Suggestion on marking gear
Posted: Mon Apr 19, 2010 7:25 pm
Our group on the Buffalo this weekend spent about an hour each day brousing the yards sales, and helping folks unpin the canoes they had rented or owned. We returned all the gear we found to their owners, but in no case was anything marked except the canoes from the liveries. Never did see one lawn chair, but it's owner wasn't willing to dive for it, and neither was I
Just an idea, but if everyone marked their gear (particularly before canoe school) you might get it back faster. If you didn't want to put down an address or phone number for some reason, you could add "Arkansas Canoe Club member" with your name and the finder might contact us and you could then contact them. Just an idea.
if you have black gear you want marked, a silver marker works fairly well, but doesn't last quite as long as a black on any other color. I find I have to redo my markings yearly with the silver on all my black paddles. I saw someone who used a pliable white paint marker on their neoprene booties once over in Georgia. He said he had to touch it up yearly, but he also added that the marking had gotten his gear returned to him 6 times, after being left behind at a take out or tossed in with someone elses gear and being road tripped to another state. He said he first did it jokingly so they could identify the body, but he is a firm believer in marking gear now.
Another crasy Idea - Just about every instructor has or has access to a permanent marker. Maybe all instructors could suggest or have their students mark their gear sometime during the schools, both the whitewater and the rec school. OF course this would mean the instructors would probably have to set an example by having their name on all their gear first. Just thinking...... Don't have my name on the Mongoose yet as I knew it was probably just passing through.
Have also seen some very artistic folks with a lot of time or money woodburn their contact info into the wooden gunnels of their wooden gunneled canoes. Script Lettering looked neat and had been done before the gunnels were oiled. My handwriting would never approach that class. They had also lightly wood burned the same info onto the bottom edge of the gunnels in case they were stolen (in a deeper and plainer script), and someone tried to sand off the top edge. You did not see the bottom lettering unless it was upside down and you were at the middle of the boat. The idea was that it wasn't where someone picking up the boat would see it.
Just an idea, but if everyone marked their gear (particularly before canoe school) you might get it back faster. If you didn't want to put down an address or phone number for some reason, you could add "Arkansas Canoe Club member" with your name and the finder might contact us and you could then contact them. Just an idea.
if you have black gear you want marked, a silver marker works fairly well, but doesn't last quite as long as a black on any other color. I find I have to redo my markings yearly with the silver on all my black paddles. I saw someone who used a pliable white paint marker on their neoprene booties once over in Georgia. He said he had to touch it up yearly, but he also added that the marking had gotten his gear returned to him 6 times, after being left behind at a take out or tossed in with someone elses gear and being road tripped to another state. He said he first did it jokingly so they could identify the body, but he is a firm believer in marking gear now.
Another crasy Idea - Just about every instructor has or has access to a permanent marker. Maybe all instructors could suggest or have their students mark their gear sometime during the schools, both the whitewater and the rec school. OF course this would mean the instructors would probably have to set an example by having their name on all their gear first. Just thinking...... Don't have my name on the Mongoose yet as I knew it was probably just passing through.
Have also seen some very artistic folks with a lot of time or money woodburn their contact info into the wooden gunnels of their wooden gunneled canoes. Script Lettering looked neat and had been done before the gunnels were oiled. My handwriting would never approach that class. They had also lightly wood burned the same info onto the bottom edge of the gunnels in case they were stolen (in a deeper and plainer script), and someone tried to sand off the top edge. You did not see the bottom lettering unless it was upside down and you were at the middle of the boat. The idea was that it wasn't where someone picking up the boat would see it.
