Teaching Tips For Kayaking
Published September 9, 2011 | 
Poor Professor Pynchon had only good intentions when he
Put his Bunsen burners all away
And turning to a playground in a Petri dish
Where single cells would swing their fists at anything that looks like easy prey
– andrew bird
So.. If you are a kayaking coach, you’ll certainly want to check out the ACA’s Teaching Tips for Kayaking. There’s a lot of good stuff in there. I especially like the bit about learning styles… Of course I am quickly reminded what kind of learner I am NOT, when faced with thoes lettery-memory things like “EDRC” not to mention this paragraph heading, “Paddle Orientation for Efficiency – Basic Naval Architecture” (which includes the diagram above). If I had to absorb coaching and paddling techniques through acronyms and diagrams, I’d be taking up another sport entirely.. something simpler, like space flight!
Actually though, don’t let my side track, side-track you. The ACA is doing a great job providing lots of information for folks who can learn this way.. I’m just going to have to wait for the comic book edit.. Oh, a butterfly!
Be More Than Mere Mortals
Published March 17, 2011 | 
Well, that might be overstating it a bit… What I meant was….
Rutabaga (In Madison, Wisconsin) announces ACA Instructor training courses for 2011
See all the details at http://learn.rutabaga.com/aca-instructor-certification/
NEW! Early season ACA Coastal Kayak Level 3-4 ICE – April 29 – May 1
Looking to finish up your certification process? Need an Update or Upgrade? Join Rutabaga and have your certification in hand by the beginning of summer!
ACA Instructor Courses:
Level 2: Essentials of Kayak Touring IDW (Sam Crowley – ITE)
Tuition: $255
May 14-15 8:00 – 6:00 Sat-Sun
Level 2: Essentials of Kayak Touring ICE (Sam Crowley – ITE)
Tuition: $125
June 18 8:00 – 6:00 Sat
Level 4: Open Water Coastal Kayaking IDW (John Browning – IT)
Tuition: $350*
June 3-5 8:00 – 6:00 Fri-Sun
Aug 12-14 8:00 – 6:00 Fri-Sun
Level 4: Open Water Coastal Kayaking ICE (John Browning – IT)
Tuition: $325*
April 29 – May 1 8:00 – 6:00 Fri-Sun
Sept 23-25 8:00 – 6:00 Fri-Sun
Level 3: River Canoeing IDW (Steve Harris – IT)
Tuition: $335*
April 29 – May 1 8:00 – 6:00 Fri-S
Level 3: River Canoeing ICE (Steve Harris – IT)
Tuition $250*
May 21-22 8:00 – 6:00 Sat-Sun
*Register at the same time for the Level 4: Open Water Coastal Kayak IDW and ICE or the Level 3: River Canoeing IDW and ICE and receive a $50 tuition discount on the ICE.
To register contact Nancy at nancys@rutabaga.com, or call 608-819-0587
(And tell ‘em Derrick sent you.. that way they’ll make you work twice as hard!)
Looking for Mr. Goodwave
Published June 1, 2010 | 
“Maybe there’s something over there!” Nope. The running joke of the weekend was that the most recent 1 footer to go under our hulls must have been at least a “4″. In the end, for students looking to upgrade their coaching level to an L4 the weekend was pretty much a wash out. As a cruel joke nature provided a beautiful weekend for paddling instead of the nasty one we were all hoping for. Continue reading
Posted in Coaching, My Paddling, Paddling | 
aca, Coaching, ICE, IDW, lake michigan, Milwaukee, wisconsinThree To Five
Published April 27, 2010 | 
The shadows in the park were longer yesterday
and Lady Luck stood still, waiting for the kill.
- tull
ACA Proficiency requirements for L4 open water coastal kayaking instructors call for among other things, 3-5 foot seas, 3-4 foot surf, 15-20 knot winds, & 3-4 knots of current to be in force during at least part of the certification process. Luckily not all at once. I know that at the moment as I’m getting ready to update and going to be shooting for the L4 this time around. Funny bit is that I keep thinking about how these conditions compare from ocean to Great Lake. Wind is wind of course and current is current.. Waves on the other hand are different. Continue reading
The Fairy Dance of the Oligarchs
Published April 6, 2010 | 
Show me sunset and I won’t forget
That I am one of two planets dancing
I am part of two planets dancing
– bat for lashes
What is important is often confused with what is required. What is required is rarely important at all, other than to those who require it. What is important is often very different. Thing is, sometimes you must do what is required in order to be free to do what is important… (yeah, it’s one of those posts…)
International Sea Kayaking Award?
Published December 20, 2009 | 
Imagine the coach saying, “In order to achieve the ISKA L5 level you will have to be able to disassemble and reassemble your Lendal 4 peice paddle in under 4.6 seconds”. Sorry, that was just the first thing that went through my head when I thought of Nigel Dennis announcing a new international sea kayaking certification program. Yup. You did read that correctly. I’ll leave it to other more investigative bloggers to ferret out the details. For my part I want to begin ghost writing a draft of the new ISKA Coaches handbook… “While other kayaks may be used, it is well under stood that Sea Kayaking UK kayaks are safer, faster, and better built than all other kayaks…” There will be a test!.. Oh, and investigative types may want to start here.
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.
Continue reading →