NYCkayaker Downtown Boathouse 2009 Usage Counts
Graeme Birchall
Graeme_Birchall at verizon.net
Mon Jan 4 18:24:17 EST 2010
Greetings;
The Downtown Boathouse runs a free public kayaking program in New York
City between mid-May and mid-October. Any adult who shows up, and who
knows how to swim, can go kayaking in the Hudson - in the embayment next
to one of the Boathouse docks. Children can also go kayaking, in a
double kayak with an adult.
The kayaks used are broad, slow, sit-on-top kayaks (mostly Drifters by
Ocean Kayak) so the kayaking experience is decidedly limited. But the
boats are safe, and stable, and easy to control, so very suitable for a
public kayaking program.
Every participant has to sign a waiver, which is good for the season.
At the end of the season the waivers are counted to get an estimate of
how many people went kayaking during the year. Below are the numbers
for 2009:
KAYAKING LOCATION SEASON DURATION WAIVERS %%%%
======================= =============== ======= ====
Pier 40, West Village May 15 – Oct 15 10,462 37%
Pier 96, Clinton Cove May 15 – Oct 15 7,780 28%
72nd St. Riverside Park May 15 – Oct 15 7,893 28%
Hoboken – Maxwell Cove Five half-days 856 3%
Governors Island Four half-days 575 2%
DUMBO Cove, Brooklyn Three half-days 441 2%
Riverbank Park pool Winter weekends 50 0%
Other - 29 0%
----------------------- --------------- ------- ----
Total 28,086 100%
Below are the numbers for prior years:
<== Locations on Hudson River ==>
YEAR Pier26 Pier40 Pier96 72ndSt Other TOTAL
==== ====== ====== ====== ====== ===== ======
2009 - 10,462 7,780 7,893 1,951 28,086
2008 - 6,947 7,318 7,584 2,931 24,780
2007 - 5,232 6,149 9,529 1,190 22,100
2006 - 1,387 5,920 7,365 1,252 15,924
2005 12,417 - 735 8,945 856 22,953
2004 9,670 - - 6,951 1,267 17,880
2003 8,666 - - 3,829 1,098 13,480
2002 11,141 - - - 889 12,030
2001 10,200 - - - - 10,200
2000 7,600 - - - - 7,600
1999 6,700 - - - - 6,700
1998 5,400 - - - - 5,400
1997 2,800 - - - - 2,800
1996 1,200 - - - - 1,200
1995 100 - - - - 100
==== ====== ====== ====== ====== ===== =======
Total 75,894 24,028 27,902 52,096 11,434 191,354
Because of repeat visits, the total number of kayaks launched is more
than double the number of waivers signed. Thus we have launched more
than 400,000 kayakers since we started.
The Downtown Boathouse offers the following programs:
FREE WALK-UP KAYAKING: Any adult who shows up at one of our docks, and
who knows how to swim, can go kayaking in the Hudson - in the embayment
next to one of the Boathouse docks. Children can also go kayaking, in a
double kayak with an adult.
FREE DEMO-DAY EMBAYMENT KAYAKING: This program is the same as our main
walk-up kayaking program, except that we take some of our boats
elsewhere for several days in order to demonstrate the concept, and to
encourage safe boating. We have done demo days at the following locations:
- Governors Island
- DUMBO Cove in Brooklyn
- Central Park Lake
- Hoboken waterfront
- Jersey City Reservoir
FREE WEDNESDAY EVENING PUBLIC CLASSES: Every Wednesday evening the
Downtown Boathouse runs a free public class at the Pier 96 boathouse on
a kayaking or kayaking-related topic. Some classes are held in kayaks,
others are shore-based. They are ideal for beginner kayakers. The
topics covered include:
- Local Conditions. Hudson River tides, traffic, and wind.
- Boat (kayak) repair and construction.
- Paddle smart safety presentation (by Coast Guard Auxiliary).
- Forward Stroke Clinic. Efficient forward paddling in a kayak.
- Kayak Turns, using sweep and rudder strokes.
- Recovery and rescue: Getting back into a capsized kayak.
- Alternative Paddling, Polo racing, whitewater, etc.
- Kayak Swim support. Techniques for supporting swim events.
- Camping, Expeditions and Gear, Preparing for longer kayak trips.
- Cold Water Paddling. Equipment and techniques.
FREE HARBOR TRIPS: On most weekend mornings during the middle of summer
we run a free three-hour trip out on the harbor. The trips leave from
Pier 96, and go either north or south, depending on the tides. The trip
destination for each day is posted on our website.
These trips are an ideal way for beginner kayakers to experience
conditions on the harbor. To go on a trip, one must be at Pier 96
before 8AM on the day. If there are more people than boats, which is
often the case, we run a lottery to select who goes.
FREE COMMUNITY OUTREACH EVENTS: On weekday days we run organized
kayaking events for groups of children with special needs, children from
local schools, and persons from other non-profit community
organizations. Some of the organizations that we have run kayaking
programs for are:
- Center Against Domestic Violence
- Columbia Secondary School
- East Harlem Schools Organization
- Henry St Settlement
- Recycle-a-Bicycle volunteers
- Ronald McDonald House of NY
- Saint Francis School
- Stuyvesant High School
- The New York Harbor School
FREE VOLUNTEER CLASSES & TRIPS: The Downtown Boathouse is committed to
building a broad community of safe and responsible paddlers. To this
end, special classes and trips are provided for active volunteers, and
for volunteers from other free local kayaking organizations who want to
enhance their skills and/or start a similar free public kayaking program.
The volunteer classes start with the basics, but go all the way up to
very advanced levels. Volunteers who participate in the complete set of
classes, and who also go on the special volunteer trips, can become very
skilled kayakers in a single season.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
On behalf of the many thousands of people who went kayaking this past
season, I would like to thank the (hundreds of) volunteers that helped
out. Without them, none of this could have happened. Thanks again.
Happy and safe kayaking.
Graeme Birchall
Downtown Boathouse
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