American Whitewater's Safety Program has two audiences: members of the whitewater community and the general public. The second group cannot be ignored. As a part of a larger society we must communicate effectively with the non-paddling majority. We are often called upon to defend the safety of river running when working against restrictive regulations or building support for our conservation and access goals.

Whitewater paddlers come from all walks of life, and represent a true cross section of today's America. If anything, we tend to be more educated than the public at large. Our number includes many noted doctors, scientists, and engineers. We share an appetite for adventure, a love of wild places, and a preference for active, human powered recreation. Feeling the power of a living river under your boat is a unique thrill, and exploring wild places via rivers is deeply rewarding. Men and women of all ages paddle, and for many it becomes a lifetime sport. As with any activity, there are risks. We choose to accept them, and take full responsibility for our actions. We have studied whitewater thoroughly and have developed skills needed to traverse it safely. Our decisions to run a river or rapid are made with great care, and we are prepared to deal with the inevitable mishaps. We naturally believe that paddlers should have the freedom to make independent river running decisions independent of government regulation.

Because whitewater paddlers watch out for each other on the water, strong friendships develop quickly. Active river runners are usually part of a tight community, and most of their friends are paddlers or other adventurous, risk sport athletes. It's easy for us to forget that and that most people do not think the way we do.

The public has many misconceptions about whitewater boaters. Despite the growth of the sport, most don't know any paddlers personally. They see us on TV and read about us in the newspapers. The media normally focuses on either high-end performance or tragedy; both extremes are not a part of the mainstream paddling experience. Even when someone has been rafting, or has seen paddlers on the river, they don't understand the in-depth knowledge and training we have. The risks seem greater because they don't understand what's being done to mitigate them. This makes the sport seem irresponsible and reckless, and allows them to categorize responsible paddlers as thrill-seeking maniacs with a death wish. 

But there's more to it than that. Whitewater taps into one of the most widely-held, deep-seated human fears. Most people are wary around the water and some are truly terrified. Lots of people think accidental drownings, unlike other fatalities, should to be totally preventable. Jason Robertson explains it this way:

“Drowning is fundamentally more disturbing at a primeval level than other accidental deaths. Most people, including whitewater boaters, have a primitive fear of water that is evidenced by their hesitation to learn to roll and exacerbated by visions of floods and whitewater. Perhaps it is a fear of chaos, or a fear of that which lurks beneath the surface. At some level, it must be a fear of the unknown. How else can we justify overcoming our fears and pursuing greater adventures and challenges than in our quest to know and learn what lies beyond the next horizon?

“Unfortunately, our passion for the unknowable is not shared by many in society, and some individuals in positions of authority translate their personal fears for our well being into well-intentioned attempts at preventing us from approaching or enjoying these flooded or falling waters. For these people, our safety is best secured by denying access to the very areas we enjoy the most. For these people, every drowning they see on Fox News or hear about from other sources is a testimony to the wisdom of their decision to bar or limit access on the river they manage.”

Sometimes the story of a river tragedy captures the public eye and develops surprising momentum. In the 1984 the death of a group of soldiers at Brookmont Dam on the Lower Potomac dominated headlines in the nation's capitol for weeks. Arguments flew about, targeting the dam's structure and the helicopter rescue, passing between politicians, the media, and a slew of government agencies. It eventually resulted in a multi-million dollar modification to the dam itself.

The Wild and Scenic Chattooga River, known for it's undercut geology, has seen many calls to alter the river for safety reasons. In 1990 the family of a boater who drowned on Section IV asked the Forest Service to fill Crack In The Rock to “make it safe”. American Whitewater successfully argued against this idea, saying the modification might not solve the problem and could set a dangerous precedent requiring the agency to modify other 'dangerous' rapids throughout the basin.

Then in May 29, 1999 a 16 year old girl hiking with her boyfriend attempted to wade across the Chatooga River just upstream of Raven Rock Rapid. The river was running low, at 1.2'. The pair lost their footing and were swept into the rapid. The young woman was washed into an undercut rock and pinned under 8 feet of water. Although an underwater camera was able to pinpoint her location, area rescue squads were unable to touch, (much less release) her body,

The girl's distraught parents applied political pressure to continue the recovery efforts. In late June, following pressure from South Carolina Senators Strom Thurmond and Earnest Hollings, a portable dam was carried into the gorge and erected to divert the water. This body recovery involved several hundred people, including a convict labor squad, first responders, and forest service personnel. Dennis Kerrigan, a long-time Chatooga guide, rescue instructor, and extrication expert, was flown down from Maine to assist. Unfortunately the water rose, and they could not divert enough water to make the recovery. Plans were then laid to return with a bigger dam and a larger crew to try again. Prior to this attempt, the underwater carrier searched the area and could no longer locate her body.

Litigation adds to these concerns, and a fear of lawsuits is routinely mentioned in our communications with landowners and park managers. This is understandable; not only are payouts from drowning cases rather high, but juries often view drowning as a preventable accident. Six Flags Inc. recently agreed to pay $4 million to the young daughter of a woman who drowned on their Roaring Rapids amusement park ride. Rivers are not amusement rides, of course, but anyone with significant assets can be a tempting target. Their goal is often to threaten litigation and obtain a quick settlement of $50,000 dollars or more. This works because it will cost 4-5 times that amount to defend a client at a week-long trial, and the risk of losing the case still remains.

Public opinion about river running ranges from interest to indifference to outright hostility. Certain groups of people tend to have certain opinions. People with some background in competitive sports or the outdoors are often inclined to be sympathetic. In rural areas, where many people never learn to swim and most know of someone who has drowned on a river or creek, many people think kayakers are crazy. Some people who work hard, physical jobs can't image why someone would want to “relax” by doing something physically taxing. A city person who isn't looking for an intense outdoor experience may not understand why anyone else would. A hard-driving workaholic may see any recreation, particularly one where you can be injured, as needlessly frivolous. We don't have to agree with any of these ideas, but understanding why people think the way they do is the first step towards developing a professional and effective response.

Europeans are seldom concerned when paddlers or mountain climbers die, but things are different here in America. Issues of personal freedom versus government control have been debated throughout our history, and a vocal minority seeks to reduce the role of personal responsibility in our society. They do not share the outdoorsman's philosophy of taking personal responsibility for accidents. They think dangerous activities like running whitewater rivers should be prohibited, licensed or restricted. They expect government to protect people from themselves. There's a national tendency to blame someone whenever a person is hurt or killed on rivers, and that “someone” often works for the government.

Public officials are aware of these feelings, and some may share them. They often limit or block river access because of concerns for public safety. Most are sincere, hard working people who are trying to craft decisions that make sense to them, and can be justified to their bosses and the public at large. After all, you don't get ahead in government by being innovative; you advance by avoiding career-ending mistakes. This makes them risk averse by nature and cautious when dealing with people like us.

Park rangers and managers deal with all the outdoor recreation on a given piece of land, and river running is just one of a number of activities. Top people are chosen for their administrative skills, and it's not unusual for an important river-centered park to be run by a non-paddler. Lower level field people, with notable exceptions, are not whitewater enthusiasts. Keeping visitors safe is their primary responsibility, but their focus is on the general public, not the skilled enthusiast. Regulations designed to protect the average person will often seriously restrict our activities.

The fallout from accidents is always bad. There is considerable paperwork to deal with after a fatality, and park personnel frequently spend considerable time with family of the deceased. Their bosses and the press may start asking tough questions, even suggesting that the mishap was somehow their fault. The fact that these managers don't want to deal with a drowning is understandable, but if their concern restricts our freedom and reduces paddling opportunities we must respond.

Politicians and government professionals officials have much broader responsibilities and deal with a wider spectrum of interest groups. Recreation in general, and whitewater in particular, is pretty low on their list of priorities. Unless they have a special interest in river running, and some do, they may view our concerns as a distraction. When tragedy strikes, they frequently over-react. They may “take the path of least resistance”, banning the activity or closing rivers, before moving on to other, more important things.

Our goal is to oppose this tendency and to work towards a responsible solution. A lot can be accomplished when someone stands up for the interests of river runners in a reasoned professional way, and that's what the staff and volunteers of American Whitewater have been doing for the past 50 years.

Here are some things to keep in mind when talking to government officials

• Dress well for meetings, as if you were going to a job interview. Paddlers are often stereotyped as hippies, punks, or slobs, and professional dress will get you respect. If in doubt, overdress.

• Listen carefully to find out the concerns and needs of all parties, and try to understand their vales. There's often a solution that will satisfy everyone, but you can't craft it if you don't pay attention. Use your understanding of their core beliefs to show them respect, and build a good working relationship.

• Try to bridge the divides between you and other interest groups, rather than emphasizing conflicts. Government officials are often attacked from all sides and are quite used to being abused. A group that takes a moderate position and shows respect for other interests is more attractive as a partner.

• Be reasonable and even-keeled in your discussions. Righteous indignation and outbursts of temper hurt your credibility. Sometimes people will say things at meetings that are designed to provoke your anger. Don't allow yourself to be baited into saying things you'll regret later.

• Don't let an issue get personal. Oppose the policy without insulting the person representing it. Often that person is just passing the word on policies decided at higher levels. Name-calling creates animosities that remain long after the issue has been settled. Politicians and managers often have long careers and long memories. Remember that you'll probably be dealing with them again!

• Don't issue threats. You may have to go over someone's head, work the media, or develop political pressure, but a threat seldom works. End the meeting gracefully, and decide on your next course of action in private when your mind, and not your emotions, are in charge.

Although these rules are also useful in dealing with officials from private companies. Many large landowners will work with you to generate positive publicity for themselves, but others won't. They don't have to bother with the public unless they want to, and can be relatively immune to bad publicity. Some corporate individuals will even relish the role of “standing up” for their rights publicly and bashing the environmental community.

Reporters and other Media Representatives cover a wide variety of issues, spending a short time with one story before moving on to the next. River accidents often get attention because they are unusual and dramatic. The best reporters are sharp investigators who research the stories they are covering and let the facts write their articles. Others write the story in their head prior talking with you and base their ideas on stereotypes rather than fact. They look for conflicts and are quick to play them up.

Here are some things to keep in mind when talking to reporters.

• Remember our goal is to educate the public about the safety skills which make our sport possible, always maintaining that education, not regulation, is the best approach to whitewater safety

• Remember that even though the reporter is friendly, and most are, he or she is not your buddy. They're using you to do their job; be sure you use them to get your message across!

• Stay focused and on point, and avoid rambling. Long-winded answers often confuse your audience. Give short answers, and let them ask for additional details.

• Lead with your conclusions, and repeat important ideas often. Reporters seldom paddle whitewater and will not pick up on the most important ideas without your help. If the reporter asks the wrong questions, answer them briefly, then say, “but the real issue here is….”

• Think in sound bites, and keep your answers short and simple. This is especially important for radio and TV interviews

• Name calling and blame assignment will come back to haunt you. Focus on the issue, not the personality. Be straightforward, not cute or sarcastic. If the subtleties of your statement can be missed, they will be.

• If you say something that you wish you hadn't, immediately ask that it be considered “off the record.” Most reporters will honor this request.

• You will sometimes be misquoted and misunderstood. A lot of times you should just let it go. If it's really important, call the reporter and ask for a correction.

If the accident occurs at an American Whitewater event we will always designate a press spokesman. This will probably be the senior staff or board member most closely connected to the event. We want to be certain that the person talking to the press is the one who knows the most about the accident and is most qualified to comment. What we say may have far-reaching consequences, and we want to avoid mistakes.

Having a reporter call on you for information is exciting and flattering. Sometimes this gets you to comment on what happened even if you don't really know much, or gets you to pass on second and third hand rumors as fact. That's not a good idea, but saying “no comment” or “I can't talk to you guys” doesn't feel right and creates an impression you have something to hide. Your best approach is to say something like, “Yes, there was an accident, but I don't know exactly what happened. But I do know who you need to talk to.” Then give them the name of the designated spokesman.

It's always appropriate to express personal sorrow for what happened and concern for the victim's family and friends. But a compassionate response is not the same as admitting responsibility for a tragedy. Beware of saying things like “it's all our fault” or “it never should have happened”, especially if you are upset. After careful reflection you may find that the event was much more complex than you thought, and that initial statement will come back to haunt you!

It's often worthwhile to approach reporters at newspapers or TV with your own story ideas. This is the essence of public relations, but you don't need a big office or a fancy salary to do it. For example, you can call a day after a widely publicized river accident and ask if they'd like to do a safety follow-up. This is a good opportunity to explain what skilled whitewater paddlers do, which helps distinguish between them and the often inexperienced victim. With TV you can gather a group of paddlers for a good visual background. Start by identifying the reporter who normally covers this area; it's often the same person who handled the story of the accident. Then call up and make your pitch.

• Whitewater paddling is no more dangerous than other active outdoor sports like bicycling, scuba, or rock climbing. The studies mentioned in the introduction can give you good numbers for comparison.

• Trained paddlers are safer running difficult whitewater than untrained paddlers attempting easier stretches. Deaths involving experts comprise a very small percentage of accidents.

• When a skilled paddler has died, emphasize the concept of “challenge by choice”. Explain that the person knew exactly what they were getting into and derived pleasure from doing a difficult thing well. Discuss the victims experience, and the safety precautions that he took.

• Today's gear and training is better than ever. The increase in reported fatalities in recent years is due primarily to a significant growth in the sport, and to a lesser extent on improved communications via the Internet.

• Whitewater sport has risks which can be minimized but never eliminated. Sound individual judgment is our most important safety tool.
  
• Each individual paddler is ultimately responsible for their own safety. All paddlers, even the most extreme, take routine precautions. It's not the government's job to try to control their behavior.
  
• To stay out of trouble, follow these simple rules:

1. Wear a PFD; most fatalities could be avoided by simply wearing a life vest.
2. Avoid alcohol and illegal drugs, which reduce both skill and judgment.
3. Stay away from extremes of weather and water. This caution includes high water and cold water conditions, as well as cold weather and storms on open water.

Almost all canoe, kayak, and rafting deaths occur when the victim ignores one or more of these rules.

The history of paddler - government interactions at Ohiopyle State Park in Pennsylvania illustrates many of the different challenges we have discussed. The Lower Youghiogheny River, which runs through the park, was first run by whitewater canoeists in the early '50's. It's been a long-time focal point of Mid-States paddling and was the first river in the country to become truly popular. When Wilderness Voyageurs began offering guided rafting in 1964, there were no regulations at all. Soon after the park was established in 1971 three scuba divers drowned while trying to swim the Yough at a high (7 foot) water level. This prompted Chuck Rea, the park manager, to close the river to boating at water levels over four feet.

In the late 60's and early 70's Dartmouth College slalom racers held an annual spring training camp on the Lower Yough in early March. In 1973 the river was over 7' for the entire week. Dozens of top-ranked slalom paddlers ran the river anyway, and because of the early season no one noticed what was going on for days. Paddlers argued that this showed that the four-foot rule was unnecessary, and the restriction was lifted for kayakers but maintained for rafts. In the late '70's Yough outfitters who had been running the Cheat Canyon at high levels petitioned to run the Lower Yough commercially at high flows. The rules were amended to require the use of a 15 foot-long raft at levels over four feet. The length requirement was deliberately set: large rafts are not owned by the sort of inexperienced people who get into trouble on rivers. In the late 80's the American Canoe Association (ACA) lobbied successfully for a similar exemption for inflatable kayaks with thigh straps and foot braces.

River use increased dramatically in the '70's. The park established limits on commercial rafting in 1973 just as Larry Adams took over the manager's job. In 1976, following the Penn State study, a quota of 2,000 paddlers per day was established, split 50-50 between private and commercial users. Private paddlers did not regularly fill their half of the quota until 1981, when Stu VanNostdelin, the mayor of Ohiopyle, acquired a lease on some riverside property and started renting rafts. The other outfitters first tried to run him out of business, then began renting rafts themselves. These renters were considered private paddlers, and threatened to consume the entire private quota. AW and ACA intervened, and an agreement was reached to divide the private quota into two parts: 50% for hard boats, and 50% for inflatables. Launch permits became hard to get, and people had to settle for late afternoon trips on the “Loop”. This is a three-mile long section that bends back on itself, allowing a person to “run shuttle” on foot.

A serious access crisis developed in 1979 when the B&O railroad closed the Lower Yough takeout at Stewarton. Paddlers and fishermen had been crossing the railroad tracks here for decades, but as their numbers increased, problems developed. There were many close calls with fast-moving trains, which are surprisingly quiet on their downhill runs through the gorge. When open canoeists laid their boats across the tracks the aluminum gunwales completed the circuit between the rails, setting off warning lights for 50 miles in each direction. Once someone backed a van across the tracks. The wheels got stuck between the rails and the van stayed put until it was hit. No one got hurt, but the railroad's patience wore thin. The state had promised for years to develop a new takeout, but each year plans were shelved due to lack of funding. Local outfitters sued to keep Stewarton open, and failed. The company posted private security and turned back anyone who tried to take out.

Yough outfitters worked with AW and ACA and came up with a temporary solution. They gained access to a railroad right-of-way that runs from Route 381 down to the river along Indian Creek. This added about four miles of flat water to the run, but kept the river open. A bus company ferried people and boats out to the highway. A road was finally constructed to the current Bruner Run takeout despite last minute opposition from the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Sierra Club. The bus company moved its operation over there, and the shuttle continues during the busy months.

In the early '90's local paddlers became increasingly upset at the difficulty they were having getting on the water. Various paddling groups met with the new park manager, Doug Hoehn. After this meeting, unlimited launches for full river trips (as opposed to loop runs) were allowed after 3:00 pm, a change that primarily benefited people living nearby. With the park phone and computer systems stretched to the limit, Hoehn instituted a $2.00 fee for launches to raise needed money for improvements. This sparked a lengthy protest by local paddlers which included picketing, shouting matches and arrests. The fee was changed to apply to reservations only, as opposed to walk-ons, and the protests died down. But hard feelings remained.

In the summer of 2000 there were three drownings involving raft rental guests in the vicinity of Dimple Rock. One of the victims, an attractive teenaged girl, washed under the rock and pinned. A huge outcry followed. There were lots of stories in area newspapers and the girl's friends and relatives began a letter writing campaign to remove the rock. The Fayette County Coroner supported this idea publicly. At the Coroner's Request Charlie Walbridge, American Whitewater's safety expert, explained the challenges of riverbed modification. He noted that there were several other rocks downstream which could become a problem if the rock was removed. Any changes had to be done right or there would be a day of reckoning in the future. Based largely on Walbridge's testimony, the Coroner's jury recommended that warning signs be placed at Dimple Rapid indicating that people had drowned there, that safety education be improved, and that the state begin a study as to the feasibility of filling the undercut on the upstream side of Dimple Rock.

Afterwards, a lawyer from Pennsylvania's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources told Walbridge that the State was wary of modifying the river because of liability concerns. She explained that people could not sue the state for what happens on a natural river, but the rapid, once modified, could make the state vulnerable to litigation. Park Manager Doug Hoehn convened a safety focus group and planned improved safety measures for the 2001 season. This included stronger warnings at the put-in, warning signs posted above the rapid itself, construction of a portage trail around the rapid, and an improved safety video for renters to watch at the put-in. Pressure to fill in the undercut upstream side of Dimple Rock continued, this time from a state senator. A feasibility study was done this past summer.

Access to Ohiopyle Falls is another ongoing issue. Locals swam over it regularly at summer flows for many years. Paddlers were more cautious, and the falls had not been run when the park was established. Although the falls were officially closed, in the mid-70's a few experts managed to slip through early or late in the day when rangers weren't around. By the mid-80's it was pretty common for paddlers to run falls of this height and difficulty. The “cat and mouse” game with the authorities intensified; large fines were levied and several paddlers were arrested and jailed.

American Whitewater applied for a permit to run a “Falls Race” in the late '90's. This would provide a legal outlet for frustrated falls runners and demonstrate to State Park officials that the drop could be safely run. The idea was quickly turned down by park management. Jim Greenbaum, manager of Whitewater Adventurers, knew the director of the Pennsylvania DCNR. The man was a paddler and Jim thought he might be sympathetic to the idea. The director was approached and the permit was issued. For the next four years hundreds of people made multiple runs of the falls without incident. We are now asking the park to consider opening the falls, and the work on this issue continues.