Case Study

Post-Trip Summary: Using the Green-Amber-Red (GAR) model for a UC Davis research expedition on the Colorado River

Shared by James Fitzgerald, UC Davis Boating Safety Officer, Bodega Marine Lab

Many of these observations were being performed as a natural process of your guide training and experience.However, as you standardize your procedures for future trips, it may be helpful to add them to your check-list and expand on them for your participants. There is so much they can learn from each of the guides and can apply to their field planning strategies that will help with their research activities.

Excellent Pre-trip Instructions and Trip Expectations

  • Continue to update as necessary and for specific trip locations
  • Emphasize daily skin moisturizing and conditioning; some folks needed that extra reminder
  • Excellent Put-In discussion with Q&A by Head Guide and Trip Coordinator

To help the participants rely on a training experience in the event raft occupants become swimmers:

Water Exposure & Rescue

  • Upon arrival at camp on the first day provide cold water immersion and swimmer safety orientation.
  • Provide participants training for swimmer recovery techniques on to a raft while at camp.
  • Discuss signs and symptoms for hypothermia, crew communications and availability of active re-warming efforts for exposure.

To help the participants understand the Guides efforts and focus; as applied to field supervision and the level of training necessary to manage team dynamics and emergencies:

Guide Safety Strategies & Group Actions

  • Small overviews during the early phases of the trip for participants to understand the Guide’s risk management and emergency action strategies.
  • Review and reinforce communication expectations (verbal hand signaling)
  • Sharing guide insight for reading white water and rafting approaches
  • Standardized helmet plan for guide and group consistency
  • Conduct group de-brief following all significant events or as needed by guide suggestion
  • Conduct individual de-brief for all significant swimmer or hiking events and monitor individual physical and mental status
  • Continue to emphasize all hands participation for the group support activities, continue to have all participants share the jobs at camp
  • Great daily pre-briefs and de-briefs by Head Guide, Trip coordinator and Guide staff

To help the participants maximize their science presentations:

Field Talks & Participation

  • Encourage and schedule student presentations to be delivered during lunch hikes and camp hikes using the terrain and natural features
  • End of day only science talks may lose some effectiveness due to participant fatigue

Guide Staffing

Probably the most impressive aspect of the trip was guide team selection, fitness, knowledge and abilities:

  • Outstanding Colorado river knowledge and academic contributions
  • Expert communications and contingency planning
  • Excellent Outdoor Emergency Physician and First Responder staffing
  • Genuine expertise applied with sincere interest for the participants daily wellbeing, safety and learning experiences

Below is a trip Risk Assessment Example called the GAR Model, available online from the USCG as a worksheet:

GAR (Green/Amber/Red) Risk Assessment & Management Tool

OA & Watershed Sciences Grand Canyon Expedition Consortium trip risk summary

1 through 10 risk Score=1Low Risk –10High Risk

Supervision=Crew Qualifications / Experience / Communications-3

(New guides were adequately prepared and supervised for success, participants were monitored and all activities ensured accountability and personnel wellbeing)

Planning=Details / Clarity / Vessel Selection and Condition-2

(Rafts and crew were properly outfitted for successful excursion and provided with daily inspections and redundant back up equipment and emergency supplies)

Team Selection= Qualifications / Experience-3

(Head Guide and Experienced Guide selection was expertly chosen to rely on experience and offer instruction and mentor to new guides, extremely positive learning environment was fostered, unknown factors regarding participant abilities were expertly managed)

Team Fitness= Physical and Mental State-3

(Guides and participants were thoroughly monitored for conditioning and fatigue, all water and land excursions accounted for participants whereabouts and health and nourishment)

Environment= Water conditions / Weather, Visibility, Wind, Rain, Temperatures / Remoteness / Physical Terrain Plant and Animal Hazards-7 to 10

(Inherently dangerous terrain and challenging environment, with many extreme viabilities, excellent contingency planning and flexibility built into the schedule to account for all hazards)

Event/Evolution Complexity-5

(Daily routine and the assignment of individual duties was very well allocated to ensure mission success. Proper safety assessments and emergency planning meetings were expertly incorporated to account for the more technically challenging whitewater runs and day hikes and accounted for individual skill levels and personal conditioning)

Total Trip Risk Score-23-25Low to Moderate risk was assumed and proper management techniques applied to ensure an acceptable risk level was maintained throughout the expedition. During the higher class rapids on some days the total risk score spiked to around31-35due to Environment and Event/Evolution Complexity; however the Total Risk never exceeded an acceptable level, and participants were not placed in a position to take on an unnecessary level of risk. During one instance, “Guides Only” were allowed to transit a higher class rapid due to undeterminable factors and to protect participants from potential extreme risk.

I want to commend each of you for the exceptional effort and energy that you devoted to making the rafting trip safe, fun and educational. Rarely do we have the opportunity to assemble such a valued bunch of individuals and be able to provide our Graduate Students with an experiential learning opportunity that offers this much skill, talent and genuine passion for science and adventure.Through these collaborative efforts with Watershed Sciences and the unparalleled assemblage of rafting guides from the Outdoor Adventures program; you all have demonstrated what UC Davis is capable of, cutting edge and innovative approaches to education and science. I truly hope that the UCD Expedition Consortium is able to harness this momentum and steer these efforts into similar learning opportunities for generations of Graduate Students in the future. These are the experiences that last a life time and shape individuals for the betterment of themselves, the planet and their communities.