SILBS SAYS...

2012-05-24T11:13:00.000-05:00

It's just not true:

I have not gone back into practice...I am not doing heart catheterizations as suggested by illegally taken paparazzi photos recently.

I am fiberglassing tapes into the chines of the hull and will soon be glassing the cockpit. I am not totally pleased by my workmanship and will need to do some sanding. Maybe a lot of sanding. I hope black paint hides a lot of stuff.

Thanks to son in law Ben for the protective gear.

Paddle soon...
DS

2012-05-13T09:28:00.003-05:00

Lttle by Little...fear of commitment:

A little tweaking and the fiberglassing begins. After that, the shape cannot be changed.

Paddle safe...

2012-05-09T07:03:00.002-05:00

Little by Little...
I would be ashamed to leave a patient looking like this after performing a proceedure, but this is kit boat building 101 and this is where I left off the project yesterday. The keel has been placed, and almost completly taped, to the side boards.
This is by no means my strong suit. I can sew a tiny blood vessel shut with precision and neatness; but when it comes to this stuff...well, I do the best I can.

When aligned, it gets turned over and the fiberglassing begins. So far, so good.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-05-01T13:13:00.002-05:00

So it goes...

To be continued.

Paddles safe...
DS

2012-04-24T13:09:00.000-05:00

New Bible Translation:

Some scholars, with the aid of grants from the BCU and ACA, have combined some obscure passages of the bible with their linguistic and newly learned kayaking and small boat knowledge. With these powerful intellectual tools, they have discovered a rare passage (where inthe bible it is will be disclosed in their upcoming paper in Sea Kayak Magazine), deals with heaven and hell...and clearly states that

evil kayakers who go to hell will be damned to eternal

sanding.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-04-21T11:13:00.001-05:00

Another DVD has arrived:

Rolling With Sticks DVD and mannual have arrived, and I have had time to watch some of it. What follows are my initial impressions in no particular order:
1. It is a good quality DVD
2. It is a bit monotonous:
    over 2 dozen rolls are covered
    each is shown and voice overed with the same technique
    no one (as far as I've watched) makes eye contact with me. I gather the off camera voice belongs to the roller.
3. The underwater views are excellent. Not just under the water but way under the water looking up.
4. Most demos are in a pool which, at first, I found a little distracting but quickly ignored as I watched the roller.
5. As the DVD clearly states: This is not a means to learn your first roll. One needs to come to this presentation with a set of skill and understanding of hip snap, etc..
6. Little is addressed toward trouble shooting.
7. The student is advised to watch the tip of the paddle (stick). I am not sure this is good advise as it often leads to the shoulder on that side dipping and the paddler sinking. Looking at Father Sky might serve one better.

Over all, a worthwhile addition to the many others out there. It will be interesting to see how volume 2 evolves.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-04-09T16:28:00.000-05:00

We have a winner here...

This is the Roll with Cheri Pery and Turner Wilson is spot on and one of the best pieces of such work I've seen. There is the usual good photography, etc.; but there is more to this DVD that makes it such a success.
1. It basically only covers 3 rolls and does so well without trying to teach too much.
2. The authors are excellent at their craft and (I can tell you from having met them) fine folks who love to teach.
3. Nothing is assumed. Each step and its reason is explained in a most logical sequence.
4. The trouble shooting section is an instructor's dream come true, especially with the use of split screens to show the error next to the proper way.
I cannot recommend it enough. See you (and hopefully them) at QAJAQ camp)

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-04-01T08:12:00.000-05:00

Complete...

Just a pile of well cut boards and pieces, it is now a beautiful kayak. I worked overtime using fast hardener (okay, one neighbor did help out) and built the boat in record time. Off to paddle. pictures to follow.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-28T08:16:00.000-05:00

And now, hopefully, for some magic...

I can sew the tiniest artery together with stitching that would make Betsy Ross proud; but give me a tool box and I might turn anything into a disaster. Fear aside, I drove up to Superior Kayaks last week to pick up one of Mark's kits (He being one of the finest crafstmen I have ever observed).

It is home and I must now build a working table and find the time to put it all together. I have done one stitch and glue (Arctic Tern) with fairly decent results. Hopefully, my fiberglassing will be better this time around.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-24T16:19:00.000-05:00

Safe at Home...

The trip has ended safely, and I have photos, laundry and photos to sort through. This one will never be in an art gallery, but it will remind me of my first launch on salt water. More to follow as I catch up.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-22T15:54:00.000-05:00

Waves 2: Us 0

It is was blowing 20-25 knots we went back to the beach area to play in the short surf. First, I took a spiller on my beam,, about shoulder high, with a low brace and boogie-boarded onto the beach. There, the kind water bashed me a few times as I straightened myself for a surf launch. I never got out of the cockpit. So far, so so. I launched and saw the very same wave coming at me, and it spilled on my fore deck. I was about to tuck to go over in shallow water when my paddle touched bottom. I cheated and pushed up. The next two sets broke in front of me, but e speared through no worse for the experience with a gritty feeling under my clothes. Then Sherri caught a wave.

She rode it and rode it and rode it and Sherri is on the beach. She was not as lucky as she landed in a spot where the waves hunt you down and try to destroy your boat. She got out to get all the sand out; and a wave tried to break her legs with her boat. She moved down the beach a bit and relaunched.

Now I am sitting with the delicious memory of the experience as lightening strikes around my tent.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-20T08:51:00.000-05:00

The Ocean and
My Mother's Chicken Soup....

It may not be a big deal to some, but I and my Cetus MV experienced salt water for the first time down here in Alabama. And, as I paddled into the Gulf for the first time, I couldn't help but think of Mom's soup and how it differed from the ocean. You see, Mom's soup always needed salt.

Nevertheless, we are enjoying 80 degree days and bathtub warm water while camping near the inter coastal waterway. Not much else to say except that I am loving it. Nailed my first 3 rolls in salt water, and that can't be bad.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-14T19:13:00.000-05:00

A lot harder than med school...

Okay: med school was four long years and just the begining of an arduous task, but I was younger then and more of my brain cells were alive. Now, with old age creeping into every joint of my body and hyaline plaques forming on my brain, I am faced with the most difficult intellectual task I've known. Nothing, to me, is more challenging.

I can work out the blood gasses in cases of mixed acidosis and thread a catheter into a coronary artery with little or no effort. This is different. You see, I have never really trained for what faces me. Oh, I have done it before, but let's just say I got away with a so-so level of performance. In fact it was often the acts of others that made it all work in the end. But this is my fate, my destiny...my personal challenge; and I am readying myself to do it all on Friday.

That is the day I have to figure out what to take and how to get it into my car for a paddling trip.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-13T21:18:00.002-05:00

Alabama bound...
Any of you on the coast down there have any suggestions for launch sites, areas of interest, etc.? Coming down next week.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-12T12:35:00.000-05:00

Now we know:
According to a facebook report relayed from the police, the young man who drowned while kayaking had on a pfd but
no immersion clothing
no real history of taking lessons
no float plan

He was no expert. He was unprepared. A senseless death that will probably make impressions on the public who know little of our sport.

Paddle safe,
DS

2012-03-11T20:06:00.001-05:00

Another Tragedy...
I have been at Canoecopia all weekend (posts to follow) and bunked with JB. We woke this morning to the news that a kayaker in his mid 20's had died on Lake Michigan just off Port Washington (15 miles north of Milwaukee). He was described as an "experienced paddler who went out 2-3 times a week". His kayak was never found. There was no information on what he was wearing. Later today, a rumor floated that he was an instructor.

As we learn more, perhaps we will come to understand how this young man lost his love doing the very thing we love so much. Perhaps he had a medical condition. Perhaps he fell in without proper clothing (lake temps are probably < 35F) and succumbed to hypothermia. We just don't know. We do know that he went out alone on a windy day with waves reportedly being up to 5 feet.

Until we get the details, let's remember the inherent danger of our sport and prepare properly. I don't want to lose anyone I know or someone I don't know to the water.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-03-03T20:46:00.000-06:00

It's different alone....

I'd say I do the majority of my paddling alone. It's how I get my exercise while enjoying a sport I have come to love. Whether going out for an hour or a multi-day trip, I always take the same gear (first aid, radio, etc.). I do so to develop habits so I won't forget something when it really counts. When alone, I tend to take slow, short paddles and practice strokes, braces and the like a lot. This morning Ken joined me for a 32 degree (F) paddle on Lake Michigan. The offshore wind gusted to about 15 when we crossed the bay. Ken was interested in photographing the snowy owl I had captured (see previous blogs) and wanted to paddle over to Lake Shore State Park.

(Ken caught this shot of me today)

Ken is younger and better looking and paddles at a nice clip so, what the heck, I just paddled faster than usual...for two hours. We never saw the owl, but we did see a bob cat on the rocks at the state park. Ken went right up to it before getting out his camera. In fact, he got unbelievably close when his boat thumped against the rocks and the cat decided to walk away. No picture of a bob cat. On the other hand, I did some paddling that was a bit more aggressive than I do alone. I didn't practice strokes, but I got a nice work out. It was a good day on the water.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-25T19:58:00.000-06:00

Working with newbies...

...can be interesting.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-25T13:17:00.000-06:00

Practice, practice, practice...

In the old joke, that's how the cab driver answer's the musician's question, "How do I get to Carnegie Hall?" It's pretty much the same with paddling. New comers, anxious to have the perfect forward stroke and bomb-proof roll, often ask how to achieve these worthy goals. We all know the answers.

First: BIB: Butt in the boat. You have to spend time paddling, even if in circles or out and back to the same place over and over. With repetition comes muscle memory as we travel the path from a, not knowing and not knowing we don't know to b, knowing we don't know to c, consciously capable to d, unconsciously capable at a skill. Even then, it is easy to slip back a level when there are long periods between paddles. The idea here is to be able to unconsciously and quickly execute that brace, edge or roll in conditions when it really matters.

So good paddlers (at least the ones I know) often start their time on the water just going through the strokes and basics; and they do it in conditions when ever the opportunity is there. The question now is, what can you do on a moments notice? Are you sure? Do you know what you don't know?

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-23T15:23:00.000-06:00

Hands...

They are tough to keep warm. Let me say that another way. It was hard for me to find something that will keep my hands warm and allow me to use them in a meaningful way (such as putting the skirt on the rim). A while ago I posted about a poorly made (in my judgement) NRS glove. It's stitching fell apart early in its life. This is the other side of the NRS coin.

I use their mittens for really cold weather. They are neoprene and the only thing that keeps my hands warm. Problem is, I have to remove them to get the skirt on the boat, and my hands freeze. Lately, with temps above freezing, I have worn their fingered Titanium glove with Reeds long glove coverings. I can get on the skirt with the gloves on, then add the Reeds and go paddling.

Both the fingered gloves and mittens now come with a snug cuff that really works. One, however (according to the folks at Rutabaga), has to be careful not to pull the glove off by the fingers lest one tears the cuff from the glove. I presume and use the same precaution with the mittens. Good stuff.

Now, give NRS a hand.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-22T21:16:00.000-06:00

50+ years ago...

...that I took my first Judo lesson. It was a sport I loved and taught over the years and in many cities as I moved about. During the war I took my R&R in Japan so I could visit the Kodokan. Over a decade ago a severed nerve to my left keg took me out of the game. The upside was that it led to my discovering sea kayaking which has become a major part of my life. Anyway...

My old co instructor and I substituted tonight for the current instructor who had to be away. I could do a lot of things, and some moves were not possible. In the end, however, I was able to teach and experience the joy of seeing some of the advanced students get it and improve before my eyes. Teaching is teaching, and teaching is what I (still) do.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-17T16:10:00.000-06:00

3rd rarest photo in the world...

I have had a list of rare images I have hoped to capture and was down to the last 3 when I went out to paddle in the snow. Now, I have only 2 to go as I have a picture of Milwaukee paddler and forensic scientist Alan Friedman paddling in winter.

Now, where can I find a Yeti and Loch Ness Monster?

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-14T22:42:00.000-06:00

Time travel is possible...
I know, I did it tonight.

I am usually in bed and asleep by now, but I am still processing what I have just experienced. If you are not around my age this may not make sense; you may not even know what I am referring to in this piece. First, you need to know that I went to high school in the 1950's, college and war in the 60's. It would help if you also knew that before I was anything else on this planet, I was a musician. I ate and breathed swing and other music of my time. I trtained with the first chair of the Milwaukee Symphony, had my own quartet and still have all the arrangements for my 14 piece band. I sat through the Glen Miller and Bennie Goodman movies multiple times and, at night, listen to Basie on my 76 rpm record player. In med school, during the week I was supposed to be looking for an internship, I went to New York and listen to jazz all night long for 5 days.

Tonight, for Valentine's Day, I took Lady Linda to a DooWop concert. If you do not know what the DooWop style is, I cannot explain it. If you do know, no explanation is necessary. Right there, live, on stage, came group after group of singers doing the old classics in the DooWop style. Some of these performers were older than myself, some were the original recording artists and some had written some of those song. Imagine, the guy who wrote Pennies From Heaven sang it and several of his other 1,000,000-selling hits.

I've heard that lots of things can cause recall of old memories. A smell, for instance, can remind one of a long past experience. Imagine what this music did to me.

First, as always happens with this music, my feet, hands and body began moving in rhythm and, suddenly, I was in high school...then I was in SE Asia and the war...then I watching the civil rights movement on a black and white TV...and on and on as the music of my day flooded me with memories. I traveled back in time.

I cannot say I am all that glad to be back in 2012 with all the crap and crappy music going on. I know it is another generations music, but I will bet anything that their music will survive the decades as well as ours. But, alas, there are records and the such; and I can time travel anytime I want. I also feel better for having written this little note. Now if I could just figure out how those tears got on my cheeks?

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-09T11:53:00.000-06:00

Let's face it...

The best part of any paddle or trip is

coming home.

Paddle safe...
DS

2012-02-05T15:22:00.000-06:00

You can buy it...but

Can you own it?

There are some cultures (I believe Native Americans is/was among them) that do not believe in an individual owning land since it belongs to us all. "We are all related" is an expression that includes all living things. (It is not unusual in some cultures for one to refer to brother crow).
Our neighbor tells us that her family used to own a large farm which was sold, divided up and is now the lots on which many of the nearby homes exist. We each "own" the land...or, do we? It pretty much rains when it rains, it doesn't ask for our permission. If left alone, the grass (lawns) grow when it rains and turn brown when it doesn't. With the next rain it starts growing again...whether or not we tend to it (true, weeds may pop up; but they, too, are on their own.

Coyotes, fox and other animals wander through our yard at various intervals, and none have ever asked permission. Only fences cause them to change their routes. Seems they are more at one with Mother Nature than are humans. The land is indifferent to who walks, plants or sits on it.

I suspect the water feels the same about us.

Paddle safe...