Safety on our Rivers

Last week marked the third death in three weeks since the Gauley River in West Virginia opened its rafting season this fall. What’s going on over there? I have not yet had the chance to run the Gauley, but I have seen the YouTube videos of the carnage that occurs each season and it almost seems like the rocks strewn across the river act as a great “Darwin Awards” sorting machine. I wonder what the world thinks about our sport when such carnage is displayed and death is so often associated with the words “white water”?

Is our sport dangerous? Hell yeah it’s dangerous! It would be misleading to say otherwise. But let’s put things into perspective: Is driving a car dangerous? Is getting out of the bath-tub dangerous? The answer is that the Grim Reaper does NOT have the rafting industry cornered! Risks are everywhere in life. There are even risks of NOT taking risks once in a while. Paralysis is not an option, so we move forward…

Let’s look at the car analogy for an example. We know driving can be deadly, but the majority of us still do it because we know there are ways to minimize those risks. We know what those things are: buckle-up, drive defensively, or get a car that will protect you if or when the worst happens. Minimizing risk works the same way on the river. On the river, though, you are much more likely to be acutely aware of dangers–as opposed to when you hop in the car to grab milk at the corner market. (You’re also more likely to make the news if you get hurt river rafting than if you crash on the way to the market).

On the road, every single car with you is a variable you cannot control.  On the river, the danger spots are fairly predictable and consistent. This would be the equivalent of knowing exactly where a deer will sprint in front of your car, where the drunk driver is, when and where the guy in the Jetta is going to cut you off…

Knowing, avoiding, and warning about those dangers is the primary essence of a river guide’s job. The guest’s job is to pay attention to the guide’s foreknowledge and heed warnings to keep your life jacket on, paddle through the waves, wear a helmet, etc. Remember, whitewater rafting is a team sport!

My personal opinion is that most of what we call “accidents” can be avoided, while only a small percent of what happens is true to the bumper sticker.

2009 Travel Trends

What does 2009 hold for whitewater rafting and the adventure travel industry? It depends on what the adventure is. 2008 provided a roller-coaster ride for the entire nation as we saw outrageous gas prices, the real estate market crash and finally the entire collapse of the financial industry and economy in general.

The direct affect of the economy has not fully hit the rafting industry as of yet. 2009 will be a historic year, and nobody can predict what will happen this season. Since most of the economic collapse happened towards the end of the rafting season last year, most outfitters fared “OK”. Everyone took hits with the gas crises, but avoided the major collapse of the market.

Although studies have shown that “vacations” are often one of the last items people cut in their personal budgets, it is beginning to be evident that vacations are not immune to the market downturn.

Advanced bookings are slightly down across the board, and cancellations are statistically higher than usual, as those who booked far in advance are realizing the “extra” vacation cash needs to pay off bills.

That being said, summer vacations and adventure travel will still be a hot ticket on people’s itinerary for 2009. One positive that local outfitters may see is that residents will cut back on traveling to distant locations, and try to find fund and relaxation closer to home. Local marketing and local advertising will be important factors for staying above water (no pun intended).

I predict that whitewater rafting will stay strong for those who realize that you will have to spend money to make money. In an economy where businesses are cutting costs, many have the opportunity to rise above the competition as many scale down marketing efforts.

As far as water levels, rivers and geographic issues, it looks like there is still plenty of snowpack and storms to come that should not be an issue for most parts of the nation.

As usual, we will see how things play out…

Maritime Laws Don’t Govern River Rafting

At least in West Virginia.

The West Virginia state Supreme Court says federal maritime laws don’t govern activities involving West Virginia’s whitewater rafting industry. This stems from an accident on the Shenandoah River a few years ago, in which a party sued the rafting company for a mishap on the river.

This court decision could mean big things for the whitewater rafting industry int he US. This now sets the precedence for any future lawsuits against river rafting outfitters. Although all outfitters are required to be licensed and carry liability insurance, lawsuits stemming from death and/injury on the river still exist.

Hopefully this will add a bit more cover for the river rafting outfitters, who already do all they can to keep the guests safe and follow best practices when it comes to risk management and safety regulations.

Augusta Trying for Rafting Park

Augusta, GA wants to push for their own whitewater rafting park as rafting travel picks up popularity across the U.S. Augusta city is joining the hoards of towns and cities we’ve already mentioned with plans to utilize canals, river and streams to turn around whitewater rafting parks.

The USNWC (US National Whitewater Center) seems to be holding ground currently, but is is a large center aimed at not only the local market, but professional paddlers and competitions. The verdict is yet to be determined as all the other areas across the nation try to tap into the popular sport. More updates as they open, and we will see where whitewater parks stand in a few years.

Gauley Rafting Season Winds down

The 22-day Gauley Rafting season has winded down, and once again it has brought in close to $45 million to West Virginia and the outfitters. Although numbers have been on the decline since 2000, the last year have seen a slowing in the decline.

Hopefully that trend will at least hold steady. For many of the outfitters, Gauley river rafting makes or breaks the season. Amazing that in a matter of days, your season can be up or down. But when you can charge a premium (around $145 for a half-day trip) for some of the most exciting whitewater rafting in the world, it has the potential for making a lot of money.

The exact numbers are not in yet, but I will report some of them as soon as I get me hands on the info. It will also be interesting to see how some of the larger companies fare with all the mergers and consolidation in the West Virginia rafting industry.

Grand Canyon Flooding

Clarification- the Grand Canyon did not flood.

The recent flash flood in the Grand Canyon has news agencies (surprise) reporting that the Grand Canyon was flooding. In actuality, a side canyon, Havasu got flash flooded by an earth dam that broke from the flash rain storms in the area.

Grand Canyon rafting trips were in the canyon at the time, and the only rafting trip affected by the flooding was a private boat trip that lost their rafts that were parked at the mouth of the flooded canyon. Western River Expeditions saw the raft without rafters and reported the incident to the park service.

All of the evacuations and emergency helicopter transfers related to the incident were the local tribe resident who lived along the Havasu Canyon and whose homes were threatened by the flash flood.

NO COMMERCIAL RAFTING COMPANIES OR TRIPS WERE IN DANGER OR AFFECTED BY THE FLOOD.

Hope that clears some of the questions up, and if you have any more, feel free to comment on this post and I can answer any of your inquiries!

Outdoor Sports moving Indoors?

Along the same note of my last whitewater rafting park in KY post, I ran across another article recently, supporting the concept that many of the adventure sports will find counterparts in an indoor/manmade arena.

Jeff Coy on Hospitality.net brought in some interesting point regarding the growing trend of man-made adventure sports. Rafting parks, surf pools and hotel water parks are all the examples he brought to the table. I agree with the emerging trend, and to a degree I personally would like to try the surf pools and surfing wave walls.

However, Coy also says that “sporting enthusiasts say it is hard to get away from work at the right time. It is difficult and expensive to travel to the coast when the perfect ocean wave is breaking or reach the backwoods when the whitewater river is cresting…”

I see these indoor arenas and play areas as a complimentary service within the same industry, and not really a competative force with the true outdoor sport. You will never be able to compare a man-made rafting course with a Grand Canyon rafting trip, or the rush of huge whitewater on the Gauley River. And I don’t think any of these “enthusiasts” are looking to replace the real experience with these indoor ones.

The trend of shorter vacations is real. So people looking for a real outdoor rafting trip will look for a 2 or 3 day trip, not a 6 or 7 day trip. The same hold true for skiing. An indoor ski slope acts as a great bunny hill. Man-made ski material in Europe allows skiier to practice even during the summer. But don’t think for a second that they will fore-go the mountain slope for a dinky indoor arena.

So it becomes more a matter of vacation time, and less about indoor versus outdoor. Outdoor adventure providers should shift some of their inventory to reflect that of the short-vacation trends, but also support the introduction of the indoor arena, as that may be exactly what the outdoor industry needs; a good introduction to the real deal.

KY Whitewater Park In the Works

WKYT 27 reported recently that officials are considering a whitewater park at the Kentucky-Virginia lines in hopes to boost tourism in the state. Right now, Kentucky is basically void of any decent “river rafting” option (as is the case with most of the Midwest), so this may provide an opportunity for not only the Kentucky residents, but neighboring states as well.

I assume that would be the main focus when officials say “tourism”, because I doubt visitors would make a special trip to Kentucky just for a whitewater rafting park. Plus, you have the US national whitewater center down in NC, and a few others across the East.

I would venture to say the most business would still be the local market (at least for the near future). When I was talking to one of the Marketing Directors at the USNWC a couple years ago when they first opened, he told us that their visitors and target market were Charlotte and Atlanta, both legitimate population centers nearest the center.

So a tourism boost? Possible, but the more realistic expectation would be to give the locals of KY and VA something to do.

Rafting Article in USA Today

USA Today ran a good article about white water rafting and the snow levels across the country. Laura Bly did a great job at talking to the right people and getting the facts on what is really happening across the nation.

The article was along the same tune as my last post, talking about how winter snow and water has various affects on outfitters across the nation. Overall, you find mixed reviews. Why? Not just the reasons I pointed out in my winter snowpack post, but also because many rivers now are dam controlled.

So even drought conditions and water concerns has no immediate impact on some rafting regions (Southeast, Northeast, limited west coast). The problem is getting the conception that river rafting is directly correlated with water levels.

But overall, the rivers and reservoirs across the nation are looking good for the season. It will be interesting to see if gas prices have a negative affect on the season. So far I have gotten mixed reviews, some good, some o.k., some dont know. YTBD!

High Snowpack- Always Good for Rafting?

The talk this season is of course the snowpack and water levels across the country. Global warming is obviously in full effect Most areas across the nation have experienced a good winter, which usually means that a good summer is to follow.

Good snow does not mean good river levels. Let me explain. We basically have two types of river-dependent factors to consider in the situation. Dam controlled rivers and natural flow rivers.

Earlier posts have talked about rivers across the nation changing over to dam controlled levels, in which certain river flows are guaranteed throughout the summer months. In general, good snow-pack and snow run-off are a good thing for dam controlled rivers. It means more water in the reservoir, and will continue to leave plenty of water flow throughout the coming years.

Natural flow rivers are a different story. Lets take a look at the Western U.S. as an example. The image here shows the current snow-pack levels across the various regions in the West. These numbers are a “percentage of normal”, meaning that anything close to 100 is a very good thing, and anythin over 100 means higher-than-normal levels. Many locations that feed large rivers have over 100% snowpack for the season (still). But the weather still plays an important factor as to whether the snow will produce high, constant water levels or not.

Even with a good winter, if the weather heats up too fast, you run into flooding and fast run-off. So essentially, you would have a nice spring rafting season, followed by normal (or even below normal) water levels for the rest of the season. So it really still depends on mother nature and the transitional temperature from winter to spring to summer.

So remember that when the news reports a good winter, we still need to hold-on and see how the spring rolls out to accurately predict a good rafting season or not.