My point: you’ll always be able to find talented people to instruct formally and informally at symposiums. Heck, Roy is that you? Get Roy!

First, thanks for reading.

I agree at this point no-one, and I mean no-one is getting filthy rich on paddling. I think it’s more that the professional paddlers, expeditions, and blogging are upping the ante on what was once an unplowed field of amateurism.

My hope is that the approachability never changes. In running, cycling, and soccer there is an impermeable layer between the amateurs and the professionals that seems to exist and makes the world a smaller uglier place.

Keith

Interesting points, except no matter how good someone gets. They still don’t make much of a huge living doing symposiums or paddling around anywhere. Even with sponsorships, it’s a bleak paycheck and the sponsorships only alow the paddlers money to go a very small amount farther, and give a little more margin of safety on their trip. I don’t think that any of the paddlers I’ve ever met are in it for the money and many use the travel expenses payed by symposiums to be able to afford to visit family in the areas of the where the symposium in being held.

Paddling in of it’self is the addiction, not profit. If profit were the main factor, they would surely pick a differant venue.

I doubt that we will ever see a point where the “elite” paddlers will be too expensive but rather we could see them being too broke to be able to travel to some symposiums because of the time away from work and the economy eating away at the pay we all make. The ones fortunate to be able to take the time to travel, will of course possiably be too busy with all the new symposiums that keep cropping up.

The real key is to make sure that who you want to have at any symposium, has close family in the area of the symposium as an added incentive to pick your area for any particular weekend. I doubt that pay has ever been the incentive to do any symposium.

Just my thoughts
Best Wishes
Roy

I read your comments with interest. Just to clarify my point, I have never enjoyed travelogues, and not because of a recent invasion of kayakers around New Zealand. By that I mean a written story where the author concentrates on mundane details, instead of the big picture. For readers old enough to have heard Cheech and Chong’s “What I did on my Summer Vacation”, you might get my drift. Please note that I’m not talking about kayakers blogging their trips either. That is interesting in its own right to me, because it is live.

With the feeling that the major “firsts” are taken (which is subject to debate), there may be a growing trend to be the “fastest around”. Expect to see more wing blades and Valley Rapiers and similar kayaks. While I also like traveling light and fast I’d hate to see the main emphasis on long trips to be competition. Of course we are not bound to follow trends and can follow our own path…

Regarding commercialism and sponsorship, I’m not sure that we are on the verge of a new wave of sea kayak commercialism—but there are certainly many more people getting into kayak “expeditions”. That’s a good thing, IMO. Generally a long sea kayaking trip still involves a high amount of personal sacrifice (emotional and financial ). The experience is the reward.

One great thing about kayaking is still the accessibility of kayakers at all levels of the sport. Fortunately, I don’t see that changing anytime soon.