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We offer customizable staff training sessions for groups of guides who have been hired to work in the San Juan Islands and beyond. Body Boat Blade has been running training programs for several kayak tour companies for over 16 years. We work closely with the owners and managers as we plan our trainings, keeping in mind that each organization operates a slightly different program and has specialized needs. We are sensitive to the different company cultures and so we avoid any sort of dogmatic approach to Best Practices. What we teach is strictly on-water skills and risk management, we know that you will have your own way to teach them the soft-skills that makes each company unique.
The goal of these trainings is to provide novice and veteran guides a meaningful learning experience that focuses on the specific skills that will help them to safely conduct tours. We provide a base level of personal kayaking skills and boat maneuvering, group management, trip planning, on and off water risk assessments, calling for help and liaising with the coast guard, and safety and rescue skills. We will provide a personalized, objective assessment for each participant on which skills they should focus on as they prepare to lead your customers on the water.
The feedback that we receive from the guides every year after completing the training is consistent. They tell us that one of the best results from the course is to alert them to their own personal shortcomings that they were previously unaware of. This raises their alertness and their ability to make accurate risk assessments on any given day. It also tends to inspire them to work on skills more in their free time, making them better leaders and more likely to return to the company for successive seasons.
We know that each tour outfitter teaches many of the same concepts that we will be covering. The advantage of running a formalized training session is that these concepts will be introduced from an objective third-party and therefore will reinforce what the employer has already said.
Let us help you to design a class that works for your seasonal staff. Contact us today.
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