Stuffed Turkey. .

Posted by derrick on September 24, 2005

Some times you just have to be domestic. Yeah, it’s a drag. But at least now the Jeep has a new battery and 4 shinny new tires. Around here that means running to Farm & Fleet at 8 in the morning to beat the inevitable long lines that show up by nine. Then spending an hour or two of forced imprisonment within their odd yellow concrete walls. For someone like me who cannot find the joy in “browsing” this truly is a punishment far grater than the $400 bill for new parts.Looking forward to tomorrow’s I.C.E. on Lake Michigan I was determined to get out on the water to acclimate. You have to do that if you’ve gone more than a day or two without paddling. Everything gets rusty fast. I’ve went about 4 days off the water which for me is like forever. I certainly felt like I was drying out. Given the time of year I thought I had better work out with the drysuit on in preparation for Lake Mich., tomorrow. Warm water days are few and far between now. The Great Lakes forecast is calling for rain and 2ft - 4ft waves. I’ve got a story to tell about my Palm Drysuit, but that will have to wait for when I have more time. So. . ok, moving on. . .

For me putting on a drysuit is the quickest way to lower my skill level. With the suit on I suddenly feel like the Michelin man after a Thanksgiving meal. I’m bloated and immobile. My torso does not want to rotate without an extra “oomph!”. Oh well, that’s why we spend the summer months working on all of our fancy rolls. In the winter we’re just too thick. (Well, when we’re not in the pool anyway) In the drysuit we’re back to our basic roll set. For us Euro-paddler types that’s; C to C, sweep, & the renowned extended paddle roll. Yes, you can do others, but it’s hard to get the same fluid motions when you’re wrapped up in layers. Even with only my Ice Breakers under the drysuit It took me about 4 tries to get my Angel roll with my Euro paddle today. Finally I got two in a row but both were pretty shaky. But then again who knows? By January I’ll most likely be used to the extra garb and maybe everything will smooth right out. Can’t wait for those ice cream headaches to return!!

So it’s up at 5am on the road by 6 and in Milwaukee by 8. Party on!!