July 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 50

OPERATIONS
Ensuring Kayak Launches
Are Adaptive and Inclusive
By Lori Limpar
W
hen you enter a kayak and push off into a river or stream
and propel around a body of water, nature surrounds you
at every level. Paddling and exploring the water bring families
and friends together, connect people to nature, and
promote exercise and wellness. Kayaking is an activity that almost anyone
can participate in - young and old, novice and experienced, and people
with mobility limitations and physical disabilities. It's easy to understand
why the popularity of paddle sports continues to grow.
The Benefits of an
Adaptive Kayak Launch
For paddlers with disabilities, paddling
offers rehabilitation and socialization.
Adaptive paddlers describe
the freedom of leaving their
wheelchairs and transitioning into
a kayak as " liberating. " While there
have been steady improvements in
Americans
with
Disabilities
Act
(ADA) accessibility at parks and
recreational facilities, most water access
points continue to be designed
with minimum ADA standards and
assistive
features,
excluding paddlers
with moderate to severe disabilities
from participating.
More important than the number
of access points at recreational facilities
is the quality of the accommodations
offered at launch sites.
All too often locations deemed accessible
cannot be used by paddlers
who require
additional
features.
Ultimately, the goal is to enhance
the paddling experience for everyone
on the water.
The Three Most Common
Challenges Faced by
Adaptive Paddlers
1. Kayak launches are designed by individuals
with limited understand50
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ing of the additional features paddlers
with disabilities require to enter
and exit paddling vessels safely.
2. Barriers to participation are not
recognized and are overlooked.
3. Additional features required by
adaptive athletes are missing or
not developed to the extent necessary,
creating additional barriers
that result in the need for
lifting, tugging or pulling, as well
as the possibility of tipping over
and possible injury to paddlers
and volunteers.
Simply put, accessible and adaptive
are not synonymous when it
comes to accessing the water for
paddling or kayaking. Launches
designed with minimum standards
of accessibility often will exclude
paddlers
who
need
additional
adaptive features the most. This
oversight is never the intention of
parks, communities and municipalities
looking to create universal
access, but sadly it happens. Accessible
features will get you to the
water, and adaptive features will
get you into the water.
If gaps in diversity, equity and
inclusion are to be bridged, the best
solutions should come from paddlers
who understand the barriers
to inclusion. While there is no one
launch that will serve 100 percent
of paddlers' needs or remove 100
percent of the barriers, education,
understanding and improved access
points with additional adaptive
features will enhance the paddling
experience for most paddlers.
Ensuring Inclusivity
How can park and recreation professionals,
architects,
engineers
and
community stakeholders ensure
their kayak launch has adaptive
features that include the widest
range of users?
1. Design kayak and canoe launches
with adaptive paddlers in mind.
2. Educate themselves and others
about the adaptive features that
will enhance the paddling experiences
for adaptive paddlers and
all users of the launch.
3. Understand accessible launches
may look good to able-bodied
paddlers, but may end up excluding,
rather than including, paddlers
with disabilities due to the
lack of adaptive features, incorrectly
designed features or overlooked
barriers.
The greatest difficulty reported
by most paddlers is getting in and
out of their vessels. Upon entry,
kayaks and canoes can tip, shift
or roll over. Adaptive features can
ensure safe access in and out of
the water and allow paddlers with
disabilities to independently enter
and exit their vessel. As recreation
stakeholders, we all share responsibility
for shaping the future of our
country's outdoor spaces, supporting
an inclusive lifestyle and improving
quality of life for all.
Lori Limpar is Content Manager at
BoardSafe Docks (info@
boardsafedocks.com).
July 2023 - Parks & Recreation

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