Elements and Performance Criteria
- Prepare for the rafting activity.
- Select clothing, footwear, personal protective, rescue and other equipment suitable for the trip conditions, and check for safe working condition.
- Prepare craft and complete safety and serviceability checks, including pressure checks on inflation.
- Waterproof, pack and stow clothing, personal resources, and food according to access requirements during trip.
- Interpret planned course from activity plans and maps to assist in following the course.
- Confirm activity safety and emergency response procedures to ensure compliance during activities.
- Confirm protocols for communications between team members.
- Fit and adjust personal protective equipment to ensure comfort and safety.
- Launch raft and complete participant drill.
- Select launch site according to river conditions and participant abilities.
- Board participants in seating positions appropriate to their paddling, swimming and physical abilities.
- Launch raft using technique suitable for river conditions and participant abilities.
- Inform participants of guide commands and strokes to be used.
- Demonstrate and explain correct stroke technique, and engage participants in practice.
- Check and confirm participant stroke abilities and understanding of communication protocols.
- Manoeuvre rafts on grade 4 rivers.
- Identify hydrological features from the water and utilise favourably to control and manoeuvre raft.
- Control direction of raft forward, in reverse and sideways using a range of appropriate strokes and combinations.
- Maintain appropriate posture, use of trunk rotation, paddle and blade to efficiently paddle the raft.
- Utilise appropriate padding strokes and techniques to cross currents and break into and out of eddies.
- Avoid or negotiate obstacles and hazards using a combination of strokes, paddling techniques and weight shifts.
- Maintain control over participant paddling, providing prompt and clear commands.
- Maintain visual contact and effective communication with participants, other rafts and guides in party throughout all activities.
- Monitor party formation paddling pace and space between rafts and make required adjustments.
- Plan and run routes through grade 4 rapids.
- Scout rapids from the water and shore to identify hydrological features, hazards and impediments.
- Assess features and hazards to determine a safe route through rapids.
- Plan route through rapids accounting for participant abilities; communicate route, strokes and manoeuvres.
- Identify reference points to guide chosen passage through rapids.
- Run predetermined route using avoidance techniques and commands to safely negotiate river hazards.
- Use efficient paddling techniques and strokes and utilise hydrological features to assist in turning and crossing currents.
- Perform swimmer and capsize rescues.
- Assist ejected participants in moving water using reach techniques and assist to re-enter raft.
- Rescue self in water, maintaining position upstream of raft, retrieve paddle and re-enter craft.
- Promptly reach and recover capsized raft using techniques to re-establish upright raft.
- Manage capsize response of participants and take actions appropriate to situation.
- Land and secure rafts.
- Select a suitable location to exit the river, and to allow for any subsequent re-entries.
- Land and disembark raft using techniques suitable for river conditions and participant abilities.
- Select a secure bank feature and secure raft using appropriate knots.
- Secure raft for road transport, on activity conclusion, using suitable methods.