It's always good to check yourself before you go off on someone. I've been boating a few years and ever since my first time on moving water I've been told "down river boaters have the right of way" I beleive this to be a standard in the boating community. On sunday afternoon in Golden I was with a group of beginners eddieing out above one of the last drops when a boater below waved us through. All the sudden some guy jumped into the hole and wouldn't yeild. The rest of the group stoped and waited for him then started down when he jumped in again. No one hit him or anything, but when I went to ask him about it He started giving me a bunch of attitude about how he was a local and runs the place. When I simply asked if he was firmilar with the courtsey system and he just steped up his attitude. The guys with him didn't say a word and he left soon after that. I just wanted to see if anyone else out there ever had simlar experiences, and how they might handel somthing like this. I've never had anything but good times boating in Golden, but the locals only crap was not cool.
Well, as someone who was there, it would be one thing if you were ushering down a group and they had troubles and had missed the eddie and went through the hole. But, you guys were sitting above the hole for 10 minutes. Is everyone below just supposed to wait until you come through to take their turn on the feature. I know that if I am stopped above, I wait the 10-30 sec. until the poerson is done with their ride, before I head down, and usually am waved down, which **** did numerous times while you were sitting there. It is one thing to have upstream right of way, however to stop and wait 10 yards above in an eddie for 10 minutes and then head down when someone is in the feature does not seem courteous to me. You are already stopped and waiting, why not wait until that person if finished with his run?
my2cents
When in doubt about who had the right of way, offer an apology. If you know it was their fault and you feel you must confront them about it, then do it humbly. If they are cool they will say don't worry about it or "I'm sorry" and both of you will feel better, no matter whose fault it was.
If they respond disrespectfully then at least you tried. At that point, it becomes an exercise in anger management and what you do about it is totally up to you. At that point, all is fair.
It sounds like you may not have approached the guy humbly. If someone paddled up to me and asked me if I was familiar with the courtesy system I might get violent.
If your going to brag about being a local, then at least represent something besides Golden WWP. Seriously, that place sucks, especially this time of year. It's the equivalent of ski bumming at the base of Keystone, and then claiming locals only on all of the Green runs. I'm all for paddling in the off season, but don't pretend you own it.
I think I was as polite as I could be. Puma fish, One of the beginners was my son (age six) so if you didn't notice he dosen't have a lot of control yet. So if It seems like we took a few minutes so be it.
I would like to respond to the defamation of character that seems to be happening to me in this forum as I am the bastard "local" in Mr. James fable.
Here is what happened I was back surfing in the lowest hole in Golden when a kayaker plowed into me and forced me out of the hole and flipped me. I rolled and the beginner kayaker was very apolegetic and I told him that I had no worries. I noticed a group of kayakers above the hole that were sitting and talking I reentered the hole and the next thing that I noticed was another kayaker coming right at me. I eddied out and said to my friends that it seemed the lesson above did not include river manners. I did not give it another thought until approached very aggressively by a kayaker I can only assume is Mr. James who then grabbed my kayak and told me that his lesson had the right of way. I simply told him that he should call me next time I can use his hole and got out.
I don't generally reply to these types of forums, but I hope that this is perhaps therapeutic for James because clearly you must be suffering from hallucinations of people waving you down the river, perhaps it is from spending to much time typing and not enough time paddling. I sincerely wish you the best and I hope that perhaps this truthful account will ease your mind. Mahalo
That's funny, because I was there as well and I remember a paddler jumping into the hole while some from our group were en route for the hole. Funny how perspectives differ from person to person.
Well, I think all James is trying to get across is that he tried to ask the guy if he realized that we had beginners with us. I also believe he was trying to feel the guy out because we were getting ready to run it again and didn't want to have an accident with anyone. I think his intention was more geared to establish rapport with the paddler so he would recognize us later that day. Unfortunately this was not percieved by the other guy and I guess it got tense. Besides the paddler we are referring to, everyone was extremely polite and patient with us, that was the contrast of the whole situation.
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