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The Professional Paddlesports Association (PPA) and the Recreation Vehicle and Campground Owner’s Association (ARVC) met together for the Park and Paddle Conference held from November 12th through November 16th, 2003 at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nearly 1100 members from all over the United States and Canada participated.
At the conference, Paddlesports International, Inc. (PI) presented the Director General of the River Bureau from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in Tokyo, Japan with a certificate of recognition and a commemorative paddle sponsored by Go Paddle 4 Fun and this web site. PI recognized The River Bureau Director for his influence in creating 21 canoe and kayak non-motor access sites on the Omono River that flows through Akita Prefecture in Japan. 
At the written request of The River Bureau, Mr. Nobutoya Nakanishi flew in from Tokyo and was present to accept the certificate and award. Mr. Nakanishi is the president of the Niigata Canoe Cruising Association and Omonogawa International Canoe Cruising Waterways Inc. He is also a co-founder and managing partner with Go Paddle 4 FUN LLC; a company dedicated to bringing people, paddlesports providers and waterways together. Mr. Nakanishi and his associates have worked tirelessly with officials and paddlers in Japan to promote stream conservation and canoeing on the Omono and to direct federal funds to develop ecologically sound access sites on this and other rivers throughout Japan.
Their efforts paid off last year when the River Bureau redirected much of their river management budget and used these funds to make the Omono accessible to paddlers and eco-tourists. PI bestowed the Omonogawa (gawa means river in Japanese) with the title of Outstanding World River 2003. PI and many of its coalition members including Waterkeeper Alliance, the American Canoe Association, America Outdoors, American Whitewater, Professional Paddlesports Association and the Niigata Canoe Cruising Association also recognized Japan's River Bureau and other supporting agencies.
PI was created in 2002 as an international coalition of paddlesports trade, conservation and educational associations. Its purpose is to identify waterways throughout the world that are suitable for human powered recreation and to work with paddling enthusiasts, clubs, and governmental entities to promote canoeing, kayaking, and rafting on these waterways. PI Chairman Jim Thaxton worked closely with Mr. Nakanishi and his associates in Japan to promote canoeing on the Omono River.
Paddlesports manufacturers in the U.S. and Canada are closely following these developments. Osage and Grumman Canoe Companies have already shipped nearly 200 canoes to Japan. These canoes will be placed into service on the Omono. Japanese officials are scheduling visits to popular paddling locations in the U.S. Their mission is to better understand the potential economic benefits from the tourism trade that will come to Japan’s rivers as recreational paddling is introduced throughout the country. PI estimates that there are more than 100 rivers suitable for paddling in Japan. These waterways could support up to 2,000 outfitters and serve nearly 40,000,000 paddlers each season.
PI is planning an International Paddlesports Conference in Akita, Japan in September 2004. In addition to focusing on developing environmental education outfitting businesses on rivers in Japan, the conference will promote river conservation, paddling safety and include canoe trips on the Omono and its tributaries. Information about the conference will be posted on Go Paddle 4 FUN’s web site, www.gopaddle.com.
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