The RSR 2 is a 1 day course designed for canoeists who wish to undertake relevant training in Safety and Rescue Techniques appropriate for Grade II water.

The RSR 2 aims to develop a culture of safety, awareness and proactive accident prevention in white water sports in Ireland.

Objectives of the RSR2

The RSR 2 aims to enable candidates to:

• Understand the appropriate equipment for Grade II water
• Develop an understanding of Safe Practices on Grade II water
• Execute self rescue on Grade II water
• Rescue of others in Grade II water
• Rescue of equipment in Grade II water

Course Outline

This is designed to be a flexible course depending on trainee’s needs and previous experience levels-notwithstanding this the core elements of the syllabus must include:

• Personal Equipment for Grade II
• Basic Hydrology/Dynamics of Grade II rivers
• Safe practices and accident prevention methods – CLAP (Communication, Line of Sight, Avoidance, Positioning)
• Risk Assessment & Decision Making on Grade II Rivers
• Safety Zones & Leadership
• Safe River Running Methods (Follow the Leader, Herd and Drive, Eddy Hopping, Leap Frog)
• Safe order of Priority
• Self Rescue - Defensive/Offensive swimming in Grade II
• Systematic approach to a rescue: Talk, Reach, Throw, Row, Helo (Talk – Command words, Reach – Reaching techniques, Throw – Throw rope rescues & stabilisation lines, Row – Chase boating, Barging, Towing, Carries, Rescues, Go – Shallow water crossing, Live bait rescues, Helo – Making emergency calls to rescue services)
• Progression of Extraction
• Knots
• Clipping in
• Effective Pulling
• Anchors
• Vector Pull
• Access & Egress

Recommended Equipment List for Participants:

• Wetsuit or Drysuit
• Thermals
• ISO/CE Approved buoyancy with integrated harness
• ISO/CE Approved helmet
• Adequate hard sole footwear
• Throw Bag
• Knife
• Whistle
• Mobile Phone
• One screw gate & one snap gate karabiner
• One 4 - 5 metre open sling

Additional Equipment that will be used for demonstration during the course

(equipment provided by instructors)

• First Aid Kit
• Kisu
• Spare Clothes
• Repair Kit
• Split Paddle
• Other essential gear

Guidelines:

• Applying to attend this course applicants must be of a Level 3 skills standard
• The RSR 2 course should be delivered and run on water of Grade II difficulty as part of a river trip
• It is recommended that RSR 2 certification be renewed at least once every 5 years
• Be registered as a member with Canoeing Ireland
• Ratio 1:6

This training course is a pre-requirement of the Level 4 Kayak Skills Assessment