A special McMinnville pool session - rescuing folks in boats with no bulkheads. - L1 - T2692

When
November 14, 2026
8:30 AM
Location
McMinnville Aquatic Center
Spaces left
7
Registered
2 registrants

Registration

Members with wet exit certification
Active club members with wet exit certification, including kayaking professional and lifetime.
TO and Safety
Password Reserved for TO use

Full Name:: Brenda Brewer
Narrative:: A special McMinnville pool session - rescuing folks in boats with no bulkheads.
We have new paddlers in OOPS, some of whom have boats like Traks and Orus. We also have highly experienced paddlers with beautiful skin-on-frame boats. What these boats all have in common is a lack of bulkheads or hatches. They may have floatation bags, but when they capsize, they fill with a lot of water. How can we safely rescue someone with one of these boats? Come find out on Sat 11/14 at the McMinnville pool!

The McMinnville Aquatic Center is just an hour South of Portland. Don Beale and Steve Carrigg will bring their skin-on-frames, and will teach us how to safely empty a very full and very heavy boat. The pool is available to kayakers from 8:30 - 10 am. If we finish our skills session early, we can play with other stuff.

We need to keep this a small group, as this is the smaller McMinnville pool. We don't want to overwhelm their staff or wear out our welcome, so let's have our TO's sign up first please. Of course, if you have a Trak, ORU, or skin on frame boat, you're welcome to sign up and bring your boat. Please wear your helmet, spray skirt, PFD, and if you get chilled easily, you might want some sort of immersion wear like a Farmer John's or a shortie wetsuit. There are showers and changing rooms; you might want to bring a towel and a set of dry clothes. You might want to bring something to drink, as this can be thirsty work. And like always, we will help each other with our boats.

Cost: $6.00 admission at the McMinnville Pool. Pay at the desk (OOPS is not charging for this).

This is our first group session at the McMinnville Pool - if it goes well, we can do others. If you have skills sessions you'd like to do there, kindly let one of the organizers know..

Meeting Time:: 8:30:00 AM
Launch Time:: 8:45:00 AM
Type of activity:: Paddle Trip
Put in:: McMinnville Aquatic Center. 138 NW Park Drive. McMinnville, OR 97128
Take out:: McMinnville Aquatic Center. 138 NW Park Drive. McMinnville, OR 97128
Route Alternative for bad weather:: N/A
Required equipment:: Helmet
Minimum Immersion protection:: None
Primary Organizer:: Brenda Brewer
Co-Organizer(s):: Steve Blackwood, Don Beale, Steve Carrigg
Has organizer paddled here before?: Yes
Has organizer led an OOPS paddle here before?: No
Organizer's first aid and CPR current?: Yes
First Aid /CPR Person::
Maximum number of paddlers:: 9 (4 organizers, 5 paddlers)
I certify that I understand and will conduct this activity in accordance with the OOPS Activity Policy:: Yes
Estimated Air Temperature:: 65
Estimated Water Temperature:: About 80
Estimated Water Time (including breaks/lunch):: 1.5 hours
Tide times & heights:: N/A
Current information:: N/A
Hazards::
Wind strength:: Level 1: 0-7 knots (8 mph)
Waves, Swell, Breaking Waves: Level 1: Under 1' waves, no breaking waves
Sea state:: Level 1: Waves up to the deck seam; water glassy to rippled, no whitecaps
Landing types:: Level 1: Frequent easy landing opportunities including gently sloping, sand, gravel or grass
Currents:: Level 1: None or mild (less than 1 knot)
Total distance:: Level 1: Up to 6 miles
Open crossing:: Level 1: Less than 0.5 miles
Paddling Environment::
Overall rating:: Level 1
Rating Comments:: Spray skirt still required, as are helmets and pfd's.
Location:: McMinnville Aquatic Center. 138 NW Park Drive. McMinnville, OR 97128
Photos (Optional)::
COVID-19 Status of Trip:: Participants of this trip may, or may not, be vaccinated for Covid-19
Tide Station:: N/A
Link to map of route (Optional):
:
Put in::
:
undefined:
undefined:
undefined:

Comments and Discussion

Oregon Ocean Paddling Society
Portland, Oregon