The Smart Start for Safe Paddling program is written and informed by the Boating Accident Reporting Database, Recreational Boating Statistics published by the U.S. Coast Guard, reports from American Whitewater’s accident database, and the Outdoor Foundation. ACA gratefully acknowledges the U.S. Coast Guard’s Boating Safety Division, American Whitewater, and the Outdoor Foundation for making valuable safety information publicly available. ACA also acknowledges support provided by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary’s Recreational Boating Safety Outreach Directorate for their support in interpreting boating safety data.
The program is also built upon the wealth of experience shared by the more than 50,000 paddling instructors certified through ACA programs. ACA highly values the skills, knowledge, experience, and commitment of the past, present, and future instructor cadre, and their tremendous contributions to boating education and safety.
These resources are intended to meet ACA’s educational guidelines and the evidence-based educational standards recommended by the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary’s B Directorate, as well as align with standards created by the National On-Water Standards program and the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA).
The Smart Start for Safe Paddling Book and accompanying Student Workbook were authored by Robin Pope, Kelsey Bracewell, and Brett Mayer.
Consultation and review of work which ultimately led to the development of these resources was provided by Anna Levesque, Ann Barry, Cody Jones, David Pope, Jerry Dunne, John Browning, Julie Munger, Larry Ausley, Mike Aronoff, Rachel Nagle, Roland McDevitt, Scott Fisher, Steven Henkind, Trey Rouss, Tom Burroughs, and William Holman.
Special thanks to Jim Emmons, Jonathan Hsieh, Pam Dillon, Robert Kauffmann, Verne Gifford, and Virgil Chambers. Their input and thoughtful commentary improved this work at several stages of development, and their contributions are gratefully acknowledged.