1. Have you ever paddled before?
Remember that to pass at even the flatwater level, you have to be able to demonstrate perfect technique in all the strokes of your chosen craft. When was the last time you videotaped yourself to see what your strokes look like on flatwater? That's what I thought. Flatwater is where good technique is formed. On whitewater, you have other things on your mind, trivial little concerns like the raft bearing down on you and the rock that you're about to hit.

2. Have you ever had formal instruction?
And I don't mean in a tuxedo. It can be hard to model perfect strokes if you don't know what your strokes are supposed to look like. Also, to teach a good lesson, you should know what a good lesson is supposed to look like. Every teaching day is carefully choreographed. Everything we teach, we teach with a previously thought-out progression. Learn the progressions and verbalizations before you come.

Okay, so you've answered yes to all three of these questions. Now you need to know the four basic things we are looking for:

1. Paddling Skills 2. Teaching Skills 3. Group Management Skills 4. A desire to pass your love of paddling on to others

Paddling Skills: At the whitewater level, you need to demonstrate perfect modeling strokes on flatwater (slow, precise, consistent), technically correct whitewater maneuvers (eddy turns, peel outs, ferries, parallel and side surfing) in Class II, and competence and comfort in Class III. To test the last, we may choreograph a series

Teaching Skills: To pass at the whitewater level, you need to be able to clearly and concisely explain how to do anything related to your craft; how to get in, how to adjust the outfitting, how to get out, how to do a forward stroke, etc. The catch is the concise part. Only give your students tiny segments at a time and send them out to try it. The less you talk and the more they do (within reason), the better the lesson will be. Try to get any teaching segment down to a minute. Think about the most important thing your student needs to know.

Group Management Skills: Think about the last time you went somewhere with a group of friends big enough to require more than one car. A logistical nightmare. That's what teaching is all about. Learn to over-manage your group. Safety should be your top priority, the goals of the group second, and yours third. On the river, if any of your students is out of your sight, you should be worried.

A desire to pass on your love of paddling: If you want a badge that says you're a good paddler, you've come to the wrong course. Some of the best paddlers I know don't, or can't, teach, while some of the best teachers I know are only fair paddlers. The two are, of course, not necessarily mutually exclusive. One reason you should be teaching is to watch someone else learn to love what you love, or have a great time trying. (I personally also get a charge out of flipping people over and getting paid to do it, but that's my thing.)

Do you still think you want to take a certification course in this lifetime? Come prepared to speak in front of a group of your peers, to be criticized and made to think, and to learn more than you ever thought you wanted to about paddling.

National River Cleanup Week was founded by America Outdoors, a national association of outfitters and guides, in response to the need to keep waterways clean. The program is held annually throughout the country and provides free trash bags, media help, and advice to local cleanup groups. The Clean Water Act and industry efforts have helped remove pollutants from many of the country?s water sources, however, local streams and rivers still have years of accumulated refuse and trash washed up from floods and spring rains.

The local sponsors will coordinate cleanup efforts along the Fife Brook section, a 17-mile reach of the Deerfield River with schools and local organizations. Interested individuals or groups who would like to volunteer can contact Janet Burnett, president of the Deerfield River Watershed Association, at 1-800-532-7483.

About the DRWA:
The primary purpose of the Deerfield River Watershed Association (DRWA), which was founded in 1988, is to protect and preserve the ecosystem of the 666-square-mile Deerfield River Watershed. Their goals are to promote the best uses of the Deerfield River through educational activities and outreach, to monitor water quality through regular testing programs, and to organize and participate in local Riverfests and river cleanup activities.

What You Can Do:
You can volunteer to help clean up the Fife Brook section on Saturday, May 22. You were coming out to paddle that weekend anyway, right? And then you can join us to paddle the first Dryway release on Sunday. We will have a Zoar raft available to collect trash along the river and a collection point at the take-out at the Gap. Contact Janet or Evie at Zoar for more information or if you?d like to volunteer.

Visit their website to find out more about membership.

Zoar Outdoor is pleased to announce that we will now be carrying Wave Sport kayaks. Wave Sport features cutting edge whitewater kayak designs, including the X, Y, Z, and soon-to- be-released XXX, a smaller version of the Z. We will have demos of all of these boats in our fleet, so feel free to give us a call to set up an appointment.