Robo Paddle
Published July 23, 2010 | 
And I quote, “The Excalibur Kayak paddle is the ultimate coaching tool…….. It’s onboard strain gauge and positional sensors record every aspect of your stroke…… You are are sure to benefit from this cutting edge technology…….”
I’m not even sure what I want to say about this.. other than if I ever wanted to beat Ben Lawry upside the head with it, I’d have a good grasp of how committed I was when I did it… (sorry Ben, you were just the first guy to come to mind… not sure what that says… but, well… 
Names Darling!
Published July 23, 2010 | 
Ziggy played for time, jiving us that we was voodoo
The kids was just crass. He was the nazz
With God given ass
He took it all too far, but boy could he play guitar
– bowie
So I got into this conversation the other day. The topic was “Names”. Do paddlers you read about in Sea Kayaker magazine inspire you to sign up for events or symposiums? Would you go any way? Maybe when you read that a certain paddler is going to coach it’s a great idea to attend to get instruction from the ‘masters’ so to speak. But what if the ‘Name’ is only there to present and preside? Should symposiums sort out the green M&Ms for the latest person to paddle across Boyizitbig Bay, or should they save the bowl for a couple great coaches instead? Continue reading
Tempestuous – The Tempest 165
Published July 22, 2010 | 
Clothed in new costumes
That weather your new found storms
Staring through reason
Content with your new found decor
– collective soul
I’ve always been conflicted when it comes to companies like Wilderness Systems. I don’t think of them as “sea kayak” companies. They seem to put more weight into their recreational and fishing boats and come to sea kayaking as an afterthought. It’s hard to imagine the company that makes the infamous Pungo could produce a decent sea kayak. Still there have been a lot of good things said about the Tempest since it came out. Given that, and that I had Cindy Scherrer (partner of co-designer Steve Scherrer) paddling right beside me while I was out test paddling boats in Grand Marais, it seems like as good a time as any to take one for a spin.
Discovery
Published July 21, 2010 | 
I told you ’bout the Fool on the hill, I tell you man he’s living there still,
Well, here’s another place you can be, Listen to me,
Fixing a hole in the ocean,
Trying to make a dovetail joint,
Looking through the glass onion.
– beatles
Here’s one of those strange and yet weirdly meditative kayak play moves.. this is an open lotus.. to make it more challenging bring your feet in further underneath your body then bring your arms inward, turn your hands up and rest them on the paddle just above your knees. Of course do that funky thumb & forefinger thing as well… Let me know if you become one with the universe!
Yesterday I went on a short rant about the concept of “fun”. The main point of the story of course is that fun is not a commodity, but an organic result of an experience. Some people struggle with the concept of fun and yet know it to be important, so they say the word repeatedly in hopes of conjuring it into existence. I think this has consequences as well when we start mainstreaming “experiential learning” & learning through play” under the recently hip label of “Discovery Learning”. Experiential learning and learning through play are actually fairly slippery concepts and doomed to become failures and distractions if we don’t “feel” what we’re doing out there. We again can’t simply say we’re all about “Discovery”. Continue reading
Home & Dry
Published July 19, 2010 | 
It was almost 8pm when we heard the sound of our driveway gravel snapping and popping under our wheels after almost 8 hours on the road from Grand Marais. This morning will be spent clearing out the gear, garbage and oder that can collect in your automobile after a few days at a sea kayaking symposium. So for the moment let me just share some pictures from the 2010 Great Lakes Sea Kayaking Symposium & the wonderful landscapes & seascapes of the Pictured Rocks National Lake Shore region. Click here for the slideshow.
Posted in Cameras & Photography, Events & Symposia, Paddling | 
grand marais, lake superior, picturesSunset On Grand Marais
Published July 16, 2010 | 
Amazing weather here in Grand Marais on the shores of Lake Superior has made for a wonderful first day. The picture above is of Gryphon (age 9) out by the GM lighthouse for the last night’s sunset paddle. He and one other young person joined the group. Continue reading
Everybody gonna sing it out
Everybody gonna dance around tonight
Well you can come on to my place if you want to
You can do anything you want to do…
-mccartney
I have to tell you, I really dislike events where the organizers spend too much time telling coaches and participates what sort of time they are having; “We had a great day, didn’t we!!?”, “What wonderful weather we had today!” (so far so good….), “Remember, the most important thing we should do today is have FUN!”, (Warning! Warning!) “Give yourselves all a round of applause!” (There’s the wind up, here comes the pitch!) “Fun, great, fun, wonderful, fun, great, fun, weather, wonderful, fun, love, vendor, fun, sun, wonderful fun on a sticky bun fun!!!!”… (AND…. breath!)
You know what I’m on about! While all this pep talking might be fine in small doses, I think everyone knows what sort of “time” they are having and telling them shouldn’t be necessary. In fact when people start telling me what sort of time I’m having, I start to feel psychic beat down coming. Continue reading →