To date, 2025 has seen what could be called a dramatic divergence from the status quo for the paddling industry, and with it, stark dualities. This spring, the stability of the public lands American paddlers rely on came into question, just as a new survey shared outdoor participation has never been higher. Meanwhile, the U.S. Coast Guard reported boating deaths on the whole are at a 50-year low, only to also reveal SUP fatalities are on the rise. These are just the start to the conflicting current events the industry is navigating today.
News the paddlesports industry is talking about
Public lands spared for now as Congress slashes programs
In June, NRS Marketing Director Mark Deming published an opinion editorial in the Idaho Statesman, describing the economic boost that public lands provide to NRS and other outdoor-focused businesses. Deming’s voice was one of many pushing back against the proposed sale of public lands in the federal tax and spending bill, aka The Big Beautiful Bill, and the public outcry had the intended effect: a proposal to sell off up to 3.3 million acres of land managed by BLM and the U.S. Forest Service was stricken from the bill.
“Politicians listen when businesses speak,” Deming says. “I wish that individual voices held as much weight but that is the world we live in.”
Even without the public land sale, the bill proposes sweeping rollbacks to climate, conservation and public land protections. The legislation rescinds all unobligated Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds designated for forest restoration, wildfire mitigation and forest conservation programs. The cuts would impact forested river corridors, says American Whitewater Director of Policy and Science Thomas O’Keefe, who read the entire bill with an eye for provisions that could impact river-runners and the paddling industry. The bill also cuts funding for NOAA programs that support climate forecasting, marine sanctuaries, and—whitewater boaters take note—river flow data.
The proposed legislation also takes aim at Alaska’s wild rivers, mandating at least 20 million acres be opened to oil and gas drilling over the next 10 years in the Western Arctic, a remote landscape known for wilderness river journeys on the Colville, Utukok, Kokolik and Kukpowruk rivers. It contains provisions designed to expand coal and timber extraction from public lands. It cuts National Park Service staffing, including river rangers. Finally, a last-minute amendment proposes up to $1 billion to raise the Shasta Dam in California, which would inundate sacred sites of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe and drown a spectacular stretch of whitewater on the lower McCloud River.
Big, yes. Beautiful? You be the judge.
Diverse communities drive participation gains
Outdoor recreation participation hit a record high in 2024, with 181.1 million Americans—nearly 59 percent of the population aged six and up—taking part in activities like hiking, camping and paddling. The growth wasn’t just in numbers, but also in diversity. Youth (+5.6 percent), seniors (+7.4 percent), and underrepresented groups including Black (+12.8 percent) and Hispanic (+11.8 percent) participants all saw significant increases in the latest Participation Trends Report from the Outdoor Foundation and Outdoor Industry Association.
High-income households and high school graduates without college degrees also saw double-digit gains. The number of white and Asian/Pacific Islander participants declined slightly.
Still, the overall trend suggests a long-term demographic shift in the outdoor recreation space. Core participants—those who recreate frequently—increased by five million to 93.4 million, reversing a decade-long decline. Notably, Black core participation jumped 11.4 percent and Hispanic core participation rose 5.7 percent. The data suggest sustained growth and increasing diversity in the outdoor community—an encouraging signal for paddlesports and other activities historically lacking representation. Find more info at outdoorindustry.org.
Boating deaths hit 50-year low but SUP fatalities spike
Boating deaths in 2024 were the lowest they’ve been since the U.S. Coast Guard began collecting statistics more than 50 years ago. Overall boating fatalities in the U.S. decreased 1.4 percent to 556, according to the U.S. Coast Guard’s Boating Statistics 2024. The positive trend was tempered by an increase in paddling fatalities, which accounted for about one in every three boating accidents in the United States last year. SUP fatalities surged 163 percent, to 40 people.
Vessels operated by people who had not received boating safety instruction accounted for roughly 70 percent of the fatalities. Lack of instruction was a through-line in all boating incidents, from motorboats to jet skis and paddlecraft.
Drowning accounted for three-quarters of deaths, and 87 percent of drowning victims were not wearing life jackets. Those key takeaways won’t surprise anyone who has worked as a paddling instructor, guide or livery hand, but they do serve as a reminder to model safe behaviors to customers.
PTC Colab event moves to Charlotte
The Paddlesports Trade Coalition (PTC) will host its second annual PTC Colab event October 16 to 18 at the U.S. National Whitewater Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The event will run in partnership with the ACA PaddleFest, celebrating 145 years of the American Canoe Association.
The PTC Colab was originally scheduled to return to Oklahoma City for a second year, but the synergy with Charlotte and the ACA was too good to pass up, says PTC Executive Director Jeff Turner.
“We love the Oklahoma City whitewater park and had great conversations with our partners there, but when the ACA invited us to collaborate during their 145th anniversary celebration in Charlotte, it made sense to bring our event there,” Turner says.
The event will coincide with ACA’s anniversary festivities, including a Swiftwater Rescue Conference and the U.S. National Slalom & Kayak Cross Championships, all while the park remains open to the public. The PTC Colab will add a full slate of industry discussions and roundtables, on-water demos and a new product showcase.
“We’re excited to integrate our programming with ACA’s,” says Turner, adding that interest from manufacturers and retailers is strong in the coalition’s second year. Find more info at ptc.connectedcommunity.org.
This article was first published in the 2025 issue of Paddling Business. A raft on the Colorado River below Havasu Creek in Grand Canyon National Park. | Feature photo: NPS/Mark Lellouch
