I'd read a few good reviews on great instructors so I decided to sign up for both the lake and river classes. I don't know where these instructors were. I certainly didn't have them. The lake lesson was ok except that the two instructors I had for the lake class were like good cop/bad cop. It was ridiculous. They couldn't agree on anything and had zero chemistry. The tension was palpable.
The whitewater class takes place outside the REI in Denver where swarms of kids and families are tubing. It's nearly impossible to learn to kayak the rapids when you're more worried about plowing over little children on inner tubes. The instructor spent more time running around with his God complex trying to prove that he was a big, tough hero than he did being an effective instructor. He spent the second half taking photos which he didn't bother to send as promised. The worst part for me was that every other word out of his mouth was an insult to the children and families that were on the river that day. Bigoted comments about weight and race rolled off his tongue every few seconds. It was not a fun experience and I was more excited for the lesson tto end than i was to learn any new skills. If all instructors are like this guy, it's no wonder not many people stick with kayaking.
Follow up emails to the shop have gone unanswered.
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