I have not been a guide in the Canyon, but I have in Idaho. My company had
a policy that each guide was allowed to take one person per season down as
a guest without their having to pay. This person could go as long as the
space was not sold - if a paying customer called up for a trip, the guest
got bumped. One year I wanted to take both my parents on the Middle Fork.
The company cut me some slack because it was my parents and all that - they
both came and paid 20% to cover food and fly-in expenses.
My boyfriend worked as a guide in the Canyon. That company had a similar
policy that people could have a guest a season (with some variations, I
think - new guides didn't get that perk, old guides could have 2 per season
- something like that). Those guests were expected to work - load, rig,
clean and cook. In Idaho, usually guests were supposed to work too, though
again, with my parents, no-one expected them to work.
There are instances where friends of friends who are guides elsewhere or
something hop on a trip if there is space. It didn't happen very often.
With girlfriends and boyfriends - that seems to help people get a job with
the company, but not a whole bunch of freebie trips as a guest.
In Idaho anyway, the maximum trip size is fixed and each permit carries the
same number of launch dates a year so there is no "user-day" incentive to
add people to trips if they are not paying customers. You get your user
days whether or not you used them the previous year. It's the company's
loss if they don't fill their trips.
So, that's the deal I've worked with. I think it is eminently fair. In an
industry that offers no benefits to its employees, this is one of the few
perks available to guides. With one guest per guide per season, I don't
think it is an abuse or violates anyone's rights. Guides do in fact work
very hard - I don't think it's a bad thing to let them take one friend with
them once.
I'm on this list 'cause I love the Canyon and want to do a trip there soon
if I can, but I am also a guide elsewhere and know commercial boating
inside and out. There is a lot of anti-commercial sentiment expressed in
this group which I think is a pity. I think much of it is born of
ignorance. Guides are private boaters when they are not working and are
very sympathetic to the needs of private boaters in general if only because
their own interests are also involved. They also tolerate a lot of crap
from a lot of private boaters who are not as aware, often, of river
etiquette, or who run rivers over their abilities. I have saved a lot of
private asses over the years. Commercial guide are not evil - they're
usually nice people who know a lot about hte river and love it. Give 'em a
break.
Judy
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