jim: The downside?
Deb: The downside? The downside of certification is that instructors or whoever go after the certifications as a badge of honor or it’s a badge to achieve rather than gain the other experience that goes along with it to make you a good leader, a good safety officer, a good group manager, a good risk assessor, good risk management in all different environments so you get a small window of your assessment and if you pass that you are awarded with that level of certification. And I think where the discrepancy is that there’s a lot of discussion about is whether that certification is just a badge, and then how do you use it in the real world, because the real world is where it matters.
Nancy: Okay, so I have a couple of questions. As a low man on the totem pole in the Tsunami Rangers I’m really honored to be a member. It has done something for me, the rank, I suppose like the certification, has helped me in that it has actually made me feel better about my kayaking; it’s made me feel like I have some skills, because as the person that I am, and I think women tend to do this, is we tend to doubt ourselves, and so when you get something like that you go oh okay, I’m good enough. And that’s something, you know, that gives you some spirit, that gives you some power. At the same time I think for some people it can give you a sense that you know everything and I remember my late husband Eric saying that women are competent but not confident, whereas men are confident but not competent and I think there’s a lot of truth around that and if you’re giving the same certification across the board which obviously you have to, people take it differently. And I know that as a novice I could go out with the Tsunami Rangers and feel that I would be totally safe. It didn’t matter what their rank was. They were Rangers. I was safe being around them.
When you go out with a person who’s certified, and I’ve read accounts of this type of thing happening, you should expect to be safe, but sometimes people lead classes, expeditions, whatever, and bad things happen because they make poor judgment calls regardless of the fact that they are well-certified so how do we deal with that?
Jim: I think what Nancy’s talking about is the “duckling syndrome” where the person with the badge goes out there and leads a trip and all the little ducklings just go along because they figure that person has their certification so they know what they’re doing. And I think that that is one of the real errors in the system is that it’s hard to qualify someone on all levels and you can’t just take a six-week course, even an extensive one, and still be competent on all levels because there’s situations that you can’t predict until you get into them so you have to be able to have good judgment based on skill sets rather than classroom exercises, and so I think there’s a distinction between knowledge of the environment and knowledge of a system, and I think there’s room for a discussion on that.
Deb: And adapting to a dynamic environment. You can’t learn that in a classroom and you can’t learn that as you’re climbing a ladder. You’ve got to get out in the real world and experience that, and I think that’s where the Tsunami Rangers have gone into that dynamic environment, created a hierarchy of assessment for their officer rankings, but working together as a team, and then that’s where you adapt to the environment as you need to because it’s not in a book. There’s so much goes on as conditions ramp up that it’s counter to everything that you’re gonna read in any of the literature; you’ve got to adapt with your bag of tools.
Nancy: Yesterday we had the conversation that skiers and mountain climbers and river runners initially, well, certainly skiers and mountain climbers, don’t get certified. On the other hand, rivers and ski slopes and mountains all have route rankings, so that if I tell you that I can kayak in a Class 1 and Class 2 you automatically know where I am regardless of whatever certification I might have. Same if I tell you that I can ski a green slope or a blue slope or a double black you know what I can do. Same if I tell you what kind of pitch I can climb; if I can do Half Dome free climbing, you know I’m a really good climber. So those people don’t have to be certified but their routes are certified and that gives you a real sense of what that person can do. All you have to do is take them out there and see what they do. Like my martial arts teacher used to say, I don’t care what your rank is; get on the mat and show me what you can do. And I think that’s what the Tsunami Rangers do, we all know each other very well, we all know what we can do and what we can’t do, and so we work really well together, but when you’re advertising yourself as certified this way or that way it doesn’t necessarily mean anything to somebody who’s never met you before. You might be really good. You might not. We don’t know what you’ve done; we don’t know where you’ve been; we don’t know what kind of pressure you’ve been under, and that can be an issue.
Jim: I want to say one thing about rating a river or a climb in that it’s a fixed rate whereas on the ocean it’s really hard even with the Sea Conditions Rating System that Eric developed it is just about impossible to predict all of the conditions that you might be in and it’s a big variable that is rarely addressed in the certification systems.
Steve: One thing I want to say about skiing certification is that I know ski instructors, those who work with disabled skiers and/or other ski instructors, go through a certification system which most mountains know exactly what that means in terms of your skill level for teaching.
Jim: Excellent. Anybody else?
Deb: I think one of the differences that Jim brought up between rivers and mountains is it’s very linear and mountains if you get into high alpine, it’s extremely dynamic, unpredictable, yet you can always hunker down, dig a hole, and wait it out. The difference with sea kayaking going back to the quote that Eric Soares made that rivers really are linear, a rhythm of rock n roll, predictable rhythm, and the sea on the other hand is trying to dance to improvisational jazz.
Jim: Exactly.
Deb: So it’s extremely dynamic on so many levels, and I say it’s at least four dimensions, maybe five. So it makes it much harder to earn certification that can be boxed at that level when you’ve got the most extreme.
Nancy: What would those four dimensions, maybe five be? Tell us what they are.
Deb: Well, it’s in liquid, right? So you’ve got length, width, height, time, and the change of dynamics. The movement through those things I would say is the fifth dimension, because they come together to create a whole other dimension of its own.
Jim: So it’s left, right, up, down…
Deb: Left, right, up and down, depth, time, and then the blending of all those things…
Nancy: And animals…
Deb: Well, and the sea critters…
Jim: The difference between the Tsunami Rangers and most certification systems is that certification systems typically give the assessment to an individual whereas in the Tsunami Rangers as a team we are assessed based on the skill sets of the whole team and to distinguish that from the individual Tsunami Ranger certification, and their rank is based on their skill set as it is in the team. Something else to add to that?
Nancy: Yeah, I want to talk about how Deb uses her experience with the Tsunami Rangers when she certifies people because it adds so much to her understanding of what is needed especially for really high level people. Deb, you wanna talk about that for a little bit?
Deb: Not really. Just, as you get into higher level certification when the conditions are… the standard or remit is above 25 knots, 4 to 6 foot seas, anything above that goes… anything over 4 to 6 foot surf goes… it’s managed with many parts, so it’s not just group management, it’s about communication, it’s about understanding the group, it’s about taking a group in that environment and being a good enough leader that you can assess the group, assess the individuals, and know whether to bring them into that environment or not so it’s a very difficult level to assess, and what I bring from the Tsunami Rangers is the years of working together as a team and understanding where the strengths are in a team.
And the communication that we use because when you get into big conditions you’re not gonna be able to say, “Hey wait a minute, come on over here, let’s talk about this”. You need to be able to signal and go. You need to be able to work together as a tight team and the tight team comes from skills yes, but basically good communication, good decision making, and adapting as you go, as things are changing.
Nancy: So as far as I know, and Deb can correct me on this, people are not necessarily certified based on judgment and Deb was mentioning that she uses the Sea Conditions Rating System developed by the Tsunami Rangers when she certifies her beginning level people and that’s really important because one of the things about the rating system is that it helps you judge what kind of conditions you really want to go out in because you can look at things and then you can add something like cold water and the level becomes more difficult or you can add rocks and suddenly it becomes more difficult whereas previously it didn’t look that bad, and that judgment thing can follow you all the way through your certification process if you do well. But if you don’t do well you can go all the way through the ranks [of conventional certification systems] and still have really poor judgment and yet have a really high level certification and that is not necessarily a good mix.
Jim: Yeah, okay, my comment is basically process versus end result. You can have all kinds of processes and systems but it’s the end result that you actually want and so this is a question for Deb, actually, in your experiences in teaching your ACA certification classes, how do you reference the Tsunami Rangers in how we do things versus how the ACA does things?
Deb: Well, Admiral, that is top secret. I can’t divulge that, but I do adapt Tsunami Ranger methods in my work mentoring and working with other instructors and certifying other instructors in the ACA system. And I’ll just leave it at that.
Jim: It augments your skills.
Deb: Yes.
Afterthoughts: On Judgment
Deb: Engage the brain from the beginning, ask the right questions, and make effective decisions. Empower students and instructors to engage in their reality, monitor their reality, and adapt in a safe, timely, and hopefully even a fun way. Judgment is skill development for the brain, which is arguably the most important part of paddling. If you’re putting yourself and your students in a highly dynamic liquid environment, you better have good judgment. The best judgment comes from your own experience.
Judgment is always part of the instructor assessment. As the assessor I must provide opportunities for the instructor candidate to show their stuff – but it’s a very big picture, not limited to one individual or one environmental condition. I add layers to the tasks, and elements of the unknown which is realistic. The big problem is that the window for assessment is small, usually three days, so you can imagine that there must be as many layers to assess as possible.
Again, this highlights the issue with assessment. If the instructors are not getting out regularly to paddle in a variety of environments, keeping up with playing in dynamic conditions, keeping up with challenging themselves outside of the certification world, they are selling their students short – and in my opinion merely using the certification as a badge.
Nancy: So it sounds like at the highest levels of sea kayak certification, judgment is the most important skill, really a quality, that instructors need to have, and it is also the most difficult to teach and to assess. As Deb says, the best judgment comes from experience. Acquiring good judgment on the water takes time. Assessing good judgment also takes time, probably more than three days. For example, you can know someone for years and think they have good judgment and then one day…
Jim? Your thoughts?
Jim: Positive side – certification classes help create a network that develops into long term contacts and can evolve with time.
Negative – puts students in a classification of safe “box” that is good for the moment but when things change can be a restriction.
Nancy: Mulling this over I remembered that without certification people can’t teach and make money. Many of our friends own kayaking companies that offer classes teaching people not only how to kayak but also advancing students’ skills with regard to surfing, rock gardening, and whitewater in both sea and rivers. Certification allows people to get insurance to cover themselves and their businesses in case of a lawsuit. Being a kayak instructor is a preferred way of life for lots of people and without certification that wouldn’t be possible. So in the sense that certification creates a niche in which kayakers can make a living doing something they love, it’s a good thing.
Well, that’s it, folks! We hope you enjoyed our discussion. Please join the conversation by adding your comment below. Thanks!
Jim Kakuk says
Nice work putting this together Nancy. This is a good start to what could be a long discussion, It will be interesting to see what others have to say.
Nancy Soares says
Thanks, Jim. It was super fun putting this together. So far so good!
Lance says
Hmmm 🙂
Great subject.
I’ve pondered over a bit of this subject matter of late.
Even if solo paddling is your thing, previous experience gained paddling with a group will influence decision making, hopefully for the better. Awareness of environment and conditions will be more finely tuned without the distraction of others and the reality and gravity of situations are often magnified. Hopefully this heightened awareness will be of benefit when paddling again in a group. Certification is one way for people to know where they’re at but it is not an absolute.
One thing I learn every time I go to sea is that I know nothing, until I’m home.
Nancy Soares says
Hi Lance! Good to hear from you. I haven’t done much solo paddling, but I mean to do more. I agree with you about awareness and that the reality and gravity of situations is magnified when you’re alone. Having your buddies around, well, I won’t say it makes one careless, but there’s a comfort zone I don’t have when I paddle solo. That’s probably a good thing and you remind me that I can benefit from making the effort to get on the water more often by myself. As you suggest, I think it will benefit me when I’m with others. Maybe because the awareness is heightened it imprints more deeply in the consciousness. At least that’s what I’m thinking. Good observation!
Thanks for reading and thanks for your comment. Cheers!
Jim Tennerman says
This is the best discussion I’ve ever heard on this subject. When I first got into ocean paddling in the 1980s (east coast) the sport was obscure. As it popularized, instruction became an issue and credentials started popping up. There was a lot of pomposity and I was turned off by it. Personally, I prefer to find people who are better than me and learn from them. The best “on the water” instruction I’ve ever experienced came from the Rangers. Of course I sucked so badly that all I had to do was be near them to learn new things. My navigational skills came from a guy who is lousy paddler but a very experienced merchant marine. The same is true with other endeavors in skiing, mountain travel, cycling, and of course in many other subjects that don’t include high risk.
That’s my two cents. Thanks for this excellent article!
Jim
It was more useful to find other ocean paddlers to share experiences with. We read books, tested out equipment, tried different rescue techniques, etc. Did I make mistakes and take stupid risks? Yes. But they were my risks.
Moving beyond self learning is different. For me, as a student, I like to find people who are better than me and follow their lead. I’ve learned so much this way
In the more general field of pedagogy and risk, I have observed that some teachers are great and others are terrible. Some students are great and others are terrible. I have seen “leaders” fall apart in high risk situations,
Nancy Soares says
Wow, Jim, thanks for the props! You are most kind. I agree with you wholeheartedly that paddling (or doing anything) with people who are better than you is a huge help in developing skills. I started kayaking with the Rangers. I think I was able to hang at all because I swim well and I was paddling a washdeck Tsunami boat. As you say, being near them is to learn. They’ve done so many things others haven’t and never will that they have a perspective no one else has, and I value that over any amount of certification. Not to diss certification, as I said in the post it’s got its place. But I would rather learn from someone who’s had a lot of on water experience in all conditions than from anyone else. Just sitting around listening to the stories of past adventures is instructive, and now I have my own stories and experiences that have taught me more than any class ever could.
Thank you so much for reading and for your kind words. Much appreciated!
Kemp Hare says
My first Swiftwater Rescue class instructor said “there’s a difference between certified and certificate.” It didn’t take long for me to get a hold of the tangible part of his statement. In the world of kayaking there will always be the predictable and unpredictable; challenging our comfort; pushing our limits. Taking a class helps but is often expensive or difficult to schedule around life’s other responsibilities. The truest form of one’s practice comes with experience, the more the better. Nice article. Tsunami Ranger is something I’ve been interested in for a while.
Nancy Soares says
Hey Kemp, good to hear from you. As you so rightly point out, classes can both expensive and difficult to work into one’s schedule. What I’m getting from the people commenting on this post (you included), seems to be a consensus that experience gained both from paddling solo and with friends is paramount. That’s where you really learn what kayaking is all about. Classes can sure help, and certification is groovy if you want set yourself up to teach those classes, but to really be competent and safe on the water experience is everything.
Thank you so much for your interest, and thanks for commenting!
Steven King says
Wonderful post and images Nancy! I came under the tarp at the tail end of this fascinating discussion with our expert colleagues on that beach in Isla Carmen. There is something amazing and intangible about paddling as a team and a group. I dont think there is a certification for being an effective part of team of paddlers, I could be wrong about that and basic skills are part of being a good team member). I know that there is a magic when a group or team is in the zone together, when conditions are tough or just plane beautiful. I am always wanting to learn more and every time on the water is a learning experience solo or in groups. I thank and admire all the teachers out there who help us keep increasing out skills, our safe playing in rock gardens, our sense of awe and so many other learrnings.. So thanks to Deb, Admiral Kuk, Cate, Jeff, Scott and all the highly skilled water people who share and help us all be as safe as possible while pushing the edges when we are in the spirit. I think about the cultures over time, the tribes who passed along their skill, expertise, experience and guidance to younger generations of paddlers, hunters, travelers, fishermen and wanderers on oceans around the world for thousands of years, nice to be in their wake!
Nancy Soares says
Hi Steve! You brought up two things that I think are really important. One is gratitude to teachers. I never would have started kayaking if it hadn’t been for Eric and the Rangers. I’m no joiner, and I don’t think I would ever have joined a kayak club, but the small group vibe and the “we don’t need no stinking’ badges” attitude hooked me. I have so much gratitude to all of the people on our team for embracing me, and I consider it both a responsibility and a pleasure to learn from every one of them. Thanks to the team I’ve been able to go to places and do things and meet people I would never have without them. The impact on my life has been tremendous.
The second thing is what you said about cultures over time. Without any certifications tribes have passed on their knowledge of kayaking skills over generations. Elders taught juniors, and the process kept the skills that served the community alive. That process continues today. Thanks for bringing that up!
Rainer Lang says
Great topic, Certification has been talked about ever since I started paddling back in 1995. Personally the ACA and BCU programs didn’t interest me; not my thing. As I got deeper into paddling, I found that I needed or wanted certain skills and abilities to enable me to do what I’m passionate about.
I’ve had lots of classes and done a lot of solo paddling. I was drawn to the Tsunami Rangers, and wanted to do what they were doing; they lit the fire. The Open Coast Workshops were super rewarding. I’m in the camp of “we don’t need no stinkin’ badges.” It’s a personal decision and I respect what others decide on; how they operate.
The topic of economics within paddle sports is interesting too. Outfitters giving classes is another large part of the Certification issue; why it exists and why it’s offered.
The Certificate in your post was awarded to Dean and I. We hadn’t paddled together before and didn’t do any sort of practice; we just went at it cold. At that Sea Gypsy race we padded an Ocean Kayak double. Several people at that race got trashed at the start and didn’t make it out. We came in at last place #13. We were happy to have survived the contest and named the boat Lucky 13.
Thanks!
Nancy Soares says
Hi Rainer! Yep, that Sea Gypsy certificate is yours! I didn’t know you named your boat Lucky 13 though. I’ll have to keep that story in mind because one of these days I want to do a post on the naming of boats. I remember the Open Coast workshops too. They were kind of “seat of the pants” in style but in my experience that’s how it usually goes: you go kayaking and you have a plan but then the fog rolls in or the wind picks up or the surf gets big or goes away… etc. The main thing I’ve learned is that adaptability matters, just like we had to do on our recent retreat in Baja. Every day it was something new, and rarely what we expected.
I’m glad you mentioned “we don’t need no badges”. I wondered if that was going to come up lol. But the truth is we don’t. We do however, need to surround ourselves with like-minded paddlers who can help us “up-skill” as someone on Facebook, commenting on this post, so rightly suggested, and who can help keep us safe when we paddle in a group. Thank you for your comment. It’s nice to hear from you.
Jim Kakuk says
Good continuing discussion on this subject. What Jim Tennerman said about certification instructors is something I noticed when going to kayak symposiums in the ’80’s in that some of them were arrogant, pompous and full of attitude. This is true in other outdoor instructional classes as well. What is different with the Tsunami Rangers is that we frame kayaking as an in-water sport. Our form of certification or as we call it “rank” includes surf, rock gardening, swimming, diving, fishing, camping and how you fit in with the team. This only happens over a long period of time and many days of kayaking together. The Tsunami Rangers are more like a tribe of water people and not an academy that issues certificates… except for completing the Extreme Condition Sea Kayak Race!
John Lull says
I’m a bit late to the show here, but having worked as an ACA Instructor Trainer, I’ll add my two cents. I got involved in the certification process because I had to in order to keep my job as an instructor at Calif Canoe & Kayak some years ago (longer back than I want to think about). In other words I did it for the money. Deb Volturno and I ran dozens of ACA Instructor Training Certifications over the years and so I have some opinions on it, not necessarily shared by all the everyone involved; there was quite a bit of ‘discussion’ in putting some of these programs together. Just like Deb I see positive and negative points to the cert process, depending on how you treat it.
First, here’s what imo, certification is NOT about, or I should say what it shouldn’t be about. It’s not about getting a badge or some sort of rating. It’s not even specifically about improving your skill as a kayaker (although that may be a side benefit); you can do that well outside the certification process. Although you may have the help of a certified instructor along the way.
What I’d say it IS about is teaching. For those who want to teach there should be a certain standard, both in terms of kayaking skill and teaching skill. The focus of certification is on teaching skills as well as safety when in charge of a group of neophytes on the water. I think the kayaking skills, including good judgment of conditions, etc, have to come first. You aquire those through experience on the water (mostly) and also by taking courses or mentoring by other more skilled paddlers. If you want to teach, there is another set of skills to learn and that’s what the certification process addresses.
The job for those of us who were/are (were, in my case!) Instructor Trainers is two-fold. First to judge the skill set of the cert candidate and second, to train them in teaching methods, and safety procedures. Depending on the level of certification, this can be for teaching beginners basic strokes & rescues in flat water, up to more advanced skills like surfing, rough water paddling, tidal currents, open ocean, etc.
So the value of a certification process is to assure a certain level of teaching quality and safety for those who set out to teach others. This would apply to both instructors and trip guides. Just how successful these certifications are is anyone’s guess, but based on the skills of some (not all!) of the so-called “instructors” who came to us for certification, I’d say there is some value in it.
If you don’t want to teach or be a trip guide, you can skip the Certification thing altogether. Again, just my opinion.