An open letter to the stand up paddle board industry
Change is coming. This letter was crafted by Warren Currie of Easy Rider and Dave Kalama with Imagine / Quickblade and sent throughout the industry this afternoon, published with permission from Warren Currie.
To Whom it May Concern,In light of the recent tragic event in the Gorge this past weekend, we are penning this Open Letter to the Stand Up Paddle Industry. We believe that we, as a collective industry, must take a vehement stand in the education and encouragement of the use of leashes on all types of SUP’s, on all types of water, and in all conditions.With the exponential growth of SUP, there are a great deal of boards being sold with very little safety education accompanying the sale. Like seat belts in cars, leashes save lives on SUP’s. If it is far enough to paddle – it is far enough to wear a leash.
A few ideas as to how to implement this are:
- A sticker on the tail of the board near the leash plug that states “Leashes Save Lives”
- Only showing images (both still and video) of paddlers that are using leashes. This is especially important in Manufacturers brochures and Industry publications (magazines).
- A Public Service Announcement video – featuring the top Pro’s in the industry advocating the use of leashes.
- Instructing Team Riders that they should be setting the example by always wearing a leash.
We need to educate our customers on how to safely use our products. Unfortunately, as is often the case, it takes a tragedy to create the momentum for positive change.
Thank you,
Warren Currie
Easy Rider
Dave Kalama
Imagine / Quickblade
This is a comp of the sticker that would go on the tail of the board near the leash plug:
Responses