Well as a Level 2 Coach you will know that you are qualified to operate only in a "sheltered water environment" so I would suggest that doing "lots of sea canoeing", you were behaving with the same spirit of adventure as this chap! You just know a bit more than he does.
The Coastguards and Frenchies is a red herring to folk like him - they've got to catch him and he is travelling well below their radar.
I welcome characters like this, setting off on adventures with a limited knowledge and learning as they go - often by their mistakes. It is the same as the original paddlers Rob Roy et