Quote:
Originally Posted by Cal
Sometimes you are your own worst enemy  . So with your impressive boating experience resume above you "think" that qualifies you to be called "very experienced"? You sound very well trained. Experience comes from time and mileage , not classes or text books. |
For your information 99% of my "classes" have taken place out on the water. You guys say that the problem is boater education, yet when I bring up my own education, you rip me apart (yet again).
I'm really sick of others here making statements about how inexperienced I am - when I can almost guarantee that I can out kayak and out sail most of you. This is supposed to be a community forum - not a place to personally attack anyone who doesn't happen to agree with you. I would hate living in a world where everyone agreed with me (That would be a really boring place.), but I always try to respect the views of others. However, I quickly lose respect for anyone who has to stoop to personal attacks to debate an issue.
Dictionary defintiion: Experienced: –adjective
| 1. | wise or skillful in a particular field through experience: an experienced teacher."
—Synonyms 1. skilled, expert, practiced, veteran, accomplished, versed, adept, qualified.
|
Since I am very skilled, practiced, accomplished, versed, and adept at kayaking, that means that I should be able to say that I'm very experienced at kayaking. Since my kayak is a boat - that gives me the right to state that I'm a very experienced boater. You you think that I am exaggerating my skill, you're invited to try kayaking with me anytime.
I'm a competing member of one of the top colligiate sailing teams in North America - and I'm a NCAA athlete and a registered member of the Inter-collegiate Sailing Association of North America. So I have proof that I'm qualified - by the governing authority for sailing competition.
From collegesailing.org:
"College sailing began on an informal, club basis in the 1890's, and organized racing started in 1928. It has grown to include more than 200 active colleges, and racing now occurs on every weekend during fall and spring seasons and on many weekends during the winter. It is a truly coeducational sport, and it has proved itself the best incubator for the development of racing skills. Former college sailors have always numbered significantly among Olympic medallists and America's Cup competitors."
Experience is not solely based on the time you spend doing somthing - it is also based on your level of skill. You could do something for decades, but never become very skilled at it. For example, if you have skiied for 20 years, but never advanced beyond the beginner's slopes, most other skiiers would not consider you to be an experienced skiier - you would still be a beginner in their eyes. Yet someone who wins downhill races is considered to be a very experiened skiier, no matter how long they have been skiing.
Competitive colliegate sailing requires a very high degree of skill. It is very different from recreational sailing - we are always pushing ourselves and our boats to the limits - but we do so while following all the racing rules of sailing. My coach would not allow me to compete unless I had the skill to do so.
And there's a huge difference beween paddling 800 miles under your own power and putting 800 miles sitting on the padded seat of a powerboat, where a motor does all the work. I've operated a powerboat, so I know that it takes a lot more skill to paddle a sea kayak, or to sail a racing boat successfully - expecially in some of the conditions that I have experienced.
Yes, there are more experienced kayakers and sailors than me. But that does not mean that I am not very experienced at what I do. A person is judged by their peers - my peers consider me to be a very experienced boater.