Trip Photo - Egmont Key - 9-27-09

Here are the last 4 to make it back. The early birds missed the photo.

It was great! Those that wanted to play, found waves a bit over 2 feet high.  That means we occasionally lost sight of each other and shore.  What a hoot.

Trip Review - Weeki Wachee 9-10-09

Here are some photos provided by Cindy Turner.  You can judge if we had any fun or not.

ACA Level 5 White Water Coach Training/Certification on the Ocoee River

What a great weekend.  My son, David, and I traveled to Tennessee to participate in this event.  And it sure was worthwhile.

I had not paddled the full, lower Ocoee River and really wanted to.  Just upstream is where they held the Olympic Kayaking in the late 90s. What a hoot!  David and I had been invited to be guinea pigs for Level 4 coaches who were there for either a coach update or to get certified as a Level 5 coach.  This was our first foray into water with this reputation.  You see, I had many previous admonitions to be sure to avoid the nasty hole near the put-in, and the many dangerous spots further down.  I started with a great deal of anxiety.  I was fighting everything and in a survival mode from my own fear and imagination.  One's mind can be a very scary place to be.  But, after a few rapids I began to relax and really start enjoying things.

I learned a bunch.  I especially liked learning to catch waves to assist crossing the fastest water in the river.  They call this a ferry, but I always imagined a fairy was helping me.  Go figure.  We had a neat drill going down a class II rapid with our eyes shut and paddling or turning based on instructions from a partner behind us.  That was a bit intimidating.

But the worst was solo, eyes-shut ferries.  Not only would we cross without seeing, we were to go nearly straight across without letting the stong current force us downstream.  My thought was, "You've got to be kidding!"  But, they weren't.  I would start in an eddy, look at and try to memorize the eddy line I had to cross, the current and waves in the river, and the eddy on the far side.  Then I would shut my eyes and try to feel my way across the river.  I only cheated a little on the way across and was immensely satisfied with myself.  We were all amazed at how well we did.  Even now, it is a stretch for me to imagine eyes-shut and crossing from still water into fast water, through waves in the fastest part of the river, back into smoother fast water, and then crossing another eddy line and safe in quiet water again. How sweet it was.

And, mostly I enjoyed the huge wave trains I encountered near the end of the trip.  From the cockpit of my kayak the waves looked 4 or 5 times higher than they really were.  This bit of deception makes the journey much more exciting than the view from shore would provide.  The force of the river forced me downstream at a rapid pace and all the way up the face of what appeared to be a wave at least 3 times higher than I was.  With the force of the river pushing me rapidly up hill, I could still muster the energy to try to boof off the crest and launch myself up and over the wave.  I imagined I was Jonathon Livingston Seagull.  If I had succeeded I would have fallen forever to crash in the trough way below.  But, even with the help of the river, my boof was way too wimpy to pull off such a marvelous feat.  And so were each of the other boofs I tried on the crests of those subsequent massive mountains of water.  But, there is always the next trip to the wonderful Ocoee River.

Trip Review - Alafia River - 9-07-09

Here are some photos from our trip.

Forward Stroke Tip

My son, David, and I were recently paddling on the Hiwassee River, a lazy class II white water river in North Carolina. During our downstream adventure I noticed he had developed a bad and lazy habit. As a result, his forward stroke had lost tremendous power. He was lucky, being a young and very strong fellow, and on a lazy river, it had worked out for him. Here's what he had done. He had let his forward stroke become lazy. He did not extend his upper arm properly before, nor during the catch phase of the stroke. He had started each power phase of the stroke with his upper arm bent. Eegads! Can you imagine such a faupaux? His upper arm was supposed to be straight or nearly straight before he applied force in his forward stroke. But, it wasn't anywhere near straight. It was bent to less than 45 degrees. This resulted in the paddle face pointing down instead of back at the start of the power phase. He had lost a tremendous amount of his power and force. Thank goodness we caught it before he tried to do something that needed real power, much less the wasted energy he expended during each stroke. Upon seeing this I called a family council meeting. Neither of us got voted off the island, but I did share my observation with him. And, he immediately started working on it. So, if you have fallen into this habit, like David, and are not extending your upper arm before or during the catch phase of your forward stroke, stick it out there dude, and reap the benefits yourself. Update: David and I recently paddled the Nantahala, another easy Class II river, but not lazy at all. He had worked on extending his upper arm during the catch phase of his forward stroke and improved enormously. Now he had the power to move his kayak against the fairly fast current of this river. His ferry glides had become effortless. He powered his way boofing over rocks. And he powered his way through a hole that had been grabbing him lately.

Rolling Tip

If you are having trouble with your Eskimo roll, pay attention to your set up. Get it right and the rest may follow well. Screw up the set up and the likelihood of a successful roll goes down tremendously.

I had a rolling class last week that reminded me of several rolling students I've had over the years. These students find it very difficult to get set up for a successful roll. By set up I mean getting into position for the rolling maneuver to proceed. Below you will find: a description of the most commonly taught set up position, and some tips to nail it perfectly every time.

The Set Up Position

There is some variation from coach to coach. But, for most types of rolling, while upside down, one must get both hands to one side of ones kayak with hands extended toward the sky. This is the same position that when done right side up, has one reaching down toward the bottom of the water you are in.

Tips:
• While learning, start right side up and get into the set up position. It is a good idea to have someone else hold your kayak as you learn this. When properly done, your weight will carry you over into the water. So, to start, have someone hold the boat.
• Notice how your forearms are touching the side of your kayak. Memorize that feeling.
• When set up properly, memorize how this feels. In your mind, break your position down into how various parts of your body feel. Here is what I notice when I am set up well. I notice a significant twisting to the side. I notice leaning far forward as well. And, when actually rolling, I can also feel the air as my hands are well clear of the water after I’ve rolled all the way over. I notice a strain as I reach for the sky. (It is a strain because I don’t stretch as often as I could.)
• Remember, while learning you should start out, right side up, exactly in the set up position. As you tip over into the water, maintain your exact position. Lock ALL of your muscles into this position. Again, notice exactly how your forearms feel touching the side of your kayak. Make sure your forearms stay in that same touching position. This ensures that your set up will be perfect after you have capsized while learning. By staying in this position you won’t have to figure anything out when upside down under water.
• Now you will be upside down. To make sure everything is good, stretch even further to the side and toward the sky. You are now ready to perform most rolls.

Problems:
• Some students refuse to keep their arms in contact with the kayak. To tip over, they lean to the side reaching out with their paddle to the sky. Some even exaggerate it with a lurch. This just makes things harder. Now they need to get back into the set up position.
• Some students relax as they tip over. They end up upside down, facing forward, with one hand on each side of the boat, as if they were just resting in their kayak. Now they have to get back into the set up position.
• Some students get disoriented when upside down. That is only a problem when they neither stayed in the set up position, nor memorized the feeling of a good set up. Memorize that feeling while right side up. Doing this will pay dividends down the road.
• If you lose the proper position, which is more likely when you are knocked over while paddling, kick in that memorized feeling. Remember it, then get into that position. It really is that easy. If you were weightless like an astronaut, and had no idea which direction was up, could you get into position to tie your shoe? Of course you could. You know that position. You could do it without your eyesight and without your hearing. You just know how to bend that way and how it feels. Learn that feeling when in a good set up position. That is all it takes to get back into a good set up position.

Trip Review - Withlacoochee River 6/16/09

Comments: It was an adventure! Before the trip I was warned that the road I had selected to meet on may not be in very good condition. So, I called everyone and the morning of the event we met at a nearby spot. We discussed the potential challenge and who was and who was not up for the challenge. Then off we drove to the river - or not. Sure enough the road did not look so good. So we opted for an alternate put-in I had previously selected. By the way, I have this fantastic present from my kids, it is a road GPS. It is fantastic, but on the way to the alternate put-in it suffered from that dreaded problem: operator error. I'm really good without the GPS. And, I'm pretty good with it. Yet, when I try to use both the GPS and some common sense, it can be very interesting. So, for those in the caravan, their adventure began by following me. We eventually got to Withlacoochee River Park, our alternate put-in. This section of the river I had paddled before, that is before the drought and the recent rains. It turned out to be placid and serene, quiet and beautiful, a little work to find the best path, and then every once in a while, a blocked path. What had been a mostly open river, occasionally clogged with hydrilla, was now a bunch of twists and turns occasionally choked with sticks, logs, and trees. Well, maybe more that occasionally. Yet, we persevered. We turned around from our first direction and headed the opposite way. Then we went around, over or through several minor obstacles.  I prefer to go through them. Somewhere along the way, we had our usual great lunch. After getting back to our put-in, we said good bye to new and old friends and a few of us went back out to practice some paddling skills.

I had advertised this as an exploration and to bring an adventurous spirit. It was and everyone did.

Original Write Up: This will be an out & back (no shuttle) exploration. It is an exploration because I  have never been there. For this trip I will be a leader, not a guide. If you have a bit of an adventurous spirit inside yourself, and you'd like to paddle where very few groups go, then sign up for this unusual opportunity.  Besides, even if I don't not know where I'm going I will still have a great lunch for you.

Alafia River - Downhill, In-the-shade - June 14, 2009

Comments: The "Quickens" did not disappoint. Seven of us had a great time on the wonderful Alafia River. Yes, it was beautiful. Yes, we had fantastic weather. And, yes, we hit the water level just right. You see, some of the time, the water is so low you must get out and walk the shallow "quickens". And then some of the time the water is quite high, and fast, and you just experience a fast section where the quickens are. But, on this wonderful trip, the water was just right. I felt a little like Goldilocks. The water was not too high, not too low, just right. Which gave us a safe, but fun path down stream. As we approached each quicken, I scouted to find the best path. Paddlers were free to take the way I went or try something else. One quicken finished in a small wave train. That was pretty cool. One quicken has a visible drop, which can be fun. (Actually, a drop is not visible. Most of the time you can see the river in front of you. With a drop, it looks somewhat like the end of the earth.) As you approach it, all you see is the edge of the drop off. You don't have much of an idea how high it is. Of course this is the Alafia, so it can't be too high. Then as you get closer you have a better idea. And, when you finally can see it all, suddenly you have to select which way to go. Whoopee! Or, you relax and just watch me. the trip was a real hoot.

Original Write Up: If there is such a thing in central Florida, this river is fairly swift. It even has small sets of rapids. Okay, okay, okay. Maybe they aren't really rapids. Maybe we should call them "quickens" instead of rapids. At any rate, If the water level is just right, we'll find as many as 10 sets of class 1 whitewater rapids. Don't get too excited, class 1 is the lowest class of white water. Even without any "quickens" this is still a wonderful river to go down. We'll even have some water cannons if you don't bring your own.