Archive for the ‘Commentary & Rants’ Category

September ’75 I was 47 inches high
Mom said someday I would have
A bad ass mother G.I. Joe
for your little minds to blow
I still got beat up after class
– ben folds

“Wow, those are some impressive numbers Greg.” “Yes, they are Marve. Now let’s see what the judge from Denmark has to say.” - So here’s the thing.  I’ve been pissing a lot of folks off recently. I even pissed off the manager of the local homeless shelter! Unusual for me, really.  But I’ve been told if you are not making someone mad, you’re hiding.  I get that…

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Everybody gonna jump and shout
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.   Read the rest of this entry »

In a churchyard by a river / Lazing in the haze of midday
Laughing in the grasses and the graze.
Yellow bird, you are alone in singing and in flying on,
In and in leaving. Willow weeping in the water,
Waving to the river daughters,
Swaying in the ripples and the reeds. – pink floyd

I was considering the other day whether sea kayaks were going to disappear, or at the very least slip off into the fringes of water sports. I wondered if it will soon become unprofitable for all but a few specialized companies to produce “real” sea kayaks.  I also asked myself.. how many people really need 17 foot sea kayaks?  Today there are so many paddle craft options that better serve the needs of paddlers who once had little choice but to buy a sea kayak or canoe to get out on the water. Read the rest of this entry »

And if I only could / I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
Be running up that road / Be running up that hill
With no problems…
– kate bush

Let’s go off topic a today just because I feel like it! That’s what’s great about a blog after all, the ability to just sit down and blather about whatever madness comes to mind. Today I’m going to talk about my other bad habit… trail running! Read the rest of this entry »

We told each other that we were the wildest
The wildest things we’d ever seen
Now I wished you would have told me
I wished I could have talked to you
Just to say goodbye – springsteen

The city of Two Rivers, Wisconsin has a Current Designs kayak on every corner along the main street.  Kayaks also decorate the fronts of a variety of businesses in the area as well.  The city even dedicated a park to the local kayaker’s called appropriately “Paddler’s Park”.   Two Rivers is a kayaker’s town.  Paddlers have the tireless advocacy of local businessman and kayaker Phil Rohrer to thank for the city’s attentions.  Thanks to Phil and the local clubs he inspired Wisconsin had a paddler’s mecca in the making… Read the rest of this entry »

Say you don’t need no diamond ring and I’ll be satisfied
Tell me that you want the kind of thing that money just can’t buy
I don’t care too much for money, money can’t buy me love
-beatles

I don’t know about you, but I need a vacation.  Thankfully tomorrow morning we’ll be heading back up to Point Beach State Forest on the coast of Lake Michigan for a few days R & R.  Sounds like the weather may be mixed, but hey, if we get some waves out of it I’ll be happy.

The Point Beach event called, “Kayak Week” is hosted by a group of paddlers from the Two Rivers, WI area.  It was this annual gathering of area kayakers that actually brought me into Wisconsin paddling “fold”.   Back then there was an amazing diversity of paddlers who showed up for a variety of local paddling events.   There was always something going on, and someone to paddle with or learn from.  Of course that was back before the days of  liability paranoia that put a choke hold on social kayaking. I hear all the time how these sort of free-wheeling gatherings have fallen victim to the hemorrhoidal area of  lawsuit fears, insurance & sanctioning debates that often burn more energy in a group than actual paddling.

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You are the sunshine of my life
That’s why I’ll always be around,
You are the apple of my eye,
Forever you’ll stay in my heart
-stevie wonder

We live in a funny world these days.  A world were everyone has something nasty to say about everything while at the same time everyone else is busy being offended or avoiding offending.. (Fear and offense make  for some amazingly deep conversations. Snark!)   In the kayaking world for instance we’re not supposed to say anything  negative about about anything, especially when it comes to kayaks.  Kayaks fall under the “One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure” rule.  The result is that if the thing floats and has deck lines.. it’s got to be a good boat.. for someone.   Fine. But let me say this..  Read the rest of this entry »