ACA

Prisoner #1234.....

All comes to he who waits (including senility). Alas, my membership card to the ACA has arrived.

Actually, it is more like a cheap business card with some art of modest quality (picture above has nothing to do with anything) on one side. On the other side is the usual info including my very own brand new 9-digit membership number. 9 freakin' digits. That's more digits than on my military dog tags (which I memorized in case of capture).

Couldn't they have used a letter prefix and decreased the number of numbers (which number too many) by a bunch of numbers? I'm losing brain tissue at a faster rate than they are creating numbers.

At least they are trying to reorganize; but, like my chief of medicine once told me, never trust an expert.

Paddle safe...
DS

Works Well

With such a narrow width at the front of the kayak, it seems as if the Cetus was designed for use with a Greenland stick. Using only torso rotation, my hands literally slid across and down the contour of the deck as the blade made clean entry  into the water (forward canted stroke). As always, it took 1.5-2.0 strokes to keep up with the Euro-blade types, but the effort was minimum. Who knew?

Now that I finally want to try out a shorter (you heard right) paddle, I find that 205 high angle blades are generally not to be found in stock. What's a guy to do?

Paddle safe...
DS

CircleswithinCircleswithinCircles

My life is a never ending series of circles that continue to close and close again. This time it involved driving my daughter and grandson from Cincinnati to Washington DC where they will begin a new life. For grandson, Joe, it was the first closing of a circle as he was reunited with the Dad who had gone ahead to start a new job. Joe will now struggle with learning to live in an new apartment in a new city with new friends. Still, it was a chance for him to be with his daddy and to explore his new world.

In April of 1967 I saw the cherry blossoms while an intern in DC. I saw them again one year later in Tokyo while on R&R from the war in SE Asia. This trip I saw them again, this time as a father and a grandfather. Circle closed.

I remember vividly the first time I saw the Viet Nam Wall. It was heart wrenching and, back then, there were lots of my comrades with whom I could weep. I had been back before this, and it was no less intense an experience. This visit, I went alone, without family , to visit this shrine.

It was Easter Sunday and, alas, time had thinned the ranks of comrades from that era. I had to weep alone. Circle closed.

Paddle safe...
DS

I Am Away

Just drove daughter and grandson from Ohio to Maryland to join dad in a new life. Joe will need to get used to apartment living with no big back yard. They all are now 12 hours away, so flying will be the mode of visitation. I will be back late Monday.

Paddle Safe...
DS

I'll Be:

It Actually Worked

A few days ago I spoke of something we were doing with the Zoological society here...and it worked. It was a lark based on the idea of a hydraulic engineer here in Milwaukee. It required the assistance of the zoo folks, many water sports people and some heavy duty go-fast water equipment. More over, we worked at odd hours to avoid anyone seeing us lest they misconstrue what we were about.

In the end, the darn thing worked and, as proof, one of our crew captured this image.I cannot, because of papers and documentaries being made, say more.

It may seem pointless, but from it we hope to learn more about hull design and other important marine architectual information. Congratulations to all who took part. Watch for the full article in the next issue of Science.

Paddle safe...
DS

Paddling Planet dot Com

If you don't already know about it, try this site. It is a compilation of several blogs from all over the world. Many are in foreign (to English speakers) languages. I wish I could read them all. Of particular interest to me are the boats I see there but cannot research because I do not know what they are. Click on the title above and give it a try.

On another note: The zoological tests were a success (see yesterday's post0. I am negotiating (read: begging) for the use of at least one picture from the test.

Paddle safe...
DS

Coming Attractions

It involves wind and

Water and unexpected animals,

and may result in something pretty special. Off to the Milwaukee Zoological Society where they and the local kayakers and some other water sports types are working on something amazing. May have an announcement (if it works) in a few days. Can't say what it is, but think in terms of the Disney film Dumbo and the song, "When I see an elephant fly.."

Paddle safe...
DS

Home Field Advantage

No matter how often you paddle or how many places you visit, there is usually one place where you most often launch and paddle. We have such an area here at South Shore where, due to low water, there is a small beach protected by a break water.

 When conditions warrant, we can divide ourselves into two groups. Those with less experience can stay inside the wall while others will venture outside and hope for some action.

A few days ago three of us took off. Two of us were comfortable in most conditions while the third decided to poke outside and give it a try. Carl acquitted himself quite well.

Swells ranged up to 4+ feet. I was comfortable enough in the Cetus to put the paddle down and use my camera.

It was a fine day.

Paddle safe...
DS

Day of Rest

It is not an accident that most belief systems advocate for a day of rest, or Sabbath, as part of a healthy life style. Whether observed on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, a day away from one's usual work and stress helps rejuvenate mind, body and soul, and it makes sense on physiological, medical and spiritual levels.

For some it is the old adage, "Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." It can be a time to be with family or alone meditating on nature. For some it includes attending religious services.

 Still, for others it is a time to let loose the energy piled up by a work week that does not demand or use up the physical energy one has stored. Doing so seems to restore one's spirit.

Finally, for many it is a leisurely paddle alone, with family and/or friends.
Good Shabbos.

Paddle safe...
DS

A Few Last Images of

Canoecopia

Kokataks Ronin

 Megan always has a smile

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Some very famous people need no introduction (hint: the man always in black)

Paddle safe
DS

More Images of Canoecopia: 

Products you may or may not want

 

And best of all...

Paddle safe...
DS

 Lightening Up

Faces and Sights

of

Canoecopia

There have been some heavy discussions and responses of late, especially to the question on speed v. length of water line. BTW: to follow up on yesterday's post, I went out with the Cetus with a Greenland paddle and never experienced an easier or faster paddle.That narrow beam ahead of the hips is made for a traditional stroke. Better than a SOF...but I digress. Here are some things that I found of note, interesting or just eye-catching at the big show: First, the testers...

And, some faces you will recognize (and some you won't):

Hint: He is an instructor from Wisconsin

Sam (Marquette, MI)

Hint: Another Wisconsin instructor

And, finally (for today, at least), the most beautiful face I never saw.

Paddle safe...
DS

The Learning Curve

   When I first starting paddling the Swede-form Cetus, I was all over the place. I has some problems that have been documented here (one still about to be solved), and Brian from P&H was there to support me. Still, I was having problems with performance. Let me rephrase that: the boat wasn't doing what I thought it should.
    Mixed into all of this was my obsession with longer and longer paddles (?shaft envy). I had, in the past, gone from a 220 to a 230 low angle blade and was thinking it worked better. In any event, I began to change things recently.

   First, I lost almost 8 pounds of belly fat (I had to brag about this to someone). Then, I accepted the fact that real men do ask for directions and even use the skeg at times. This past few paddles I began moving the foot pegs further away. I have always had them up and tight to jam my thighs under the braces. I believe this came from the feel of my skin on frame boats and the desire to always be locked in and ready to roll. The answer, of course, is to get the legs in the proper position and to pad the braces to meet the thighs (another on the to- do list). Now my torso rotation increased. About 24 hours ago I watched Danny Mongo's You Tube video on high v. low angle paddling.

    Danny always told me to use a shorter paddle. So what? I mean just because he lives and breathes paddles doesn't mean he knows it all. I added this to everything I've seen Ben Lawry do. Finally, yesterday, I really took a look at the boat. As you can see in the picture, it is narrow just ahead of the cockpit, especially where the blades enter the water. Would it not make sense that the most efficient stroke would be right along the beam of the boat? Yes!
    So, I took my 210 high angle paddle out with me yesterday and put the 220 low angle on the deck as a spare. (Maybe now would be a good time to confess that I had talked to the folks at Rutabaga about testing out some 215 high angle paddles). Out I went paddling into a NE wind and into the outer harbor where there was a 1-2 foot confused chop. All the while I concentrated on good form and keeping the blade close to the hull. Then out the gap onto open water where it was rolling 3-4 feet with a few breakers. All this time, mind you, I am adjusting the skeg to match the direction of the wind. Then I looked at the blades as I paddled ( I know, that's a no-no, but this was a scientific experiment that required observation. But I digress). I wanted to be sure I was burying the blades and noted that I was, indeed. In fact, I was putting a bit too much of the shaft under the surface.
   I still plan to go to 'baga to try out paddles, but it will be a shorter (205) high angle one I will be interested in testing. So, there it is, the learning curve. Can you believe how much smarter my boat is now?

Paddle Safe...
DS

Canoecopia Products

I saw some new products this year, some good and some just interesting. This is not an endorsement of any of them, however, I did take home a 3-boat Suspenz storage rack. The "lip" of the rack lays flat. When you put the weight of the boat onto the strap the lip is pulled vertical. You then connect the safety strap.

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Another interesting product, which I did not buy, was the OZ tent. The photos show how it can be put up in, literally, seconds. Unfortunately, when taken down you are left with a roll that is several feet long and cannot go into a kayak.

Then there was this button. I didn't bother to ask.

Paddle safe...
DS...

Ben...Again

For the second year in a row I got to be "ticket taker"  in the atrium, the open space atop the balcony where Canoecopia takes place. It meant seeing a lot of fine speakers and teachers including Ben Lawry who I think is incredibly innovative. You have likely seen him demonstrate his on land rolling technique. This time he was doing the 4 Ps of paddling (I'll never tell).

In any event, I decided to apply some of that info today when I went out for a paddle. I ended up moving my foot pegs 2 stops further away, and I felt I had a much better forward stroke with more rotation. Of course, there was a gap between my thighs and the braces, but that can be remedied with some padding. Good stuff. Good teacher.

Off to Dallas tomorrow to lecture. Hope to post next Monday.

Paddle safe...
DS