Archive for December, 2006

Like the wallpaper sticks to the wall
Like the seashore clings to the sea
Like you’ll never get rid of your shadow
you’ll never get rid of me
- Dave Dreyer – Al Jolson – Billy Rose
Well, here’s the first entry on the new “Chasing the Ana” blog. Proof that things are changing all the time and we’re still some 8 plus months away. I realized I didn’t want to task everyone on the Quixotica blog with every little detail of the trip. Especially when there are so many other things going on. So from this point forward THIS is the place for my trip musings and Quxiotica will continue to be the place where I exercise my paddling demons.

Choosing a partner for a trip like this is a real bear. I admire the guys who can just say, “hey, let’s go to Japan” and are off! If you don’t have a sudden flash of light or schedules don’t match you have to hunt a bit. That’s ok. Diamonds take a bit of work to recover.

Thing is an expedition is a marriage of sorts. For that short period in time you and your partner are totally dependant on each other for safety, support, companionship and on and on. Plus you have to be of the same mind about the goals of your trip. Not that you have to be completely of one purpose, but your goals have to entwine. This is a must in order for the expedition to be successful. For my part it’s important to bring everyone along that has been following my kayaking experiences for the last couple years. This means I want to film, write and photograph like a maniac along the way. So it was important that my partner was ok with what some could find an intrusion. Something I on the other hand find to be challenging and fun. Not to mention the money! You have to be able to finance yourself and want to do that.

As readers of my blog know I’m also given to melancholies and wanderlust. So there will be times no doubt when I’d be temped to just lay under a palm and ride the ether of my thoughts. So my partner needs to be someone who is mostly of the “high on life” energetic type. Someone who will make me smile when I feel like slipping into a grey cloud. Converstly wise I have my crazy days. I’m told I’m a bit of a challenge on those days when I’m feeling a bit too happy to be alive!! I also tend to be a bit slipshod organizationally. Usually because my mind is racing off to new wonderlands. My partner needs to have their feet on the ground (or paddle in the water if you like.) As you can see, choosing a partner means knowing yourself too. Something all to easy to overlook.

The first thing I did was get out a bit of paper and write down a list of everyone I could think of that I thought I’d love spending time on the water with. The list was quite large actually. Then I had to start the process of elimination. Something that I felt quite bad about actually. Even in the privacy of your own home you hate crossing out names of friends and people you so much admire. But in order to get there from here you have to do some cold blooded things. Cold blooded. Me? Well it fits the pirate theme that’s for sure. So I got out my cutlass and started hacking away. I couldn’t really go on skill. Everyone on the list was a great paddler. But slowly worked the list down. I had thoughts like, “he’d want to go too fast”, or “she’d never tolerate my whimsy” and on and on. . . Finally I had a list of just a few names. Now what?

I stared at those names for some time. I could see each face and imagine them in a kayak sailing just a few yards away in the tropical sun. Yeah, I would cherish time with any of these great people. I took time to write each person on the list an email explaining my plan and goals along the way. I told them why I was asking and how much I admired them. I told them why I thought they would be a great partner for the trip. Luckily no one just said, “You Suck”. That was certainly a possibility that ran through my mind. But as it happened schedule conflicts came up all over the place. It was getting frustrating. . . until finally and almost accidentally I came to someone who was all of the things I was looking for AND was free to do it. Thing was, we had never met. We could easily share the dream but could we handle each other? That’s when the phone calls and emails began in earnest. . . . stay tuned. . .

if I only could
Be running up that hill
With no problems…
-kate bush
I always said I would do a Coke ad. That’s sort of my glib response to those unavoidable conversations about sponsorship. It’s always a hot topic amongst the paddling crowd. Thing is, in my blog I’ve talked a lot about the companies and gear I admire. None of them has asked me for or given me anything. But I don’t consider that a badge of honor either. It’s just the way it is. As my crazy writings have found an audience I’ve been quite aware that many of you are certainly interested in what stuff I or any crazy kayakers use. I know I’m the same way. I got my first Lendal paddle because I saw This Is The Sea. Man, everyone paddled Lendals. I knew that was the direction to go. For me anyway. Every magazine, video and book about people doing amazing things on the water seemed to always lead to Nigel Dennis Kayaks. I could only assume that if I got an NDK, then the rest was up to me because obviously the kayak was at least as nearly as they can be, the best. Nigel and Aled had created the perfect beast with the Romany. I felt the same way with Reed gear. It was night and day trading in my old clothing for Reeds. The fact that you look like hot “sh**t” in them is just a big bonus! I shouldn’t have been surprised by how great the are on the water. It’s what everyone was wearing on the big trips. See the thing is, how do we know what the heck we should be buying for ourselves without someone trying the stuff first and recommending them? Whether it’s a friend down the street, or someone in your club, a review in a magazine or sponsored paddler we look to others for advice. It’s a bit silly to pretend we don’t. I’m sure that’s why regionally you tend to see lots of the same kayaks. It would make an interesting study. Wisconsin is definitely Current Designs Country. In fact I know many of the paddlers & shops who influenced that. It’s really quite amazing to see the big rows of CD kayaks along a Lake Michigan beach.

Another sort of unfair view of sponsorship is that the paddler is somehow “bought out”. Yeah, right! As I’ve written before the reality is even the TOP “stars” of the sport are not rolling in cash from sponsorships. The truth is most of your big name companies in kayaking are actually small shops run by paddlers who needed better gear and made a go at it. Of course that’s not always true today, but it often is still the case. The point being they just don’t have the cash to send fat checks to paddlers. Sponsors rarely come looking for you. There is a process where by you write big long emails and make a multitude of phone calls seeking sponsorship. They of course want to know what the value of sending you free kit really is. They, like any good business are looking for ROI (return on investment). They want to know why they should attach their good name and image to your silly mug. Proper questions for sure. On the other hand sponsorship can be a good deal. Heck, you can pay a magazine $5000 or whatever for a full page ad in a single issue or give someone a kayak at your cost and if anyone pays attention they’ll sell your stuff for years.

So, I always said I would do a Coke ad. When it comes to paddling I will always paddle my NDKs, use my Lendals, and wear my Reeds. I’ll keep dreaming of having a Rockpool Underground and defend my Anas Acuta (the “Angel”) as a one of a kind boat and of course, my little princess. No one has to give me free gear to tell you that. I also know from the amount of email I get that people are curious why I chose this bit or that bit and I’m happy to talk about it as I often do. So I’m a bit of a freebee. And I’m cool with that too.

So when thinking about my trip I was not really too focused on sponsorship. As I told the owner of one company recently, “I’d love to have you sponsor my trip, but I’ve already got all your gear!” I was also determined when I announced this trip that I would max out my credit cards (hear that VISA??) before I would fold due to lack of sponsors. This is my gig, not a commercial endeavor. In fact the “Chasing The Ana” journey is not quite an expedition in the “South Georgia” way of looking at things. It’s really about learning what expeditioning is all about for the rest of us with all the curtains pulled back as it were. So as opposed to going to the companies I love and writing long diatribes about how I can market them, (Which of course depends so much on YOU!) I would however, send each of the companies who’s products I love an email offering to share the journey with them if the like. By now, they know a bit about me, they know that all you guys are here and they know I’ll use their stuff anyway. What a deal eh? But if they’d like to take part as a “sponsor” I’d love to have them. On the other hand they may think I’m a total weirdsmobile and not respond. Who knows??

Soon I will tell you more about Race Recon who is our first sponsor, but even more than that, our real partner on the journey. I can’t tell you how honored I am that they want to take part. But more than making me feel all warm and fuzzy, I’m also very excited by what we can do together to really bring you along on our trip. I so look forward to sharing the journey with you in a way I could have never imagined and that would have been utterly impossible without their support. We for our part will do everything in our power to show the big dogs why they need Race Recon on board. For just a sampling of that take a look at Crossing The Ditch. All our hopes go out to them as well.

I think I’ll go grab a Coke!

. . . wait, should I link Coke?? Ok, here it is.

Happy New Years!!

Do you see them coming through fields of snow?
Do you see them riding through fields of snow?
One rides for a woman who has no name
One rides for a king
And one just rides and rides and rides and rides
For the girl in the swing
-waterboys

Yep, I found Freya’s profile in the new Sea kayaker Magazine. (this time they posted their cover before I did! LOL!!) Even for die hard Freya fanatics there are some facts in there you may not know. Certainly a nice profile. Now to be fair there was some reference to a “fan” in there . . . I would have said, “admirer” or “maybe occasional internet slave”. . ., or maybe, “incredibly attractive and kind person with a mild and giving nature. . . ” but that’s another story. So much for honest journalism!Fellow “buga-ite” Brian Day has a great article in there as well called, “Compact Packing for Expeditions”. Great! Just in time to help me figure out how many bottles of wine I’ll actually be able to fit in my boat. After reading his article I’m thinking “Bag Wine” may be the proper selection.

Lastly there is a nice bit on Lendal’s New ION Paddle blades. Remember these are their new ultra-unique glowing paddles. I’m actually quite thrilled to imagine how they would look against the blue bioluminescent waters of Vieques. Maybe we’ll see. . . One thing, the article suggests they may not have broad appeal. Time I guess for a “101 things to do with a phosphorescent paddle blade” post. . I’ll get right to work on that!

Of course there are all sorts of other surprises in there as well. But I don’t want to spoil it for you. I hope we get to see more trip articles in the future from some of the gang. I’ve noticed a good number of top paddlers who do write and have done some magnificent trips have been conspicuously missing. Ah, but then kayakers and editors often don’t mix. Thing about Explorer types is. . . too many metaphors. Of course here at “Quixotica”, everything is metaphorical, lyrical, or maniacal. Just depends on the day.

Well, I think I’m off to the pool this morning. Reading about Freya reminds me that she’s coming to visit us in a few months. On the off-hand chance we get in some play time I don’t want to suck!