River Rescue & Safety Training

River Rescue Essentials

(9 hour, one day intensive course)

Goals

• Become clear, aware, confident, and safe while moving downriver.

• Learn to be “receptive” to the river, its conditions, and those around you.

• Develop decision making skills to avoid danger and mitigate risk.

• Practice rescue plans in scenario based team oriented drills.

• Practice individual tests to gain clarity on personal limitations.

• Explore personal challenges in a group setting.

• Learn to develop boundaries with team members and avoid drama.

• Learn how to work and make decisions while cold, hurt, or exhausted.

• Learn how to work and make decisions around others.

• Become confident through experience developing hard skills.

• Learn how to develop a personal training regimen to retain skills.

• Learn how to be a supportive team member without stroking egos.

• Examine how stereotypes and gender roles inhibit team performance.

• Become aware of ego and hubris, and develop skills to avoid and work with them.

• Become aware of dissociation and its typical role in incidents and rescues.

• Develop systems of care for yourself and team members post rescue.

• Remain focused and aware while outside of your comfort zone.

• Allow yourself to fail in a safe environment, so you can succeed in an unsafe one.

Course Curriculum

Our Curriculum is focused on the skills most applicable to safety and prevention of injury, and follows this outline:

On Land

• GAR

  • stamina, nutrition, hydration, fitness, team

• Legal Liability

• Communication

  • On River hand signals

  • Verbal communication (copy, roger, etc.)

• PPE

• Complex Risk Analysis

  • Risk Formula (x and y axis)

  • Danger Algebra (exponential risks with multiple risk factors)

  • The Human Factor

  • Note: Our method of risk analysis utilizes “root cause analysis” systems to identify subtle mistakes in the early planning stages that lead to harm (example; alcohol and drugs).

• Hypoxic CPR

• Throw bag toss

• Knots

  • bowline

  • figure 8

  • prussic

  • water

  • double fisherman

  • Note: We do not teach knots in class; these are a part of the online training modules.

• 3-1, 5-1, 7-1 Z drags

  • anchors

    • basket

    • girth

On River

• Whitewater swimming

  • swiftwater entry move defensive

  • aggressive

  • eddy twists

  • crossing rivers/currents

• Throw bag rescue

  • static vs. dynamic belay

• Tethered swimmer rescue awareness (optional)

  • Note: Not every person in a team needs to be a “strong swimmer” in order for this rescue to be effective.

• Shallow water crossings

  • solo

  • A frame

  • pivot

  • foot entrapment prevention and rescue

  • Note: Foot entrapment extrication is almost always a body recovery, so we focus on prevention.

• Raft flip recovery

  • single person flip recovery

  • tandem and team flip recovery

  • situational flips (shallow water vs. deep water)

  • flip recovery for normal people who can’t climb on top of a raft

  • Note: Raft flip recovery is the single most significant factor in raft fatality prevention.

• Lines across the river (pick one)

  • tension D

  • hasty D

  • tethered craft

Course Cost: $250 per student, $1250 private course

*Online modules are 1-2 hours of additional time.

*One zoom meeting with instructor included.

Request More Information

Phone: 360-510-1243