Lead A Pool Session
Advance Preparation for the Pool Session
- If you don't have it already, get the filing cabinet combination from the vice president.
- If you will be needing access to the equipment room, contact they vice president fill out the door combination release form and learn door code.
- If you're unfamiliar with leading pool sessions or would like a refresher, arrange a meeting with the vice president.
- Be sure you have the equipment room combination before Sunday morning.
- Print out this page to have as a reference and read it over before going to the pool session. It may seem pretty long at first, but that's because if contains just about everything you'll ever need to know to run a pool session. Running pool sessions is pretty easy; this document's purpose is to make sure you have all the answers you might conceivably need readily available.
Loading Up
Two things should happen at the WAC before driving over to the pool.
- new members and old members renewing their membership should fill out their forms
Each person should fill out the following three forms:
All of these forms are kept in boxes on the desk next to the door.
Make sure the following are clear to new members:
- all forms are double sided: the front and back of each form must be filled out
- faculty, staff, spouses, and partners must pay an additional WAC fee unless they are IMA members
- the "interests" on the back of the membership data sheet define what email lists the new members will be added to
Additionally, new members should also be given the UKC Information Sheet for them to keep as a reference.
The most commonly asked questions about the forms are
- Can people sign up as lake members and upgrade later to river/sea if they decide they want to go on trips? The answer is yes, they can. Upgrading from independent membership is also possible if, for example, a sea kayaker with their own sea equipment decides they want to use club whitewater equipment.
- Is it OK to initial on the wet exit and bow rescue parts of the before going to the pool? The odds of someone failing a swim test are so low that it is reasonable. However, these two items will be removed from future versions of the member data form, so it's no big deal if they're not initialed.
Having people fill out their forms before the pool session starts is important, as a completed waiver card and membership data form are required in order to participate in any club activity, including pool sessions. Check both sides of all of the forms to make sure people have filled everything out (it's amazing how often people miss things) before heading to the pool. It's easiest to leave all the paperwork in a neat stack at the WAC—forms tend to go missing if they make the journey to the pool and back or people have to hang on to them too long.
- the pool session gear needs to be assembled and loaded
Bring
- enough whitewater boats to go around and provide a boat which fits everyone; 14 boats is the maximum allowed in the pool (most people will fit in most boats, though tall paddlers will need the Frankenstein, Vortex, or Crossfire, and smaller paddlers will want smaller boats)
- enough nylon sprayskirts/spraydecks for all of the boats (do NOT bring neoprene rubber skirts to the pool; chlorine will destroy the neoprene); these are on the rack below where the sponges are kept and it's easiest just to grab all of them
- enough paddles for everyone
- several sponges for washing boats
- the hose for washing boats
- two or three water (bilge) pumps for pumping boats out in the pool
- the big blue bucket for carrying things, especially wet sprayskirts after the pool session
Ropes to tie boats onto cars are on the pegs above the whitewater paddles. The big bucket makes a handy container for carrying the sprayskirts, sponges, pumps, and hose. Loading goes fastest if you ask people familiar with pool sessions to help get all the gear together and put boats on cars—at least one or two other paddlers familiar with how pool sessions go usually show up.
Sometimes, there aren't enough cars to haul all the boats over to the pool in one trip. The easiest way to deal with this is to take a first load of gear and people over and get started on washing the boats (see below) while a second run is made to bring the rest of the stuff to the pool. In extreme cases, boats and other equipment have been carried over to the pool by hand.
If a large number of people show up for the pool session, it's easiest to open up the big purple rolling door. You'll be able to open this from inside. Make sure both doors are locked and closed when you leave for the pool. Heed the sign about locking both chains for the big door.
Occasionally, pool session attendance is dominated by old members simply needing to renew their membership.This usually happens early in the fall when memberships expire and again when the weather first gets good in the spring. These people generally aren't interested in staying for the skills part of the pool session, so the number of boats needed may be significantly less than one boat per person. This is contingent on how you choose to run the pool session (see below). When in doubt, ask people what their plans are. Shuttling unnecessary gear back and forth rapidly becomes time consuming, but is better than not having enough to go around.
Pool Preparation
Boats should be cleaned thoroughly both inside and out using the sponges, pumps, and hose. Float bags are occasionally left in the boats and should be removed prior to cleaning as they trap stuff in the boats, particularly sand and dirt. Spray water into all areas inside a boat's hull, slosh it around, and empty out the boat. Spray down the outside of the hull, sponge it down, and rinse it off. There should be no sand, gravel, sediment, leaves, etc. left in or on the boats which could pollute the pool—in the past, the club has been threatened with expulsion from the pool for bringing in dirty boats.
Boats are usually cleaned using the faucet across from the pool doors, but they can also be cleaned using the faucet at the WAC. It is up to the pool session leader to decide where the boats are cleaned.
Do not enter the pool building or the pool until the lifeguard is there. If the swim team lane lines are still in the pool (they usually are), have pairs of people loosen up the hooks holding the ends of lane lines in place and tow the lines off to the sides of the pool. It takes a good pull to bring the lines up over the edge of the pool, but getting them out of the pool is not too difficult. Once the lines are out of the water, they can be left running along the sides of the pool.
Members should change and take showers before getting into the pool. As new members come back from changing, have each of them pick a boat and adjust its bulkhead or foot pegs to fit them. They should also find a sprayskirt which fits well on their boat and get a paddle.
Swim Tests
Get the swim test clipboard from the lifeguard and have all new and rejoining members fill in their names. Note that the lifeguard is responsible for initialing the swim test form, not you.
While the clipboard is going around, cover basic pool etiquette. The main points are
- don't bash the boats into the sides of the pool
- don't launch boats into the pool by hopping off the side of the pool; this is unnecessarily hard on both the boat and the pool
- don't empty boats into the pool, as this tends to get grit in the pool—water sprayed from pumps should go outside the pool, and flooded boats should also be emptied outside of the pool
- haul flooded boats out of the pool sideways by the cockpit, not by the bow or the stern (hauling by one end of the boat collects all of the water in the hull at the other end of the boat and runs the risk of bending the hull)
Explain the swim test. The steps are:
- get into boat with spray skirt and paddle, making sure the loop on the spray skirt is out
- capsize
- slap the bottom of the boat at least three times; these should be calm, slow, and there should obviously be at least three of them
- pull the skirt off with the grab loop
- slide out of the boat, ideally holding onto the boat and the paddle in the process
- swim with the boat and the paddle to the other end of the pool and back again without touching the sides or bottom of the pool
If there are old members renewing their memberships or other experienced paddlers handy, have one of them demonstrate the swim test for the new members.
As each person completes their swim test, record if the new member has passed or failed. Failure is extremely rare, though occasionally people become very nervous about capsizing, forget to slap the boat, and have do the test a second time. If they pass, have them sign their statement of individual responsibility.
Once everyone has taken their swim tests, return the swim test clipboard to the lifeguard.
If old members renewing their memberships just want to pay and leave, it's OK to take their money, write receipts, and hand out membership cards at the pool (see paperwork steps in Back at the WAC, below). Whether or not this is done is up to the pool session leader. If you choose to do this, it's generally best left until all the swim tests are over—doing paperwork and keeping an eye on the swim tests at the same time is pretty much impossible. New members should stay for the skills session and the equipment tour.
Basic Paddling Skills Session for New Members
After the swim tests are over, conduct an introductory skills session for new members who are unfamiliar with how to paddle a kayak. The most important topics to cover are
- fundamental paddling strokes: forward stroke and sweep stroke
- hip snap and bow rescues (bow rescues are required for the member data form)
People pick up the strokes easily, but it's good to demonstrate the hip snap and how it works in a bow rescue before having new members try it. It's often best to have people rescue you first so they can get the hang of it. Most people benefit from getting a feel for the hip snap along the side of the pool before pairing up and trying bow rescues. It's also common for people to want to ease into the process by using the bow of their partner's boat like the side of the pool before attempting a full bow rescue. Encourage people to take initiative in improving their paddling skills—if people want to learn something, it's their job to find someone to teach them.
The most important thing here is the hip snap, as it's fundamental to effective edging, good bracing, reliable bow rescues, and a bombproof roll.
Have people get out of the pool a bit before 11AM and collect the boats and all the gear at one end of the pool. This gets everything out of the way of the next group using the pool while kayakers are showering and changing.
With people who pick up bow rescues quickly, it's highly desirable to discuss
- edging to avoid flipping on eddylines and for turning sea kayaks
- bracing
While there's no good way to simulate eddylines in a pool, practicing edging and bracing is pretty easy.
With edging, stress the difference between using a hip snap to angle the boat and leaning to angle the boat. A good way to start is to have people rock their boats back and forth and then try to stop the motion at the extremes of the rock. Once they get that down, have them try to paddle straight while continuously holding as much edge as they can.
While people can obviously work on their braces individually by starting to capsize and attempting to keep the boat upright, this can be frustrating for beginners who keep capsizing and having to wet exit. Having a partner available to provide bow rescues makes the learning process go much faster. Alternatively, people can work in pairs at the shallow end of the pool. One person stands on the bottom of the pool and tries to flip the other person, who is in a kayak. When the kayaker goes over, the person standing can provide a modified bow rescue.
Back at the WAC
Take all of the equipment back to the WAC and put it away. In particular, be sure the sprayskirts get taken out of the bucket and hung up to dry. The skirts often get left in the bucket and become rather noisome by the next pool session.
Take money from new members and any renewing members who haven't paid. For each person, make sure to
- fill out the receipt log
- write up a receipt in receipt book
- write date, receipt number, and your initials on the back of their membership card
- give each person the white part of their receipt and their membership card, making sure to differentiate between the cards for lake and river/sea members (independent members do not get cards)
The receipt book and the receipt log are kept in the "Current Receipt Book" folder in the top drawer of the filing cabinet. The membership cards are kept in a box along the side of the same drawer. After dialing in the combination on the filing cabinet's lock, you'll need to push the hasp into the lock in order to release the lock. You can save yourself some work by having people fill out the front side of their membership cards.
Give a tour of kayak room. Points to cover are:
- where equipment is stored and what it's used for (whitewater, sea kayaking, and polo)
- PFDs are required when paddling on the lake or anywhere else (US Coast Guard and club safety regulation)
- only club members are allowed to use UKC equipment, NO EXCEPTIONS, including the double
- how to access the club room. Proper procedure is to fill out the door combination release form and learn the door code.
- filling out the equipment use forms on the desk
- what constitutes an official club trip (minimum of three UKC members, one of which must be an official trip leader)
- where boats can be paddled without being on an official club trip
- all of Lake Washington
- all of Portage Bay
- all of Lake Union
- the ship canal out to—but not through!—the Ballard Locks
- no putting club gear in or on cars and taking it places without being on an official club trip
- the club is organized on the basis of member initiative; if people want something to happen, it's their job to make it happen—the information sheet and the web site have more information about how the club works and who to contact
- answer any questions people have
In short, put a boat in the water at the WAC and paddle wherever you want so long as the water stays fresh
Take a minute to finish up the paperwork.
- Fill out the bottom of each person's membership data sheet.
- Put the membership cards back in the filing cabinet.
- Put the money from people who have paid in the "Take to Bank" folder.
- Put the receipt book and receipt log in the "Take to Bank" folder.
- For each new member, staple paperwork together in the following order:
- Waiver Card - data side facing up
- Membership Data Sheet - data side facing up
- Statement of Individual Responsibility - front side facing up
- Place all the paperwork of the new members WHO HAVE PAID in the file labeled "To Be Entered in Web Database"
- Place all the paperwork of the new members WHO HAVE NOT PAID in the file labeled "Needs to Pay"
Close and lock and the filing cabinet and the kayak room. If you don't scramble the combination of the lock on the filing cabinet, it won't stay closed.
Thank you for leading a pool session! You have helped the club immensely by performing this indispensable task.