A Safety Code in Duotone

 

A Safety Code in Duotone

a Carolina Paddler Article

By Alton Chewning

–American Whitewater is our country’s premier organization for sharing river safety, conservation, management, and logistical information. AW was founded in 1954 as a non-profit and adopted its first Safety Code in 1959.  Throughout the years, AW would periodically update its Safety Code as equipment, knowledge and techniques evolved.  The last revision was in 2005.

This year a team of artists and safety experts have been reworking the presentation, and sometimes the content, of the Code, to breathe new life into the safety awareness.  The results are stunning–well organized and imaginatively delivered information that can help paddlers avoid injury and death.

In this article, Carolina Paddler will indicate a few things we like about the new Code, but the most important point to make is to please review the guidelines yourself and to share with friends.  There are so many simple things to do that could save your own life or that of a friend or stranger.  Wear a PFD.  We know that.  But what about this statement near the end of the Code, “Note that cold water immersion lengthens the time for potential resuscitation, sometimes up to 30 minutes after breathing has stopped. There is hope!”

The Code can be found on the American Whitewater site.  There’s a printable version, suitable for copying handouts at training sessions, and an online version for home study or mobile phone availability.  The team has worked to take ideas and move from printed instructions alone to a more illustrated approach.  Written concepts are supported by simple graphics containing enough details to make points boldly.  See this example below:

The information can be big and blunt:

Or it can be subtle. The lip of a helmet….

Below, graphics and notes underscore the precariousness of the Sweeper in a group paddle.  Here’s a bit of text, in italics, from the Code:

The sweep is more vulnerable: Recognize that it may take longer to reach the sweep in arescue situation, with the rest of the group already downstream of an incident.

This text is accompanied by an illustration depicting the vulnerability of the Sweeper and the responsible positioning of the Lead Paddler.

Section One: Preparedness and Responsibility gives a good indication of how the Code can be clear and pertinent but not always simple.  The opening statement is familiar to club members, “It is up to each participant to acknowledge, understand, and accept the risks inherent in river recreation.” What follows is a listing of responsibilities of paddlers, first with a continuation of the basics of Self Responsibility and then a discussion of Group Responsibility.

While we know most of these principles and try to apply them habitually, the Code challenges us on a deeper level.  Consider “Thinking Errors,” the Human Factor of paddling.  Here are two of the biases noted.

   “Cognitive biases: Thinking errors allow us to ignore pertinent data such as rising water levels or a partner’s obvious discomfort in an effort to stick to our original objective.

    Social pressures: Seeking the respect of our peers or knowing that other paddlers have recently had success on the same section of water can lead us to make poor decisions.”

Experienced paddlers are aware of these situations but how often do we just, “Stick with the original plan,” even though something about the circumstance makes us feel uneasy.  How often do we want to “Hold our own,” even though “our own” might not be fully present this day.  How often do we want to hang with the better paddlers to prove something to them or to ourselves?

While these tenets can be easily understood if not religiously practiced by us, what about the more difficult to comprehend?

   “Heuristic traps: Mental shortcuts can lead us to make poor decisions such as feeling pressure to run a river because of the fickle and sometimes fleeting nature of flows.”

This is more difficult to understand, at least for some of us.  What is “Heuristic?”

Merriam-Webster dictionary gives two definitions:

   (a) : involving or serving as an aid to learning, discovery, or problem-solving by experimental and especially trial and error methods.

   (b): of or relating to exploratory problem-solving techniques that utilize self-educating techniques (such as the evaluation of feedback) to improve performance.

Wanting to find another quick definition of heuristics, we went to Wikipedia.

    ” … simple strategies that humans….  use to quickly form judgments, make decisions and find solutions….”

    And “…answers and solutions that are most likely to work or be correct, [even if] they are not always right or the most accurate.”

Again, the AW Safety Code says, “Heuristic traps: Mental shortcuts can lead us to make poor decisions such as feeling pressure to run a river because of the fickle and sometimes fleeting nature of flows.”

So heuristic traps seem to mean something like, “We went to a river, after a big rain, and the water looks higher than expected, and we say to ourselves, this river seldom runs, let’s go for it. It was a long drive and today’s my day off. Might not get another chance to run this sucker.”

The Style of the Code

The presentation of the new AW Safety Code is beautifully done, the illustrations highlighted by two-tone graphics and simple, playful drawings.  The divisions of the Code are punctuated by striking images in shades of blue and red.

Or simple monochromatic sketches, finely done.

The 2024 update to the American Whitewater Safety Code has been several years in the making. The team at AW and the supporting artists, editors and educators deserve our heartfelt gratitude.  Their finely done Code may entertain and inform us, but it may one day save our lives.

The AW and Associates Team:

Charlie Walbridge, Safety Chairman

Clinton Begley, Executive Director

Safety Code Revision – Evan Stafford, Communications Director

Illustration and Design – Sarah K. Glaser of Glacier Lines

Editorial Assistance – Luc Mehl of Triple Point Training

Graphic Design – Sarah Lindsey Design

All illustrations in this article are courtesy of American Whitewater.

Special Thanks to Christopher Mattox, the Carolina Canoe Club’s Safety Chair, who made us aware of the new Code and suggested this article.