Hey there - still chippin away here in the northeast.  There might be no running water anywhere else in the country but theres plenty up here on the Tees - it might not be pretty, it might struggle to get Grade 3 in the guide books and it might not involve sherpas or old trucks on a 4 day trek in, but it runs every day and thats good enough for me at the minute!  No great leaps forward, just steady old progress on all fronts i guess, so at risk of turning into a text book or subjecting you to 'death by bullet point' heres a few bits of wots been ocurring -

 - realised too many of my flips were cos i was sitting too far back in my boat (which has a bit of a flat back end) so jammed the footrests further forward and pulled the backrest fwd as much as poss - result, better driving position, more upright/leaning a bit fwd, less lazy-boy style leaning back, and less flips.

 - the new driving position in the boat has made me a load more focused, so rather than worrying bout where the water is taking me i'm now a bit more in control of where i'm going and how i'm gonna get there.

 - bought a new dry cag, Palm Sidewinder, thicker material, better seals, more arm articulation than my last one - result, Bright Orange Rookie.  But heres an annoying thing - how come you can get separate dry cag and trousers for £300 but a full drysuit costs £400+ (or you can sign up for a £250 Lomo but you'll have to wait til after the next olympics for delivery!).  Haway manufacturers, get real lads.

 - realised the black blades of my cheapy £25 paddles werent just difficult to see when i was paddling but also i couldnt spot them after i'd bailed out in a 'flailing moment' and they got flushed down a couple of drops.  Thought bout splashing out on something more flash but being a cheapskate i bought some spray paint from halfords and painted the blades bright orange!  Result, far more confidence of blade positioning when in the boat (and theyre far easier to spot after a spill)

 - also realised i've had enough of reading books on paddling technique - its all good stuff, but for a 'leisure activity' i just dont need all of the L-I-S-T-S and P-O-I-N-T-S and D-O-s and D-O-N-T-s.  So I left it all to one side and just got stuck in to my paddling.  The only paddle print i get anything out of at the minute is Ed Smiths irregular piece on technique in CKUK - just a few good hints on boat or body positioning and then wrapped up with 'but dont worry bout it too much, just get out there and give it a go on the water' ... i'm probably old enough to be his dad but i always pick up something to work on, nice one.

E-N-O-U-G-H-!  Youve got the picture, i'm still chippin away, and however many times i get it wrong i'm always straight back at it trying to get it right. 

Happy New Year .

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Name

Email

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (Registered users only)

I have read and agree to the Terms of Usage.

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment